Best Area to stay with a car in Florence?

you might want to consider staying in fiesole, its a nice town that overlooks florence. we stayed there with a car and it was a great option. we just caught the local bus from the town square into florence ( about 20min ride) , so easy. the views are very good and there are a number of things to see there. when we were there we had no problem getting meals at night etc.
hope this helps.

Just completed 60 days in Italy

Stayed 5 nights in Florence, had a car and parked in a garage right in city center.

Parking a bit expensive @ 30 Euro per day but no hassles

Walked everywhere

I would do it again

We stayed in Fiesole at Villa Bonnelli. The dining room overlooks Florence and our table at dinner looked down onto the Duomo. Just a short walk to the No. 7 bus from Fiesole to Florence.

Thank you for your helpful replies. Did anyone think that 6 nights was too many for a 3 week stay?

Six days in Florence is not too long if you plan to use some of those days for day trips. Personally I wouldn't stay in Fiesole, but rather somewhere closer to the center but still outside of it. My suggestion would be just outside of Porta Romana with parking (about 10 minutes into the center by bus). Easier travel out of the city imo but likely lesser views than Fiesole. Hopefully Roberto will also weigh-in with some good suggestions.

Where are you picking up your car ? Venice to Bologna and Bologna to Florence are well-served by fast trains. Could you pick up the car on your way out of Florence, tour Chianti region, turn in the car as you get to Rome ?

Could you elaborate a little more? Where do you plan to visit from Florence?

The least expensive lot is.

https://www.parcheggiovillacostanza.it/en/villa-costanza-parking/villa-costanza/

You can get a 7 day pass for €20.

Tram into the city takes 21 minutes and runs frequently.

Based on your plan I would rent a car after Florence. Instead of taking day trips from Florence (which in this case does not need 6 nights) you would take them from the countryside location (Chianti or wherever in Tuscany) which in this case you would increase in number of days.

To recapitulate I would change your itinerary as follows
Arrive to Venice
3 nights in Venice (car not necessary, obviously)
Train to Bologna (90 min journey)
2 nights in Bologna (car not necessary)
Train to Florence (35 min journey)
3 nights in Florence (no car necessary while in Florence)
Rent a car on the morning leaving Florence and drive to countryside/small town location in Tuscany (Chianti or wherever)
6 nights at Tuscan countryside location. Use the car for day trips to all desired small towns and destinations.
On the last day in Tuscany drive to Rome (drive is ~3 hours long not including stops)
Upon arrival in Rome return the car at a Rome city location.***
4 nights in Rome.

*** The easiest to reach rental return locations in the center Rome are at Rome Tiburtina station or at Termini station (Garage Gkolitti is where all rental car returns are. However there are many locations available for each rental company (about a dozen each) and depending where you stay in Rome other offices may be more convenient. Check the website of the company you end renting from to see Rome rental office locations and relative opening times. You can always change return locations at the last minute with no penalty. There is no drop off fee in Italy for returning the car to a different location from pick up.

If you plan to visit Orvieto on the way from Tuscany to Rome, you could also return the car in Orvieto and proceed to Rome by train. This is possible only with Hertz however, because it’s the only company in Orvieto.

We are pickig up our car after our stay in Florence when we head to Chianti.

From Chianti we will take the car for day trips to Sienna, San Gimignano, Monte Pulciano...

Then we drive back to Florence from Chianti to drop the car off, and take the train to Rome.

Therefore, since we are taking day trips from Florence by train and not car. Sorry, my mistake. Which area or area(s) in Florence would be the best location to stay in? I would like a quiet area, but close walking distance to the main attractions if possible.

Thanks so much.

If you still plan on 6 nights in Florence (I recommend without a car) you have time for at least two day trips by train.

One day trip by train could be Lucca and Pisa (you can do both in one trip, since they are close), Make sure you devote more time to Lucca. Pisa just needs an hour or two.
Another day trip by train could be to Arezzo. You could even combine it with nearby Cortona (in their case do Cortona first, then Arezzo on the way back to Florence).

Thank you Roberto!
Since this is our first trip to italy, and you suggest 6 nights in the Tuscan countryside?
Would you split the nights up 3/3 in 2 different locations? or stay all 6 in one location and drive from there each day for the day trips?
Also what would be your prefered area to stay in? Chianti or some other location ? Which places would you recommed us visiting?

I think we'd like to visit Assisi, but I am not sure where to fit that stop into our trip and where to get there from? Is it worth adding a night or two onto our itinerary?

We have our inbound flight to Venice booked, but have flexibility on the outbound date from Rome. So we can add antother day or two if needed.

BEST AREAS TO STAY IN FLORENCE WITHOUT A CAR
See the recent post below
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/florence-fb631604-698d-4dd0-9271-6b934b6c50bd

Maybe 6 nights may be too long in Florence? Feeling like it is.. We definitely will do the day trip to Lucca and Pisa. Thinking of doing a day trip to Cinque Terra? Is it worth going there? Will look into Arezzzo and Cortona. Will 2 days be enough to see the city of Florence?

