Florence and Pisa on a shore day possible DIY?

[jrewing007]

Hey guys,

 

Is Florence and Pisa on a shore day a good idea DIY and what would be the best way to do it. Pisa first the Florence or Florence first. Should we pick just one? I know Pisa can be done rather quickly but is it better to concentrate on Florence because of time constraints. Thanks

[euro cruiser]

It's possible to get to both DIY but it makes for a short visit in each place. It's your day, it's up to you to decide what's important, but if seeing a little of each place is your priority it can be done.

 

The trains from Livorno to Florence all stop at Pisa Centrale, so it's easy to get off and then back on another train after your visit, whether it is on the way in to Florence in the morning or on the way back in the afternoon.

[jrewing007]

It's possible to get to both DIY but it makes for a short visit in each place. It's your day, it's up to you to decide what's important, but if seeing a little of each place is your priority it can be done.

 

The trains from Livorno to Florence all stop at Pisa Centrale, so it's easy to get off and then back on another train after your visit, whether it is on the way in to Florence in the morning or on the way back in the afternoon.

 

Much appreciated Euro cruiser. Seems pretty straight forward. Any advice on prebooking of tickets to either?

 

JD

[euro cruiser]

These are regional trains so they can only be booked on line a week in advance.

 

One other point: if you are only making a short stop in Pisa, you don't need a separate ticket. The regional tickets are good for four hours from the time you stamp them, so you can get off the train in Pisa and get back on for Florence as long as you complete the journey to Florence within four hours from the time you started in Livorno.

[jrewing007]

These are regional trains so they can only be booked on line a week in advance.

 

One other point: if you are only making a short stop in Pisa, you don't need a separate ticket. The regional tickets are good for four hours from the time you stamp them, so you can get off the train in Pisa and get back on for Florence as long as you complete the journey to Florence within four hours from the time you started in Livorno.

Thanks Eurocruiser,

By the way, are there any museums in Florence besides prebooking the tower in Pisa that you would recommend doing ahead of time or is buying them when we get there sufficient.

 

Cheers,

JD

[euro cruiser]

If you want to go to either the Accademia or the Uffizi you should get tickets in advance. http://www.uffizi.firenze.it/en/musei/index.php?m=accademia

[Ashland]

Not usually a fan of ship excursions but we did the ships DIY Pisa & Florence and it worked out better than expected for us...Something you might want to consider.

[jrewing007]

If you want to go to either the Accademia or the Uffizi you should get tickets in advance. http://www.uffizi.firenze.it/en/musei/index.php?m=accademia

 

Not usually a fan of ship excursions but we did the ships DIY Pisa & Florence and it worked out better than expected for us...Something you might want to consider.

 

Good to know, thanks guys. Our ship docks from 7 to 7. Is there a train schedule online ? When we take the train from Florence back to port which departure would you recommend taking in order to get to the ship in plenty of time.

 

Cheers,

 

JD

[euro cruiser]

Our ship docks from 7 to 7. Is there a train schedule online ? When we take the train from Florence back to port which departure would you recommend taking in order to get to the ship in plenty of time.

You can see schedules on line at http://www.trenitalia.com. However, these are regional trains and to see what the schedule will be just check the same day of the week in the upcoming week (if you are there on a Tuesday, look at next Tuesday's schedule).

 

For a 7 AM arrival you can probably make either the 7:43 or 8:12 train if you take a taxi from your ship directly to the train station. Do not use the shuttle bus into town, you'll waste a lot of time that way waiting for the shuttle, then buying a ticket for the public bus, finding the bus stop, waiting for the bus, then finally getting to the station. Taxis will take up to six people (there will be others looking for a cab to do the same thing) for 25 Euro. A steep price for a three mile ride but worth it in time saved.

 

This puts you in Florence by 9:30 AM.

 

A 7 PM sail-away means 6:30 on board. You need to allow a half hour to get from the train station to the ship (in case cabs are not there waiting when you arrive - you may need to wait for one or call one), so you'd want to be at the Livorno train station no later than 6 PM. I always advise people to take the next to the last train that will get them there on time; in this case, that would be 3:28 which arrives in Livorno at 4:48. There is a 4:28 that arrives at 5:50 that would be your fallback option.

[cruisemom42]

Eurocruiser's advice is solid. Just as an aid for using the trenitalia site, the train station in Livorno that you want is "Livorno Centrale" and the Florence stop is "Firenze S.M. Novella".

