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Itinerary: Part 1- Florence

My husband and I will be spending 14 days in Italy (Florence, Naples, Ischia, Amalfi Coast, Rome) this May and I would appreciate feedback on my planned activities for each destination. This is our second trip to Itlay.

We land in Rome on a Friday morning at 10:15 and will then take the Frecciarossa train to SMN in Florence ( ideally the direct one but likely the one that goes to Termini then onto SMN) - the direct train doesn't depart until 1: 50 and arrive in Florence until 4:00 whereas the one to Termini departs at both 11:22 and 12:23. We will wait until we get there to buy tickets in case of flight delay.

  • Questions for the group: 1) is transferring at Termini it straightforward? We had a bad experience in Munich where we kept missing the train to Salzburg and it has left us nervous about train travel. They made track changes in German only.....2) can we likely/easily grab a sandwich for the train ride somewhere in FCO, or do they sell food on the train?

Once in Florence (around2 or 3:00), we will take a cab from the station to our B&B (La Residenza del Proconsolo), drop our bags, grab a gelato and wander around the Piazza Della Signoria, admire the duomo from outside and have dinner at Gusto Leo before heading to bed early.

Day 2 in Florence is dedicated primarily to visiting the Uffizzi Gallery. We have tickets for 0930 and plan to use the RS audio guide.
Thinking we will spend about 2.5-3 hours there then walk to Piazza Santa Trinita to hopefully see some street musicians and have a gelato, then walking to Loggia Lanza to see the statues before getting lunch at All'antico vinaoi

After lunch, walk to Piazza Michelangelo and visit Cimitero delle Porte Sante then walk back to hotel.
Dinner at Vin e Vicchie Sapporia (trying to get reservations) and if not Trattoria Mario.

  • Question: anything I should add to this day, specifically around the latter part of the afternoon?

Day 3 we will cab it to SMN after breakfast to catch either the 10:14 or 10: 48 train to Naples.

Thanks for any feedback.

Posted by
53 posts

Your pace is faster than my own, but I think it seems reasonable. I just wanted to offer some information about food at termini and Italian rail travel. Upstairs at termini there is a food court of sorts where you can easily purchase panini and other easy to eat foods. I’d advise you to get the apps for the train on your phone to better monitor the schedules for arrival and departures. Last summer during the 3+ weeks I was in Italy, my scheduled trains were either significantly delayed or canceled on more than one occasion. If you notice your train has been canceled, head immediately to the customer service area to get yourself rebooked with the assistance of representatives of the railways. Just my own experiences. Have a great trip!

Posted by
1220 posts

Sounds like you have your day pretty planned out. The post an international flight I would be planning on heading to the hotel for a siesta but I will mention that you essentially be passing the Bargello on your way back to the hotel. An extra hour wandering the sculptures of the museum would be time well spent. Remember that dinner won't be until at least 7:00 and probably later.

You should think about buying your fast train tickets ahead of time to save money and then just sticking to the schedule. The train station is pretty pleasant walk and will be much shorter than anything you walked the day before, but if you don't want to do it with bags I understand.

Rome Termini overview: https://www.seat61.com/stations/rome-termini.htm
Your fast train will very probably depart from the main Platforms 1-24 area and all airport trains should use tracks 23 and 24 so you'll be right there. It's been a few years for me but it is pretty straightforward. If you have a few minutes and choose to wander the station then you'll need to figure out how to get back.
I don't think there is WiFi on the FCO train so without cellular service you will have trouble checking the schedule before you get into Roma.

The AppTaxi app has worked well for me in northern Italy for calling cabs. Second the train apps for many reasons.

Hope that helps, have a great trip,
=Tod

Posted by
7368 posts

whereas the one to Termini departs at both 11:22 and 12:23.

I think you are referring to the Leonardo Express? That train runs every 15 min so no worries about which one you catch.
When you arrive and are through Passport Control and have your luggage- use the app or a kiosk and just buy the next LE and whichever fast train from Termini you plan to catch- you'll know by then which train you can make. Allow time at Termini to grab some food- plenty of options.

Typical advice is to plan on about 3 hours from arrival to fast train departure.

before getting lunch at All'antico vinaoi

The lines at the location on Via die Neri are always crazy busy. There is a second location up near Accademia that might be less crowded

Posted by
1264 posts

1) is transferring at Termini it straightforward?

Yes it is, but keep in mind that Termini is quite large, so you will need time to walk from one location to the next.

There are numerous videos on YouTube showing the train from FCO to Termini, as well as navigating Termini.

There are many food options upstairs, and if you have time, you could stop in at Mercato Centrale, which is near the tracks where the train from the airport arrives. It is an upscale food hall, and you could assemble a nice picnic for the train.

Posted by
373 posts

Thank you all for the very helpful replies.

Redheadlibrarian, thanks for the tip about the Italiarail app and booking tickets on the LE as soon as we have our luggage.
Hireman, good to know about the taxi app as well ( especially if we can use it in Naples where I hear taxis notoriously rip tourists off, but that's another post).
ChristineH, thanks for the tip about All'antico vinaoi. I have read that the people of Florence love a good sandwich as much as my husband and I do so may pivot to something closer if the line is crazy long.
Markcw, I had wanted to go to Mercato Centrale on this trip. Thanks for the suggestion.

Posted by
7368 posts

Use the Trenitalia app
Not italiarail- that’s a reseller not the official train company

Visit Mercato Centrale in Florence as well if you have time-great for lunch or dinner
( not in station)

Posted by
63 posts

My (then 14 year old) daughter and I really enjoyed Santa Croce which is not a terribly far walk from Uffizi. Galileo and Michelangelo are buried there and their graves are fascinating (Rossini and others, two Bonapartes, many others).

Uffizi is great! I love the Niobe display.

Posted by
1172 posts
Posted by
373 posts

Thanks, ChristineH. The Italian rail options are confusing!
pbscd, I will check out Santa Croce.
Thanks very much, Mary, for the links. I suspect we will be eating A LOT of pizza and pasta during the remainder of the trip, so look forward to getting our sandwich on in Florence :)

Posted by
7368 posts

There are just 2 Italian rail companies

Trenitalia is the official company-they run fast trains and all regional trains ( including the LE from FCO)

https://www.trenitalia.com/content/tcom/en.html

ItaloTreno is a private company- they only run fast trains on some routes- no regional

https://www.italotreno.com/en

Both have easy to use apps

All you need to know about train travel in Italy
https://www.seat61.com/train-travel-in-italy.htm