Best Way From Livorno to Florence?

[Netty]

We dock in Livorno on Oct. 18 at 0800 and want to get to Florence and back. The question is how best to do this? We are three couples and could hire a guided tour but we really just want transportation. The train would be OK but we have heard that they can sometimes be unreliable.

 

Is there a taxi or some other means that we could use to get back and forth?

Thanks,

Netty

[luvz2run2000]

Check with tuscanybytaxi.it They don't do tours per say, just drive you to the locations you select. Their prices are very reasonable, especially if you have 4-6 people in the van.

[lorideco]

There were taxi's waiting with signs that said Pisa and Florence for 320E. I don't know if just Florence would be cheaper and I know in Naples we were able to get down the price of the taxi. Some drivers even speak English and will give you some kind of tour also.

[Suite 16]

We used Driving Guides --- dguide@ats.it - to go from Livorno to Florence and return. Will provide either transfer, or tour. Contact Paolo. We were very satisfied.

[Juliadlf]

We used Driving Guides --- dguide@ats.it - to go from Livorno to Florence and return. Will provide either transfer, or tour. Contact Paolo. We were very satisfied.

 

Does Dguide have a website address? Thanks

[Suite 16]

Juliadif -

 

Just type in Italy Independent Travel Team

 

When the list comes up - I think it is the second on the list - click. It will give you information. We arranged our transfer/sightseeing by internet, with Paolo at the Dguide@ats.it email address.

[Juliadlf]

Thanks, I've sent an email on transfers.

 

I also contacted the Tuscanybytaxi to see what their rates are.

 

Suite 16:How did you find dguide?

 

luvz2run2000: How did you find Tuscanybytaxi?

 

Just curious if they were recommend here on the boards or you found them through some other information channel.

 

Thanks.

[Stanley Wang]

The train is very reliable and cheap.

[Suite 16]

Juliadlf -

 

For the last several years, tired of cruise line excursions with the waiting, shopping, etc - I have lined up private tours for all of our ports of call. When I found Driver Guides, we were traveling with 3 couples - a Med cruise. I found all of our drivers/guides for all ports on the internet - usually typing in Private Driver/Guide, English speaking or something like that. When I come up with some possibilities, I try to check with local tourist bureaus to check on the reliability of the companies. That's what I did with Driving Guides. The other couples, seasoned travelers, were very pleased, to my great relief! Especially with Driving Guides - our ship was three hours late arriving in Livorno due to high winds, but our driver, Gianni, was waiting for us! The ship cancelled all tours to Florence, and it was too late for passengers to plan for the train, so we were among the very few who spent the day in Florence.

 

We often travel with our family of 13, and I am glad to report that we have never been disappointed with the privately arranged tours - and with that many of us, we have saved a lot of money, and have been able to plan to do just what we want. In November, we are going on a Mexican Riviera cruise, and have arranged private tours at all ports. The Cruise Critic Boards (cruise line, or Ports of Call) are a great way to learn about private tours, what to see, what to do, etc. Just ask a reasonable question, and usually you can learn a lot, as you are doing now.

 

Good luck with selecting transportation.

[edinburgher]

Sorry to come in this one, (while looking for something else) but its very easy to DIY Florence. Go to the Italian train operator Trenitalia at:

 

www.trenitalia.it

 

Theres a button to click for the ENGLISH version and its very user friendly. You get all your train times, stations and prices. We took at taxi from the port to Livorno station (its quite a way to walk) We then used our train info to get around. We again took a taxi back to the ship from Livorno station.

 

For anyone who does not want to go to Florence, I can thoroughly recommend taking a train to Lucca which is a beautiful old Tuscan town. Info on Lucca should be found easily in a guide book or on the net. We then returned by way of Pisa. It was extremely easy as theres plenty of trains on the Livorno?pis/Lucca/Florence line. Distances are short, travel time short, and the fares very inexpensive. Both are worth a visit, and its less stressful than the Florence trip.

[forevercat]

We dock in Livorno on Oct. 18 at 0800 and want to get to Florence and back. The question is how best to do this? We are three couples and could hire a guided tour but we really just want transportation. The train would be OK but we have heard that they can sometimes be unreliable.

 

Is there a taxi or some other means that we could use to get back and forth?

Thanks,

Netty

 

I will be using a private transportation company which came highly recommended to me: limoinrome.com

They will go anywhere you want after picking you up at the dock in Livorno, and are very knowledgable about the area. I am using them in Rome, Naples, and Livorno.

[forevercat]

I will be using a private transportation company which came highly recommended to me: limoinrome.com

They will go anywhere you want after picking you up at the dock in Livorno, and are very knowledgable about the area. I am using them in Rome, Naples, and Livorno.

[Susan-M]

Sorry to come in this one, (while looking for something else) but its very easy to DIY Florence. Go to the Italian train operator Trenitalia at:

 

www.trenitalia.it

 

 

Thanks for the link - I know I've seen it before (and it's in Ron's report) but your post gave me the incentive to print out my train timetables for Florence and Rome. Is the scenery nice on the trip from Livorno to Florence - i.e. will we see some Tuscan hills?

