My husband and I are traveling to Italy for a wedding, and after we see Venice, we want to see Florence, Cinque Terre and Siena. (We've seen Rome.) The wedding is in Pelago at the Castello di Ristonchi. We figured staying west of Florence will be the best bet for travel to these places and lower cost. Which option is better? Any suggestions welcomed!
Posted by
5561 posts
transport? Are you driving to the wedding?
I don't consider that day trip range to Cinque Terre (CT)--can you stay in more than one location? How many days do you have?
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
5895 posts
Are you planning on doing all of this before or after the wedding? Or is the wedding sandwiched somewhere in the middle of all this? Are you planning on renting a car for the wedding? Because aside from that, I can't see why you would want to stay in either of those places if you want to visit Florence, the CT, and Siena. It would make more logistical sense to stay in Florence because it's a transportation hub for most of Tuscany, and those 3 places are easily visited by train or bus, and a car would be more hindrance than help. CT is really not a day trip from that part of Tuscany, and in any event needs more than a few hours.
Posted by
OP
4 posts
We have ten days to play with. Leave US on May 20. We plan to fly to Florence (cheaper), get a train to Venice. We thought perhaps staying west would help us get to Cinque Terre faster. Plus be cheaper. We didn't budget for this trip. It is a wedding of dear friends' daughter.
May 21 Go to Venice
May 22, 23 Venice
May 23 at night Go to Florence (Stay in town to the west or Florence)
May 24 and 25 Florence
May 26 Cinque Terre
May 27 Siena head to Castle by 4:00
Day 8, 9, 10 are at the wedding. A three day affair in Tuscany!
Are we trying to do too much? I would love to see Siena!
Posted by
OP
4 posts
Perhaps we only do one day in Florence so we can spend more time in Cinque Terre?
Posted by
Firenze, Italy
1806 posts
San Miniato is nicer than Prato but Prato is much closer and more convenient for transportation. I am not convinced about the idea of staying out of Florence to spare money; it adds a layer of complexity to transportation issues and does not really spare time. In any case, I am wondering how you will get to Pelago without a car. A marriage party in Pelago is likely to be deeply in the country. (Ristonchi is very deeply in the country)
Posted by
5561 posts
Please share transport details.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16387 posts
Pelago is on the way to Consuma Pass, therefore East of Florence, opposite to Prato or San Miniato. You definitely need a car to get to that wedding.
For what you intend to do, aside from the wedding, you should stay in Florence preferably within striking distance from the SMN station.
Or you could also rent a car in La Spezia then head back to Siena, spend the night and the next day go to Pelago.