Travel time between Livorno and Florence?

[honeybee100]

My husband and I are planning to book through our cruise line (NCL) for a Florence/Pisa on your own tour, and we see that the excursion departs at 8:15. We're wanting to pre-book tickets for the Galleria Dell Accademia, but need to have a time...Does anyone have an approximation of how long it takes to get to Florence from the port via motorcoach?

[Hlitner]

The bus ride takes approximately 1:30 although it can be longer if the morning rush hour traffic is nasty.

 

Hank

[Keith1010]

As noted, normally around 90 minutes but can vary based on day of week and overall traffic. If it is a Sunday morning traffic will be lighter.

 

Keith

[honeybee100]

Great, Thank you! I think we'll maybe give ourselves 2 hrs to get there, in case of bad traffic.

[maggie cruises]

Great, Thank you! I think we'll maybe give ourselves 2 hrs to get there, in case of bad traffic.

 

before you book those tix to se David...do find out if they are going to Pisa first and then Florence...that will probably be the case as Pisa is further.

 

 

You did say Pisa and Florence right? if so, then I would think you won't get to florence until noon the earliest.

 

btw...I have done this trip...with a private guide...I can't imagine how complicated it will be with a full busload to time your tickets. You have to wait for everyone.

[maggie cruises]

Great, Thank you! I think we'll maybe give ourselves 2 hrs to get there, in case of bad traffic.

 

also..the bus aint droppin you off in the center of Firenze....buses are not allowed...you will be dropped off out of the main areas and will be walking toward town...not too far however

[MeHeartCruising]

before you book those tix to se David...do find out if they are going to Pisa first and then Florence...that will probably be the case as Pisa is further.

 

I'm pretty sure you mean Florence is further. Pisa is quite close to Livorno. But your thinking is correct. The sequence they do the stops could impact the OP. On one of my ship's tours, we did Florence first and Pisa on the way back to the ship. I wouldn't be surprised if they split the busses up to spread out the crowds some between the two locations. 2 different busses doing identical tours frequently do them in reverse order from each other. So no real way of knowing which stop would be first for your particular bus until it happens.

[maggie cruises]

I'm pretty sure you mean Florence is further. Pisa is quite close to Livorno. But your thinking is correct. The sequence they do the stops could impact the OP. On one of my ship's tours, we did Florence first and Pisa on the way back to the ship. I wouldn't be surprised if they split the busses up to spread out the crowds some between the two locations. 2 different busses doing identical tours frequently do them in reverse order from each other. So no real way of knowing which stop would be first for your particular bus until it happens.

 

yes..I was wrong with the geography...we did Pisa first so I was thinking that was because it was further..but thinking about it...it was probably because Pisa only warrants a short stop when doing both Pisa and Florence.

 

My vote is for a fun full day in Florence.

[honeybee100]

yes..I was wrong with the geography...we did Pisa first so I was thinking that was because it was further..but thinking about it...it was probably because Pisa only warrants a short stop when doing both Pisa and Florence.

 

My vote is for a fun full day in Florence.

 

Thanks for those thoughts. It did say the first stop would be in Florence in the description, but now I'm wondering if they'll do as one of you suggested and split the busses. I may call to find out. I did know we wouldn't be dropped off in the center, so I did factor in that time. If we go directly to Florence, waiting for people shouldn't be a problem as once we're there we're on our own; however, if we go to Pisa first, that could pose a problem...I did see on a different board that you can call to reserve tix that way w/out having to pay up front. I think I'll go that route in case something were to happen.

 

I've been torn between spending a full day in Florence or splitting the time, but I've always wanted to see the Leaning Tower, so I thought this would be a good way. In the future, I'll have to go back to Florence and give it the time I know it deserves.

[6rugrats]

Is there some reason you just wouldn't take the train on your own? It's inexpensive and easy to do.

 

I also vote with skipping Pisa and spending the day in Florence.

[honeybee100]

Is there some reason you just wouldn't take the train on your own? It's inexpensive and easy to do.

 

I also vote with skipping Pisa and spending the day in Florence.

 

I'm new to cruising and Europe (only been on 1 before Rountrip from Venice), and not too confident in my ability to navigate to the train station and make sure I'm back to the ship on time (my biggest concern).

 

So, from what I gather from you all is that Pisa is underwhelming?

[ab0si]

I'm new to cruising and Europe (only been on 1 before Rountrip from Venice), and not too confident in my ability to navigate to the train station and make sure I'm back to the ship on time (my biggest concern).

 

So, from what I gather from you all is that Pisa is underwhelming?

 

The Field of Miracles -- where the tower is --- is, arguably, the loveliest Piazza in the world. It is famous due to the leaning bell tower, but that is not why I like it. Beyond that, there are no "must sees" in the town. There are some interesting places to visit, but nothing a casual tourist would go crazy about.

 

Florence, on the other hand, has more great masterpieces (paintings, sculpture, and architecture) per unit area than any other city in the world. It takes over a week just to visit the "must sees" there, imho. But, I'm a Renascence freak and this was the heart of it all.

 

That said, one spends an significant part of the shore time simply getting to Florence and back. One can have a very nice day taking the train to Pisa and Lucca without spending 3+ hours in transit.

 

Taking the train is easy enough, but if you are not comfortable there seems little point in adding stress to the day.