[anng]

Sorry to come in this one, (while looking for something else) but its very easy to DIY Florence. Go to the Italian train operator Trenitalia at:

 

www.trenitalia.it

 

Theres a button to click for the ENGLISH version and its very user friendly. You get all your train times, stations and prices. We took at taxi from the port to Livorno station (its quite a way to walk) We then used our train info to get around. We again took a taxi back to the ship from Livorno station.

 

For anyone who does not want to go to Florence, I can thoroughly recommend taking a train to Lucca which is a beautiful old Tuscan town. Info on Lucca should be found easily in a guide book or on the net. We then returned by way of Pisa. It was extremely easy as theres plenty of trains on the Livorno?pis/Lucca/Florence line. Distances are short, travel time short, and the fares very inexpensive. Both are worth a visit, and its less stressful than the Florence trip.

Hi Edinburgher,

 

Thanks for your very useful post. I have left this all rather late (compared to all of those amazingly well-organized seasoned cruisers who seem to have their travel arrangements for every port made more than a year in advance!) we leave for Barcelona on the 17th September to join our first ever cruise (Celebrity Millennium) on the 19th. Anyhow we are planning to do as much of the 'city' stops via public transport and tour buses. I am therefore going to book our rail trips via Trenitalia for Livorno and Civitavecchia (decided a private guided tour was a MUST for the Amalfi coast). I would be very interested to hear any tips you might have and in particular, as there does not seem to be an option for reserving seats on the Livorno - Florence route whether we should upgrade to First to be sure of getting seats (there are 4 of us and my mother's 73 and my Aunt has a leg injury so long periods of walking or standing are really not an option).

 

I would be grateful for any tips you (or anyone else) can give us.

 

Thanks, Ann

 

p.s. I work in Edinburgh and live in East Lothian!

[edinburgher]

Hi Anne, theres not many of us Brits on CC, probably even fewer Scots. We are near neighbours!

 

 

We just turned up and bought our tickets. No problems, but cant say if thats typical or not.

 

However, it sounds like the leg injury, the inability to stand/walk etc will make for a very difficult day out. Florence is usually packed with tourists, theres a bit of a walk to and from the station and lines to get in anywhere are usually very long. For those reasons (and because of high summer heat) we decided it wasnt for us. Its maybe not the best thing to do unless its an absolute must despite the downside. We had visited for a few days years ago and decided we would rather go back and spend a few days there.

 

If you change your minds, think about doing Lucca and Pisa instead. Journey time short, and its literally 5 mins walk from Lucca station into the old town. As you exit the station you will see the old town walls ahead of you. just turn left and walk to the gateway. Its a lovely little town, much more "user friendly" than Florence. There will be much on it in the guide books and on the net.

 

When we left Lucca, we went to Pisa, and there are 2 stations in Pisa. One is small, bit of a dump when we were there, but much closer to the Tower and surrounds. I cant remember if all the trains or just some stopped there. We got off there, visited, then strolled through the town, and got on the train at the main station to go back to Livorno.

 

 

 

I

[PAISANO]

We dock in Livorno on Oct. 18 at 0800 and want to get to Florence and back. The question is how best to do this? We are three couples and could hire a guided tour but we really just want transportation. The train would be OK but we have heard that they can sometimes be unreliable.

 

Is there a taxi or some other means that we could use to get back and forth?

Thanks,

Netty

 

 

You don't say what cruise line you are on. Celebrity has a shore/ex called florence on your own for 65.00 pp. for 9 hrs. they just provide transportation to and from. Your cruise line might have something like that. I had the same problem as you except we wanted to go to pisa also. What I did was e-mailed every driver under the sun. The cheapest I found was Tuscanybytaxi.com he gave me a price for 4 pax at 320.00E for 8-9 hrs. and that was picking us up, and returning us back to the pier. Another quote I got was from Driverinrome.com, they gave me a price of 325E plus 50E extra if we wanted to stop at pisa for 4 pax. They take you there and give you 6 hrs. on your own. For 6 pax it would be 350E plus 50E if you wanted to go to pisa.

I hope this helps. The only other way to get there is the train, or hire a taxi when you get off the ship. I personally wouldn't hire a taxi from the pier as I have heard to many confusing stories some good, some bad. If you choose say driver in rome for 350E divided by 6 pax, that would be 58E pp. That's still cheaper than what the cruise line wants and you have your own private car.

Good luck to you whatever you choose. :)

[edinburgher]

Anne, I had a thought after posting.

 

 

Although there are indeed 2 stations in Pisa, the smaller, nearer one is still a fair wee bit of a walk to the Tower, although less than from the main station.

