Public
Transport
Bus
There is a comprehensive bus network run by Azienda
Trasporti Area Fiorentina, ATAF (telephone number: (800) 424
500, open daily 0700 hrs-2000 hrs). The bus network operates 0530
hrs-2400 hrs. Tickets cost €1 and are valid for 60 minutes,
allowing the holder to change buses or make a return journey within
the hour. Tickets are available for purchase at newsagents (shop
signs with a capital T for tabacchi), most coffee bars at Box Ataf
in Piazza Stazione and at automatic ticket dispensers. They are
also available on board the bus but only between 2100 hrs and 0600
hrs and even then at a marked-up price of €2.
Travellers must validate their tickets by punching them in the machine
on board the bus. A number of bus passes are available, starting
with a three-hour pass for €1.80 and the 24-hour pass for €4
and rising to the more extensive two-day pass for €5.70, three-day
pass for €7.20 and seven-day pass for €12. These are also
available at newsagents, coffee bars and automatic ticket dispensers.
Rail
The Italian state railway is Ferrovie
dello Stato (telephone number: (147) 888 088 website:www.trenitalia.com),
which is reliable and fairly priced, although hefty supplements
can be added depending on the type of train (Diretto, Inter-Regionale
or InterCity). By law, passengers must validate their train tickets,
by stamping them in the yellow machines on the platform before boarding
and failure to do so can result in a large fine.
Services operate from the central train station in Florence, Santa
Maria Novella or Firenze SMN, 1 Piazza Unita’Italiana, which
is known as Piazza della Stazione (telephone number: (055) 235 2061).
Situated in the north of the city, the station takes its name from
the nearby church and provides a good orientation point. Facilities
include an all-night pharmacy, a bureau de change, left-luggage
and an accommodation booking service. The squat building at the
far end of the station complex is a tourist information office.
Florence is on the main Rome–Milan line, which ensures a fast
service to Italy’s most important business and tourist centres.
Services include the InterCity, with links to Milan (journey times
is approx 3 hours 25 minutes) and Rome (journey time is 1 hour 30
minutes) and the express service, which links the city to Naples
(journey time is 3 hours 30 minutes). Both services are subject
to supplementary fares. For rail access to ports, there are regular
trains to Venice, changing at Bologna (journey time – 3 hours
15 minutes), or on a fast direct service (journey time – 3
hours) and to Genoa, changing at Pisa (journey time – 3 hours
30 minutes). The EuroCity train service links Florence to more than
40 other European destinations, including Paris, Basel, Munich and
Brussels.
Walking
The best way for one to get around Florence is to walk. The city
centre is compact and most of the sites are marked by the clusters
of camera-wheeling tourists. Tourists should invest in a good street
map, although getting lost in the cobbled alleyways is a pleasure
in itself.
Taxis
Taxis can be hailed on the streets, although they rarely stop. It
is better for tourists to hire them at the taxi ranks which are
located outside the train station and at most tourist destinations,
or telephone for one in advance. Taxis are operated by Radio-Taxi
(telephone number: (055) 4242 or 4390 or 4499 or 4798). The minimum
fare is currently €4 but with a base charge of €2.50 and
a running charge of about €0.80 per kilometre, this can mount
up very quickly. There are also additional supplements charged for
luggage (there is a maximum of four pieces), night-time travel or
travelling on a Sunday. A tip of 10-15 per cent of the fare is customary.
Limousines
Luxury cars, chauffeured by English-speaking drivers, are provided
by International
Limousine Service (telephone number: (041) 520 6565; fax number:
(041) 520 8396) and the Florence-based Mundocars (telephone
/fax number: (055) 598 644). A Mercedes 200 costs approximately
€310 for eight hours of hire. Stretch limousines should be
reserved in advance.
Driving
in the City
Florence is such a compact city, there is little point in bringing
a car. Traffic in the city centre (centro storico) is severely restricted
at all times, meaning that it is off limits to anyone who is not
a doctor, a delivery man, a taxi driver, or anyone staying in one
of the luxury hotels in the city centre. Visitors lucky enough to
be staying in such luxury hotels are allowed to drive their car
in for the purposes of parking only.
Visitors who make the day trip to Florence by car, the best option
is to park at the Fortezza da Basso, north of the
train station. It is a brisk ten-minute walk from the city centre
and parking costs €1 per hour – a veritable bargain by
comparison to the charges demanded by the car parks further in.
The length of stay should be calculated in advance and the attendant
paid ahead. Sightseers determined to spare their pins but not their
pennies, could try the underground car park at Piazza della Stazione,
which costs €1.55 per hour – a special ticket is available
for €72.30 for three days. Otherwise, visitors should park
along the Arno at Zecca Vecchia, and is particularly
convenient for visits to the Uffizi Gallery or at Parterre, near
the Piazza della Liberta and where a tourist pass costs €10.30
for 24 hours. Information on parking in the city is available from
Firenze
Parcheggi (telephone number: (055) 500 1994 or 272 011).
Car Hire
Several major car hire companies have offices in Florence, including
Avis,
Borgo Ognissanti 128r (telephone number: (055) 239 8826), Hertz,
Via Maso Finiguerra 33r (telephone number: (055) 282 260), and Maggiore,
Via Maso Finiguerra 31r (tel: (055) 294 578).
In order to hire a car, drivers must be at least 23 years
old, depending on company policy. All drivers without
an EU licence must carry an International Driving Permit.
Despite the popularity of motoring holidays, car hire in Italy is
expensive, costing around €245-542 a week. Basic insurance
is usually included in the price with further insurance an optional
extra, although the terms of this should always be checked.
Bicycle and
Scooter Hire
To blend in with the cruising Romeos, visitors can hire a scooter
or moped from Alinari,
Via Guelfa 85r (telephone number: (055) 280 500), just north of
the market place. Scooters cost from €8 an hour or €28
a day. The minimum age for renting a scooter or motorbike is 18
years. Outdoor types, fond of scaling the Florentine hills,
can hire a mountain bike from Alinari, from €18 a day. The
less hardy visitors can freewheel over the Ponte Vecchio on a more
basic bike, with prices starting at €12 for a day.
Florence
by bike, Via S Sanobi 120-122r (telephone number: (055) 488
992), also hires out bicycles and scooters. A 50cc scooter costs
€22.50 for five hours, rising to €143.25 for one week,
while mountain bikes cost from€3.50 per hour to €44.45
for three days and city bikes €2.50 per hour or €30.50
for three days. |
