Incontinence Products for men in Italy

Italy does not seem to have retail stores comparable to the ubiquitous and convenient Rite-Aids and Walgreens that we have here; so you'll probably need to go to a pharmacia in Florence. There's a 24-hour pharmacia at the Florence train station.

If the train station location doesn't work for you, I suggest you ask your hotel clerk where the nearest pharmacia is and go there during regular business hours.

It will probably help if you look up, ahead of time, the Italian term for this product, in an online or hard copy Italian-English dictionary.

Kent,

Thank you for the note. Yes, this is what we found in Denmark, Sweden, et al. this summer. Of all places, we found the pads at what I would have called a shoe store. It was actually Melins on the Kungsgatan. They are really a "health" type of store, with Burgenstocks and knee braces and the like, and we had to ask for the pads and they were kept "in the back" as they were in most places.

At Apotoket we had to speak with the pharmacist each time and they then retrieved the products from the hidden depths.

I know the farmacia in SMN station, but can't seem to find a link to them for a phone number. I'll keep looking though. And yes, I will contact our villa owner to see if they have a suggestion.
Many thanks, Sally

In Italy, this kind of thing tends to be an "ask the pharmacist" kind of thing--things that we would find on the shelf at Walgreens/Rite-Aid.

You say villa owner...so I'm guessing you'll be in the country, and driving? not passing through the train station, is what I'm getting at? This could be a bit of a complication in locating a pharmacia--it's wise to do what you're doing, planning ahead.

It is usually not too difficult to find a pharmacy in Florence or any other Italian city. Look for the green neon cross signage. You may have to travel a couple of blocks away from the touristy areas, but it should not be too difficult to find. Try using Google Earth (download) to find locations around the city center. There are settings for points of interest and pharmacy locations is one of them. I know that there is an ancient pharmacy (oldest in the world) right around the Duomo area. I believe it is located on the north side of the Baptistry. Also, just up Via de' Martelli, running north from the Baptistry is another pharmacy. There is another near the Church of San Lorenzo (Medici Chapel). There are a few others sprinkled around the area south of the Duomo on Via del Corso and Via del Proconsolo. There is also a nice looking pharmacy at the Piazza della Repubblica under the arch there. If you download Google Earth and then in the "layers" settings find "places of interest" and check "pharmacy" and then in the search box choose "fly to" Florence, Italy and zoom in, you will see the green crosses appear. You may have to un-check some of the other layers settings to filter out some of the junk that will pop up on the screen so that you can locate the pharmacies easier. I am a pharmacist and have been to several pharmacies while in Italy and would pretty much bet that you will find what you need. Only for prescription and over-the-counter drugs will you need a pharmacist's assistance. Ask your hotel which of the nearby pharmacies are the largest and most modern. That will be your best bet. Also in Google Earth if you activate "street view" you may be able to see what the storefront looks like so you can determine if it looks promising. Where are you staying in Florence? I would not mind researching this for you!

There is a pharmacy on the Doumo square. If you're standing on the front steps of the church and facing the church look right. It is right there.