I was there when I was 10 years old - now after 65 years, I'm curious to revisit. I'll be in Rome at the end of a Rick Steves tour and wanted to go to Forte dei Marmi and Pisa and then fly out of Pisa or Florence back to the U.S.
Any suggestions, recommendations?
Thank you so much!
Forte dei Marmi is 23 minutes from Pisa by train if you wanted to stay in Pisa and visit Forte dei Marmi for the day. It's longer from Florence and pushing the length of time I would do for a day trip - 1.75-2 hours one way - but if you want to stay in Pisa or the surrounding area that gets you most of the way there. There are trains about every hour but watch for the occasional gap rather than depend on there being one. No need to buy tickets ahead of time but that line serves the Cinque Terre tourist route so may be crowded for your section.
The train will drop you off a ways from the main beachy area so the last leg probably calls for a cab or a bus to from the more inland town of Querceta to the actual Forte dei Marmi. The official train station name is: Forte dei Marmi-Seravezza-Querceta
Wednesday is market day and Forte dei Marmi is well known for having nicer, more upscale goods versus some daily markets. There is a smaller Sunday market as well with more local produce.
Have a great trip,
=Tod
Hi Tod, thank you so much for your detailed information.
Do you happen to know about actually staying in Forte dei Marmi economically for a few days?
I so appreciate your help!
Sincerely,
Connie
Forte dei Marmi is one of the more upscale areas and will probably be a little more money than nearby places like Viareggio, but that areas near the beach for that entire section of coast is packed hotels and guest houses. Unfortunately, I've never stayed there so I have no personal recommendations. If you are willing to stay away from being right on the beach I'm sure you'll pay a little less.
You also don't say when you're travelling but if you are going to be there in peak beach season you're probably going to have to settle for what's available. Heading to the beach for the summer is great Italian tradition and places are often booked way ahead of time in the popular beach areas. If you're headed there in non-peak beach times you'll probably have tons of really nice options pretty cheaply because there are so many places.
When confronted with a completely new town I - and many people here - usually start with Booking.com to check out prices, availability, etc. I really like the map function so I can see where it is situated and compare different places in a general way. Then I start contacting those places directly for further investigation. If you have a specific area you can also use Google maps to see what options pop-up and search around and area or a hotel you like but is maybe booked.
Hope that helps,
=Tod
Thanks again so much, Tod. We will be there in mid-October - the Rick Steves tour ends on October 19, and I wanted to stay a few extra days and explore Forte dei Marmi. Would you have an opinion as to which airport - Florence or Pisa - is a better choice to fly back to the U.S. (Ohio)?
Much appreciated,
Connie
Pisa is better connected and has more flights than Florence and much closer to FdM than Florence so it would be my choice.
The airport is really close to the train station - take a cab, bus or the tram to the station in 5 minutes or so. I'm sure the starving students at the university in Pisa opt for the 20 minute walk instead because it's that close. I'd probably opt for the newish tram but I've never used the one in Pisa. The 5 minute ride will probably cost you more than your train ticket from FdM to Pisa but it beats walking.
October pricing will be better. I'm sure you can book a decent place for $100/night and probably a fancy one for ~$150/night if you search around. Booking.com has a room at the 4star Hotel Belvedere for about $150 a night. (Not recommendation just a fancy hotel at a good price.) You should book now because October is discount season at the beach but is still "in season" so a lot of places are booked.
In the local area there's Pisa, of course, Pietrasanta is an arty little enclave nearby if you want to explore the local area some.
Have a great trip,
=Tod
Grazie molto!
You've been so helpful - I can't thank you enough.
best wishes,
Connie
I used to rent a house with my friends at the Forte many many years ago when I lived in Italy.
It gets expensive and also with few vacancies toward the end of July and all of August. But in October, when you plan to go, there will be plenty of vacancies and prices won't be high for hotels. Actually, unless you go on an unusually hot weekend in October, there won't be too many people at all, and some beach establishments will have closed for the season already.
They have a wide choice of hotels. There are several 5 stars in town, which will set you back at least €1,000 a night, but you can also find more reasonable accommodations, maybe with 3 stars, that are below 200-250/night.
Restaurants can be of various levels, but even the more expensive, like Osteria del Mare, have prices more or less at the level I would find in California for similar places, so nothing outrageous.
If you go by train, know that the station is actually in Querceta, maybe a couple of miles from the Forte, so you will probably need a bus or a taxi, because it's not a short walking distance.
Thank you so much, Roberto. Great information.
I'm very appreciative!
regards, Connie
