Hi all,
I am flying into Florence on a Sunday in October. Has anyone had issues flying into Florence? I've heard mixed reviews and that Rome is better to fly into. I am planning on picking up a rental car in Florence and driving out of the city, but if our flight gets redirected to Rome I didn't want to complicate things. Any suggestions would be great!
Would it not depend on where you were going upon landing? It is a major airport, I know of no issues.
The only issue I've ever heard about is that if it is very windy, the plane might have to land in Bologna. It's a great little airport.
ok great - I am staying in a town right outside of Florence that's why we chose that airport. I guess worst case if we got redirected we would just have to pick the car up in Florence.
Haven't encountered any issues flying into or out of Florence, including Fall/Winter itineraries. Not sure what you've heard, maybe we've just been lucky? The airport's on the small(er)-side [certainly compared with FCO:Rome], which is a blessing when getting your bags or picking up transportation.
We were redirected to Bologna due to wind. They then bus you to Florence
Can also consider Pisa airport as an alternative. It doubles as a military airfield, has two long parallel runways (10,000 ft versus less than 6,000 ft at Florence Peretola), and is less affected by the seasonal crosswind conditions that can necessitate diversions from Florence.
Getting a rental car is a snap too. We booked with Hertz thru AutoEurope on our own trip in May and we were in and out of there in nothing flat. It's about an hour's drive from Pisa to Florence.
Great! Thank you all for your responses. This was very helpful!
The only issue is that the runway is very short (5500ft) and has a mountain on the north side.
The mountain on the north side forces pilots to both land from the south and take off to the south.
That together with the short runway causes flights to be canceled when tail winds are above 10 knots. When that happens (more often in winter or during summer storms), flights are diverted to Bologna, then passengers are bussed to Florence (or viceversa).
The other issue is that due to these runway length limitations flights are subject to weight restrictions and cannot take off full at MTOW (maximum take off weight). Flights that cannot be filled to capacity cause higher prices, and in fact flying to FLR is often more expensive.
Other than that, if the weather cooperates when you go, it’s a great airport to fly into. Quick and easy.
Just one word of warning. Due to the short runway, the pilot has to slam on the brakes immediately after touch down. Therefore place your hands on the seat in front of you or you might hit your nose against it. But don’t worry. In the last 35 years only one plane didn’t stop before the end of the runway. So the safety record is good. Airlines subject their pilots to extensive landing training in Florence before flying there. And Airbus has equipped the planes operating there with a special powerful braking gear that is aptly called “Florence Kit” (but don’t forget to hold on to the seat in front of you).
If you've ever arrived at Orange County airport (SNA), the landing in Florence will feel very familiar.