 

The timing does make you realize that the day is shorter than you think. But lest you start to wonder if the cruise ship bus offers more time, it does not. I've timed it several times; they generally do not get people on the buses and get the buses started toward Florence until well after you could have been on the first available train. And while the meeting point in the afternoon is slightly later, you still net about an hour longer by DIY.

 

For some, that's not enough to make it worthwhile to navigate the trains on one's own, especially if you want to make the stop in Pisa. (However, I don't think you can make a reservation to climb the tower in Pisa if you are doing the bus because you won't be able to guess the timing....)

 

Unless Pisa is a burning interest -- and I know for some it is -- I'd just recommend spending the time in Florence to have a more satisfying day.

[jrewing007]

You can see schedules on line at www.trenitalia.com. However, these are regional trains and to see what the schedule will be just check the same day of the week in the upcoming week (if you are there on a Tuesday, look at next Tuesday's schedule).

 

For a 7 AM arrival you can probably make either the 7:43 or 8:12 train if you take a taxi from your ship directly to the train station. Do not use the shuttle bus into town, you'll waste a lot of time that way waiting for the shuttle, then buying a ticket for the public bus, finding the bus stop, waiting for the bus, then finally getting to the station. Taxis will take up to six people (there will be others looking for a cab to do the same thing) for 25 Euro. A steep price for a three mile ride but worth it in time saved.

 

This puts you in Florence by 9:30 AM.

 

A 7 PM sail-away means 6:30 on board. You need to allow a half hour to get from the train station to the ship (in case cabs are not there waiting when you arrive - you may need to wait for one or call one), so you'd want to be at the Livorno train station no later than 6 PM. I always advise people to take the next to the last train that will get them there on time; in this case, that would be 3:28 which arrives in Livorno at 4:48. There is a 4:28 that arrives at 5:50 that would be your fallback option.

 

Eurocruiser's advice is solid. Just as an aid for using the trenitalia site, the train station in Livorno that you want is "Livorno Centrale" and the Florence stop is "Firenze S.M. Novella".

 

The timing does make you realize that the day is shorter than you think. But lest you start to wonder if the cruise ship bus offers more time, it does not. I've timed it several times; they generally do not get people on the buses and get the buses started toward Florence until well after you could have been on the first available train. And while the meeting point in the afternoon is slightly later, you still net about an hour longer by DIY.

 

For some, that's not enough to make it worthwhile to navigate the trains on one's own, especially if you want to make the stop in Pisa. (However, I don't think you can make a reservation to climb the tower in Pisa if you are doing the bus because you won't be able to guess the timing....)

 

Unless Pisa is a burning interest -- and I know for some it is -- I'd just recommend spending the time in Florence to have a more satisfying day.

 

Wonderful information. Thankyou so much for taking the time! Cruisemom, By your post are you saying that if saving an hour is not that important it would be better to take the ships bus to Pisa and Florence, with going into the tower not of importance. Is it alot of trouble just to save an hour? We may want to look into it further. Don't know yet what the difference in cost would be doing it that way as apposed to DIY. Also what would be you guys recommendation regarding which order to take via train with a stop in Pisa? Euro cruiser, I know you mentioned being able to use one train ticket as long as we completed our trip to Florence within 4 hours of it being stamped. So it seems Pisa would have to be the 1st stop unless we paid for two tickets. If we did stop in Pisa what train would you catch in order to have enough time to see the sights in Florence without being rushed. Thanks again:)

 

Cheers,

 

JD

Edited April 10, 2013 by jrewing007

[cruisemom42]

Wonderful information. Thankyou so much for taking the time! Cruisemom, By your post are you saying that if saving an hour is not that important it would be better to take the ships bus to Pisa and Florence, with going into the tower not of importance. Is it alot of trouble just to save an hour? We may want to look into it further.

Cheers,

 

JD

 

I'm not really recommending one over the other. I just know from reading many posts that for some people, the extra logistics involved in stopping in Pisa, getting to the tower, getting back to the train and onward to Florence seem to weight heavily, and they have often chosen to take the ship's bus option.

 

I am a DIYer at heart, so I'd probably choose the train, with the caveat that I wouldn't stop at Pisa. (I don't find Pisa that interesting, whereas I could visit Florence over and over.)

[jrewing007]

I'm not really recommending one over the other. I just know from reading many posts that for some people, the extra logistics involved in stopping in Pisa, getting to the tower, getting back to the train and onward to Florence seem to weight heavily, and they have often chosen to take the ship's bus option.

 

I am a DIYer at heart, so I'd probably choose the train, with the caveat that I wouldn't stop at Pisa. (I don't find Pisa that interesting, whereas I could visit Florence over and over.)

