Getting Around Tuscany
From sun-dappled hill towns to Renaissance cities, getting around Tuscany is all part of the journey. Whether you travel by train, bus or car, there's a perfect way to explore every corner of this beautiful region.
From sun-dappled hill towns to Renaissance cities, getting around Tuscany is all part of the journey. Whether you travel by train, bus or car, there's a perfect way to explore every corner of this beautiful region.
Tuscany is a region of rolling hills, historic towns and picture-perfect landscapes, and getting around is easier than you might expect. While train travel connects most of the major cities, reaching the smaller villages and countryside often calls for a bus or car. The best mode of transport depends on your itinerary, but with a little planning, you can enjoy seamless travel across this unforgettable region.
Tuscany, like most of the rest of Italy, is criss-crossed by train lines connecting cities and towns of all sizes throughout the region. Train travel is often the most efficient way to move around Italy, and if your itinerary is focused on the larger cities, that's also true in Tuscany. Florence is the main rail hub, and most of the popular tourist destinations in the region—including Pisa, Siena, Livorno and Lucca—also have train stations.
Trains may have both first class and second class cars, though many regional trains in Tuscany will only have one class available. Some trains have assigned seating, for which you need a reservation supplement with your ticket, but when there is no assigned seat you can sit in any open spot in the car matching your ticket class.
Remember to validate your ticket before you board the train—there are no validation machines on trains themselves. Not all tickets require validation; if you're not sure, ask someone at an information desk. If you're using the Trenitalia app, you can often validate your tickets directly in the app.
Just because there's a train connection, however, doesn't mean it's always the best choice for every journey.
Before committing to traveling by rail, you should find out if there are any changes required and whether that means the overall trip will be much longer than you thought. It's also worth noting where train stations are in each city. In Siena, for instance, the train station sits well outside the historic center. Taking the train from Florence to Siena, then, means you'll also have to catch a Siena city bus to get to and from the train station.
The trains in Italy are superb for covering big distances from one region to another quickly and efficiently. Within one region, though, buses are often your best option.
Regional bus lines blanket Tuscany, linking hundreds of tiny towns with the bigger towns and cities. It may take a little longer to go by bus than by train, but bus tickets are usually really inexpensive. If you're not planning to rent a car, buses are probably your best bet to get off the proverbial beaten path.
Even when you can take the train between two places, the bus may still be the better choice. The best example of this is traveling between Florence and Siena. Both cities have train stations, but as mentioned above Siena's train station isn't exactly conveniently located. The bus station in Siena, on the other hand, is at Piazza Gramsci inside the old city walls. As soon as you get off the bus, you're a short walk away from all the things you're visiting Siena to see. Buses run from Florence to Siena (and vice versa) regularly every day, and the trip takes about 1.5 hours.
Autolinee Toscane operates buses both within and between cities. You can look up your bus options on their website. Choose the province you're starting in and then click on "regionali" under "altri servizi" in the left-hand column for the regional bus routes that serve that province.
Ticket prices vary based on the distance traveled. You can buy tickets on board the bus, but they're cheaper if you buy them in advance. Find out about all the ways to purchase a ticket including by tapping your smartphone here.
Although it's rarely a good idea to rent a car for getting around within cities in Tuscany, having your own set of wheels can be helpful if your itinerary is mostly in the countryside and smaller towns. A car also lets you set your own schedule and explore a bit more freely.
You can plan a driving route on the Via Michelin site, which provides not only door-to-door directions and drive times but also the estimates of fuel and toll costs for each route option. It's a good idea to also have GPS, even if you've planned ahead, in case of unexpected road closures.
Whether you're picking up a car for a leisurely multi-day Tuscan road trip or you're just heading out for a day trip, try to book your rental from an agency on the outskirts of whatever city or town you're in to avoid the hassle of city center limited traffic zones (ZTL). Violating driving or parking laws in them, however accidentally, can mean hefty fines.
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