Parking - Florence
 

We will be staying in the San Gimignano area in October and are planning a daytrip to Florence - we have been to Florence previously but particularly want to revisit the Uffizi Gallery. We will have a car but would prefer not to have to contend with the Florence city traffic - we are novices at driving on the right side of the road and don't want to press our luck! We had thought of driving to a train station reasonably close to Florence and travelling the remainder of the journey by train. Alternatively, parking the car somewhere on the outskirts and either walking of using public transport. Any suggestions would be very welcome. Thank you. Clara

Would you consider taking the train for the entire journey...might be a lot easier.

Yes, we would Bootman4U - would that be by train or bus and where would we leave from? Our rental is fairly close to San Gim. but not right in the town.
Clara

I just read info at slowtrav.com that talks about how to drive into Florence and where to park. You might check it out.

It is easy to drive to the train station in Florence, then just park in the lot underneath, be sure and buy a ticket before you leave the lot.
You could also park in the outskirts of town or at the airport, but it is a little hard to find.

We have always parked at the Piazzale Michaelangelo, on the hill on the south side of the river. It's a large, free parking lot, with a spectacular view of Florence and a 15-20 min walk into the center. We usually take a taxi back up at the end of the day. I'm sure you can get directions there.

If you choose to park at the P. Michaelangelo (and it's a great location for parking and walking), be aware that there is an occasional scam run on unsupecting tourists. When we were there, a guy in an "official looking" dark blue outfit, directed us into a parking spot and then stood at the rear of our car waiting for us to get out. He asked for 5 EURO to park. Having been warned of this scam myself by somebody who had been scammed, I simply told him to go away. He did so without arguing. Had he been official, I don't think he would have done so. In any event, it is absolutely free to park there, so don't let anybody try to get you to pay. One suggestion, while it is easy to walk down the hill to the Centro, I would recommend taking a taxi back up, as it is a significant climb, even more so after a long day of touring Florence.

Thanks everyone for your help. I knew I would get good advice from the many experts on this site.
Clara