 

Thanks Cruismom. We'll weigh our options based on your advice. We usually like to DIY but have sprinkled a few ships' tours in so we're not immune to other options.

 

Cheers,

 

JD

[Keith1010]

I would not try to do both Florence and Pisa in one day. You will just be rushing from one place to the other. I would highly recommend doing Florence.

 

Keith

[jrewing007]

I would not try to do both Florence and Pisa in one day. You will just be rushing from one place to the other. I would highly recommend doing Florence.

 

Keith

 

Hi Keith,

 

I know there are tours that would take you to both in one day. Would you still be rushed while taking a tour as opposed to DIY?

 

Cheers,

 

JD

Edited April 10, 2013 by jrewing007

[Keith1010]

JD, on an organized tour you could probably see both places. You would not be as rushed as if you tried to to both on your own.

 

Keith

[jrewing007]

JD, on an organized tour you could probably see both places. You would not be as rushed as if you tried to to both on your own.

 

Keith

Cheers,

 

JD

[Ashland]

On our ships (RCI LOS) Pisa/Florence DIY we went to Pisa first for 1 hour (plenty of time to see it but not enough time to climb the tower but this wasn't a must for us)..Then onto Florence where we had 4 hrs. on our own...worked out well for us with no need to worry about transportation. Our on bus guide was facinating and added so much info and history to this DIY that we wouldn't have gotten using the train on our own.

[jrewing007]

On our ships (RCI LOS) Pisa/Florence DIY we went to Pisa first for 1 hour (plenty of time to see it but not enough time to climb the tower but this wasn't a must for us)..Then onto Florence where we had 4 hrs. on our own...worked out well for us with no need to worry about transportation. Our on bus guide was facinating and added so much info and history to this DIY that we wouldn't have gotten using the train on our own.

 

Hi ashland,

 

Thanks for the tip!:)

[Matcodixon]

When we were there last year, I booked a "Transportation only tour" from the ship. It was reasonable in price and came with to guarantee that, as long as we were on the return bus, that no possible traffic delay would mean being left behind by the ship. It was not much more (if not even less) than any other type transportation available.

[CM2J2R2S]

Can you rent a car at this port?

 

I have been to Pisa and other than the required photos - I am not sure we need to do this again but I might like to take in one of - Lucca, San Gimi or Sienna and Florence. Maybe this is too ambitious for a short day....

[euro cruiser]

Can you rent a car at this port?

 

I have been to Pisa and other than the required photos - I am not sure we need to do this again but I might like to take in one of - Lucca, San Gimi or Sienna and Florence. Maybe this is too ambitious for a short day....

Yes, you can rent a car at Livorno. In fact, you can usually (except for Sundays) choose from multiple vendors.

 

Driving to Florence is easy but driving in/near the city is not because of the ZTL (limited traffic zone). Crossing the lines is an expensive mistake.

 

Driving to the other towns is pretty easy. There is good parking outside the city walls in Lucca, San Gimignano and Siena so it's easy to avoid the ZTLs there.

[ttnc4me]

Can someone confirm if I understand this correctly?

 

Take a taxi from the port to the train station

Take the train to Pisa centrale

Take a taxi to the tower

Take a taxi back to Pisa centrale

Take the train to Florence "Firenze S.M. Novella"

??

Take the train from Florence to Livornio centrale

either shuttle or taxi back to port

Is there Trenitalia website in English or am I missing how to change the language on the site?

We are there on a Sunday and doing the best I could in Italian, it shows tne only train from Pisa centrale to Firenze is 8:49pm.

[euro cruiser]

Can someone confirm if I understand this correctly?

 

Take a taxi from the port to the train station

Take the train to Pisa centrale

Take a taxi to the tower

Take a taxi back to Pisa centrale

Take the train to Florence "Firenze S.M. Novella"

??

Take the train from Florence to Livornio centrale

either shuttle or taxi back to port

 

Is there Trenitalia website in English or am I missing how to change the language on the site?

 

We are there on a Sunday and doing the best I could in Italian, it shows tne only train from Pisa centrale to Firenze is 8:49pm.

You've got the sequence correct.

 

For English on the trenitalia site look to the upper right of the home page and click on the British flag.

 

There are return trains every hour on Sundays.

[ttnc4me]

You've got the sequence correct.

 

For English on the trenitalia site look to the upper right of the home page and click on the British flag.

 

There are return trains every hour on Sundays.

Thank you. I've found English

Should we plan on purchasing 2 one way tickets, or one round trip ticket, and just get off for that hour or so in Pisa?