We need to get from Siena to Amsterdam May 10. Can't seem to fly direct via budget airlines except from Milan to AMS. Is it better to take the train to Pisa or Florence and fly to Brussels or some other smaller airport in the Netherlands and then train it to AMS, or take the train to Milan and fly direct to AMS. Need to be in AMS by 1800 on May 10. I would appreciate any suggestions for the best route taking into account cost and travel time. Thank you!
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
You can fly directly from Pisa to Amsterdam on Transavia; but flights only operate on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Posted by
Central Connecticut, USA
1103 posts
Are you trying to catch a flight from AMS on 5/10? If so, it might be difficult to get from Siena to Amsterdam by 1800 hours. Just one glitch might cause you to miss that deadline. Have you considered traveling to Amsterdam on 5/9 instead?
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
Carol, You are correct. When I first checked the Transavia site, I entered an arbitrary date in March and found the Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule. I just checked the site again and found that daily service will begin the last week of April. You can leave Siena at 10:41, connect in Empoli and Pisa Centrale, and arrive at the airport train station at 12:43. The 2nd class fare is €8.90. All three legs are on regional trains so there is no advantage to booking tickets in advance. There is open seating and no reservations are possible. I have no idea what the road is like between Siena and Pisa, but droppng your car at the airport sounds like a good idea. According to viamichelin.com, if you drive via Florence you can stick to the autostrada (freeway) all the way and make the trip in around two hours. If you take the shortest route which includes the R 429 from Poggibonsi to just west of Empoli, viamichelin. com gives an estimated driving time of around 2 1/2 hours.
Posted by
OP
Sacramento, CA, United States
8 posts
Tim: thanks for the Transavia tip. It does look like we can fly on Thursday, May 10, but it is more expensive than flying on Wed. It seems from the website that we can catch a 1515 flight out of Pisa, arriving in Amsterdam at 1715. Does this look correct to you? We would need to take a train from Siena to Pisa - I do not yet have a handle on how to book trains yet, but from the posts I read, it seems like we can easily catch a train from Siena to Pisa and arrive in time for our flight. Bob, we have considered leaving a day early, but our reservations (already paid for) go through May 9 in Siena and our Amsterdam apt starts May 10, so we'd like to travel those dates, if at all possible. Anyone with experience taking the train from Siena to Pisa airport? Another alternative is that we drive our rental car (which we will have picked up in Siena) to Pisa and return it there, ideally at the airport. How is that road to drive?
Thanks for your input!