We are a party of 5 traveling in April, 2018. We have 2.5 days etched out to visit Florence and Tuscany area . Is it better to stay in Tuscany or Florence? Car rental is ok, if needed. Itineraries and hotels/castle ideas welcome. We will be coming from Venice and heading to Rome.
Posted by
Chicago
8234 posts
Stay in Florence for 2.5 days.
That is not much time to do daytrips to other towns in Tuscany.
Posted by
Huntsville, AL, USA
8362 posts
Stay in Florence form the time you will be there. You could rent a car for a day and head south into Tuscany. Many catch a bus down to Siena from the side of McDonald's across the street from the Florence train station.
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
5665 posts
2 1/2 days is barely enough time just to hit the highlights of Florence, never mind the rest of Tuscany. Stay in Florence, as suggested. If you want a day trip, pick one town that can be reached by train or bus. If you REALLY want to rent a car for the day, it's really important that you read up on driving tips for Europe in general and Italy in particular. Know about rental insurance requirements for Italy. Know about traffic cameras, and speed limits. Know about ZTLs! And of course get an International Drivers Permit. This link takes you to Rick's Driving tips- https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation
Posted by
Toledo, Ohio, US
11613 posts
Renting a car will probably take more time than visiting a city by bus or train. Then there's the parking issue.
You are already in Tuscany, so the regional bus system should work well for destinations from Firenze. Train stations in hill towns tend to be at the bottom of the hill, so a local bus or taxi is needed to get into town. Bus stations tend to drop you in or near the center.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Thanks all. We are looking at readjusting some dates.