 

However, if you have two people with mobility problems, the smaller station is not the kind of station where you would expect to find a taxi. It is really just a "stop". I suggest that if you do go to Pisa, use the main station as there will almost certainly be taxis there. Take one to the tower and then decide whether to walk back through the town or get another taxi. The town is not hugely attractive, but there are some interesting streets to walk, and the river views are attractive.

[anng]

Anne, I had a thought after posting.

 

 

Although there are indeed 2 stations in Pisa, the smaller, nearer one is still a fair wee bit of a walk to the Tower, although less than from the main station.

 

However, if you have two people with mobility problems, the smaller station is not the kind of station where you would expect to find a taxi. It is really just a "stop". I suggest that if you do go to Pisa, use the main station as there will almost certainly be taxis there. Take one to the tower and then decide whether to walk back through the town or get another taxi. The town is not hugely attractive, but there are some interesting streets to walk, and the river views are attractive.

Thanks, Edinburgher. That specific info. is really helpful. Mum is (thankfully) very fit (at 73 - fitter than I am at 45!!) but my Aunt although only 60 due to the unfortunate accident after we booked our cruise is somewhat restricted, so it's really helpful to have this kind of detailed info. We. like you, are fortunate in that we live in Europe and can therefore treat this cruise as a 'taster' of the cities and other ports of call and decide whether we return for a week, weekend or not at all. So we are not putting ourselves under too much pressure to see all the sights in one day.

 

Thanks,

 

Ann

[howian]

People who arranged private tours seemed to love it. Our Carnival ship did an average job. Note, many of the museums have lines but pre-arranged tours get tickets beforehand so you can go in and view the David, etc., while others wait. Carnival said one of the trains was delayed.

 

 

We dock in Livorno on Oct. 18 at 0800 and want to get to Florence and back. The question is how best to do this? We are three couples and could hire a guided tour but we really just want transportation. The train would be OK but we have heard that they can sometimes be unreliable.

 

Is there a taxi or some other means that we could use to get back and forth?

Thanks,

Netty

[BGJ]

We used Fabrizio Melaragno from "All Around Italy" (email: info@allarounditaly.net) who met us at the Livorno port and drove us to Florence. We were 3 couples and very comfortable in his Mercedes Mini-van. He was a delight! Entertaining and very informative and answered all our questions during the drive. We did not want an all day "tour", he just dropped us off at various spots around the city (it rained on and off all day) Gave us a lot of background information and found us a great little restaurant for lunch. He purchased our tickets to the Academia for us as well. We stopped for photo opportunity on way into Florence - beautiful Tuscan countryside of vineyards - and scooted home on freeway until we ran into a huge traffic delay. He managed to get off the freeway and drove back roads and got us back to the ship in plenty of time. I understand his other drivers/tour guides are equally as good. (Peppe, Alberto & Andrea) Trip with 6 people was less than the ship's excursion and much more flexible. Highly recommend. Good Luck!

[cruisemom42]

We used Fabrizio Melaragno from "All Around Italy" (email: info@allarounditaly.net) who met us at the Livorno port and drove us to Florence. We were 3 couples and very comfortable in his Mercedes Mini-van. He was a delight! Entertaining and very informative and answered all our questions during the drive. We did not want an all day "tour", he just dropped us off at various spots around the city (it rained on and off all day) Gave us a lot of background information and found us a great little restaurant for lunch. He purchased our tickets to the Academia for us as well. We stopped for photo opportunity on way into Florence - beautiful Tuscan countryside of vineyards - and scooted home on freeway until we ran into a huge traffic delay. He managed to get off the freeway and drove back roads and got us back to the ship in plenty of time. I understand his other drivers/tour guides are equally as good. (Peppe, Alberto & Andrea) Trip with 6 people was less than the ship's excursion and much more flexible. Highly recommend. Good Luck!

 

You do realize that you've pulled up a thread that's well over 5 years old in order to add this recommendation? :cool:

Edited April 26, 2011 by cruisemom42

[Springerlady]

I am presently doing research for cost. The cruise line offers this, so do private companies. Travel time is 1 1/2 hours into/return to Florence so make sure you allow time to meet your tour in Florence. It is expensive. Art Viva charges 520.00 euro for 2 people. Still looking.

[talentscout16]

Anng

I just booked some trains on trenitalia for November 2013.

What I did was create a user ID/password.

 

Then when I found the train I wanted, I added it to my cart - if you buy all 4 tickets at once they should assign you 4 seats together. Their system works best (and that is a STRETCH) if you allow them to assign seats vs trying to select your own (I never got that to work for me). Supposedly you can only book 90 days out on major routes and local trains only 7 days out. Many are non refundable. Good luck.

Talent

[John Bull]

You do realize that you've pulled up a thread that's well over 5 years old in order to add this recommendation? :cool:

 

Now eight years & counting....... :D

 

JB :)

[talentscout16]

Yes I did. I was multi tasking and got out of the post I was in and somehow got to this one. oh well. the info is there if anyone ever does what I did!!!