Please sign in to post.
Holiday Sale! Save 20% Storewide!

Need step by step instructions to buy bus ticket on AT app

Posted by on

Hello
My family of 4 adults are travelling from Florence to Siena the morning of June 7. I need help with the following:
- Step by step directions on how to buy the 131R ticket leaving at 7:10am. I have navigated the site successfully to find the bus I want to go on but do not understand the next steps when I click on the “buy” button at the bottom of the app. The next screen asks for where I want to go and Siena is not an option. There are all sorts of other options - which one do I choose?
- I understand from a previous post on the forum that the bus stop for the 131R is not at the Auto stazione as it was in the past. The post as of 6/21/23 said it departed from Vitoria Veneto Bus stop. Is that still the case?

- Do I need to buy a bus ticket for a specific time and date or do I buy a ticket and go at any one of the times listed for any date I choose?
- Do I need to verify my ticket on the bus or somewhere before getting on the bus?
- I need to get my family of 4 adults to Sienna early in the morning so that we can go on tours once we arrive. How crowded are the early buses. Is it reasonable to assume all 4 of us will easily get on the 7:10 bus, assuming no reservations are provided for buses?

Any help is appreciated

Posted by
16624 posts

Natique, there was sort of a long conversation about the bus/tickets in one of your previous posts. The advice seemed to be that you don't need to purchase in advance online; go to the station and buy them. One poster said he'd purchased the day before, and another said she was glad she'd bought in person (also the day before) as the bus had been diverted due to road work; a complication she'd otherwise not known about.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/bus-from-florence-to-siena-on-june-7-2024-what-site-do-i-use-to-buy-bus-tickets-in-advance

Yes, you do have to validate the ticket before boarding.
https://www.at-bus.it/en/tickets-and-passes/buying-guide

Besides the station, there are many other sales points in Florence:
https://www.at-bus.it/en/tickets-and-passes/retailers/firenze

Also a help box on AT website if you have questions not being addressed here; scroll to the bottom of the page:
https://www.at-bus.it/en/ticket

Posted by
250 posts

Hello. The tickets do not have a time/date on them. That is one reason you must validate them. We always purchase our tickets one or two days before and validate just before boarding in Florence. We also purchase our return ticket at the same time. The bus is departing from the Auto Stazione, again. The Vitoria Veneto Bus stop was only temporary. You should have no troubles for your family getting on the bus.

Posted by
4657 posts

Consider using YouTube to help you through the process. With so many travel vloggers, it is a font of visual information for the new traveler.

Posted by
127 posts

Thanks Everyone!!! One last question - How crowded will it be to get on a bus out of Florence to Siena June 7th at 7:10am? Do I need to arrive super early to get a seat? Should I take the 6:10am bus instead?

Posted by
70 posts

We are doing this same trip tomorrow. I don't know the cost of the bus but I do know the cost of the train. We'll do whatever is cheaper. I'll report back.

Posted by
3515 posts

If you are in Florence the day before, just walk over to the bus station and buy your tickets from the staff at the ticket windows.
They will answer your questions too.

Posted by
70 posts

Ok. Bus from Florence to Siena is 9.30 per person, about a euro cheaper than the train. So we took the bus. We ended up on the "slow bus" at the :35s but we didn't want to wait around for the fast bus on the :05s.

Got off at via Tozzi in Siena. Seems to be where everyone else gets off.

We bought tickets from the machine in the Florence station about 2 minutes before getting on the bus. Note it did not like my credit card at all. I had to use my ATM card with pin.

When we got on in Florence the bus was maybe 1/4 full. By the time we got to Siena it was maybe 2/3. Lots of room. I wouldn't buy in advance. There is one slow and one fast bus per hour so if one ends up full I'd just take the next.

You're not buying a specific bus, just the route. So VALIDATE before getting on. There are machines in the station and in the bus.

Bus was HOT and it's only April. Fair warning.

This topic has been automatically closed due to a period of inactivity.