We were planning to head by bus from Siena to Florence, and while we are in Florence, do a day trip to Cirque. After Florence we plan to head to Venice.
Would it better to:
- Head from Siena by bus to Florence. Spend time in Florence. Day trip to Cirque Terre, Head from Florence to Venice.
OR
- Head from Siena to Cirque Terre by train. Stay the night. Cirque Terre by train to Florence. Florence to Venice.
Thanks!
Your other threads suggest that you're thinking of staying 1 night (1.5 days) in Siena and 4 nights in Florence (but with trouble finding a hotel). Traveling from Siena to the Cinque Terre first and spending 2 nights there might help with the hotel issue as well as allow a more complete or more relaxed visit of the Cinque Terre. Total travel time is similar for either plan.
Thank you. We have been weighing that option, as we have not been there yet.
Or you could visit Siena from Florence on a day trip.
I have never heard of Florence running out of hotel rooms. Maybe they may not have vacancies at a few facilities you are considering, but otherwise I've never heard of the entire city having no hotel vacancies. I'm pretty sure there are many thousands of facilities in and around Florence.
Check Trivago for the dates you are considering and there will be plenty of choices.
Of the two options you suggested, my suggestion would be Option 2. However one night will only allow about one afternoon for seeing the five towns of the Cinque Terre which is really not adequate. If you're planning on staying one night, you'll first have to decide which of the five towns you prefer to stay in.
Have you travelled by train in Italy before? Some of your rail trips will involve one or more changes and different classes of trains, so you'll have to be up to speed on that to avoid hefty fines.