Florence alone needs 3 nights (2 full days).
There are some day trips that are better done by train from Florence rather than by car. Those are the ones I suggested above (Lucca+Pisa, and Arezzo) because those cities have traffic and parking restrictions and are well served by rail.
Starting with a minimum of 3 nights in Florence, just to see Florence, add one night to Florence for each day trip by train you will take from Florence.
So if you plan 2 day trips from Florence stay 5 nights. The rest (4 nights?) stay near Siena.
As to the Tuscan country stay, there is no need to split it into two locations. Anywhere near Siena will do.
You can take a day trip from Siena area to Assisi. The drive is less than 90 min each way.

Chianti is beautiful, but roads there are very curvy, therefore if you plan lots of day trips you are better off basing yourself near Siena within easy reach from the freeways Siena-Florence or Siena-Bettolle-Perugia.

Yes, read this post.
Initally I wanted to stay near the Ponte Grazie bridge area. But then realized that it will be a long walk to and from the train station. So I am looking at other bnb locations closer to the station. But on a steet that is quite and feels local. I want to absorb the culture as well as see the important historical places

A relatively pleasant zone, near to the station and within walking distance to the centre, is the narrow strip between Il prato (consider where the hotel Villa Medici is) and the river.

Different people have different preferences, I probably more different than most.

I was just thinking today of perhaps taking a trip into Tuscany in early April because I have never been there at that time of year, so it is interesting to find your post.

Personally I think you are shortchanging Venice quite a lot. I'm assuming (right or wrong?) that you will be arriving from home in Hawaii.... after a long flight, or probably in your case a couple of long flights, you may well be a zombie. If you have 3 nights in Venice, at the best of times you only have two full days of sightseeing. The best times to see Venice without too many people around is just after dawn and from late afternoon into the evening. The first day you will miss the morning (maybe more, depending on when you arrive), and the afternoon or more will be checking in and getting your bearings, while tired. The next day you will likely suffer more jetlag so may miss either the early or late part of the day, and as the evening approaches for your third night you will be contemplating moving on. I'm one of those folks who likes my Venice in week long chunks. I don't expect you stay for a week, especially on your first visit, but I might suggest 4 nights.

I also think that just one day of sightseeing in Bologna shortchanges that special place. Can you add one more night there? Do you want to make the shortish trip over to Ravenna for some of the incredible mosaics? If you get hooked on them at St Marks in Venice or at the incredible church on Torcello you may decide that a side-trip would be a good idea.

I think - only for myself - that 6 nights in Florence is more than I would want to spend.

Are you doing more than Italy on this trip?

I don’t know what a street that “feels local” means. So I can’t help you there. If a street is there, it’s local to me. Also “absorbing the culture” is a phrase that is often used in this forum, but in spite of my efforts, I still don’t understand what it means.

In terms of quietness, most streets are closed to traffic. The Piazza where the station is, has a lot of traffic, therefore avoid it. Also via della Scala between via dell’albero e via fratelli Rossellini is busy. If you want to be near the station and near the sights look into the area around Santa Maria Novella. The area lachera suggested, basically near the US consulate and the old opera house, is an upscale residential area not far from the station, but a bit of a distance from most sights. The advantage would be that you can walk to the car rental offices. I went to business school there many moons ago.

I am from Hawaii which has a large amount of tourist who come to see what they think is Hawaii... Like Waikiki and other areas that tour companies take people in the city, hording people like cattle through tourist sights. Then rushig people onto the next place so they think they have seen Hawaii. However, with the hussle and bussle of "sightseeing", some people don't know or choose to experience what it is like to visit places in Hawaii that the people like me who live here go to . So "absorbing culture", includes going off the beaten track at least some or part of the time. So you are not only seeing the touristy things but appreciating and visiting the places and doing things that the people who live in that city enjoy. Eating food not preparted just for tourist, seeing places that people who live in those cities love to visit on their days off. Or places where it is not always flooded with crowds. Those kind of things.

That being said, since this is our first time in Italy, we are in a bit of a quandary , because we absolutely want to see as many maginificant places of history that each of the 3 main cities of Venice, Florence, Rome we are visiting as "first timer" have to offer. And we also want to visit and be in places that may be just as wonderful but not specifically designated as a tourist attraction.

There are beaches and resturants and places in Hawaii that I would suggest and take a visitor to that no tourist company would....At least thats whats absobing culture means to me.

Thank you so much for your wondeful suggestions. Really appreciate your insights as a person who has lived in Italy.

Aloha

In a nut shell I'd like to feel like an insider even though I am an outsider. And to see some off-the-beaten-path, in a style rooted in history and human relations. I love the human relations part!