Visiting Tuscany from La Paggeria Without A Car
La Paggeria is located in a very good position from which you can visit Florence and Tuscany by train or bus, without the need of renting a car!
From Paggeria you can visit Tuscany without a car – we can help you plan and organize your daily trips by bus or train to visit towns such as Pisa, Siena, San Gimignano, Chianti, Lucca and the Cinque Terre.
How to visit Florence by bus from La Paggeria
From our B&B you can very easily visit Florence thanks to the many buses available, as well as discover the area surrounding Florence without the need to worry about city traffic. We, in fact, generally advice our guests to leave their car at La Paggeria and to take the bus into Florence in order to avoid the stress of traffic and lack of parking options in the city.
Just 150 meters from La Paggeria's front door, guests will find the bus stop where you can catch buses into Florence. Buses pass about every 25 minutes up until 9 p.m. The ticket, which has a cost of € 1,20, can be purchased at the coffee shop (bar) near the bus stop. You can also buy tickets on board the bus but they cost slightly more (€ 2). For bus schedules, ask us!
The bus takes 20 minutes to reach Piazza San Marco, which is just steps from the Accademia Gallery in the center of Florence. From here, within 10 minutes walking distance, you can reach the Duomo and then continue on to Palazzo Vecchio, the Uffizi, Ponte Vecchio and Palazzo Pitti.
If you stay on the same bus, 10 minutes later you reach the Santa Maria Novella (SMN) train station, Florence's main hub for buses and trains. From here, you can visit all other cities in Tuscany!
How to reach Pisa Center from Florence by train
From Florence's SMN train station, the train takes you directly to Pisa in less than an hour. Trains are direct and run throughout the day. Ticket cost: € 6,00 each way.
To check train schedules between Florence and Pisa, check out: www.trenitalia.com
How to reach Pisa Airport by train or bus from Florence
You can easily reach Pisa's airport by either train or bus from Florence's SMN station. Trains run from SMN directly to the airport and take about an hour ride. Cost is € 6,00.
From SMN you can also take the bus to the Pisa airport: you'll find the Terravision bus stop outside the station on Via Alamanni, in front of Bar Deanna. Bus runs both to and from the airport. Cost is also € 6,00 (ride time is about an hour)
Check out time schedules on:
How to reach Siena (and San Gimignano) in train from Florence
You can reach Siena by train from Florence's SMN passing through the station of Poggibonsi. Total time is about an hour and 5 minutes.
Cost of ticket: € 6,00
The closest train station to San Gimignano is 13km away at Poggibonsi, which runs along the Empoli-Siena line. From Poggibonsi, you can easily reach San Gimignano by bus. There are many going back and forth between the two towns throughout the day.
How to reach Siena by bus from Florence
Siena is well connected to Florence and is also easily reached by bus.
If you wish to take the bus to Siena, you'll find the main SITA bus hub at Via S. Caterina da Siena, 17R which is in front of the SMN train station.
Travel time:
'fast line' (1h 15 min)
'direct line' (1h 35 min)
Buses run throughout the day, cost of ticket is € 8,00
Check the website for times www.sienaweb.it/territorio/trasporti/rapida.htm
How to reach Lucca in train from Florence
You can also easily reach Lucca by train from Florence leaving from SMN or Firenze Rifredi. Travel time is an hour and a half. Ticket cost: € 6,00
The train station in Lucca is right outside the walls in Piazza Ricasoli, close to the S.Pietro entrance and from here you reach the historical center in a few minutes.
How to reach Lucca by bus
From Florence's SMN station you can also catch the daily bus to Lucca run by the company F.lli LAZZI (departures are from Piazza Adua, ticket office is in Piazza Stazione, 4/6). Travel time: an hour and 15 minutes; ticket cost: € 8,00
The bus station in Lucca is in Piazzale Verdi which is within the historical center.
How to reach the Cinque Terre in train from Florence
The best way to reach Cinque Terre from Florence is by train. There are regional trains that stop at each of the five Cinque Terre every hour. The main station nearby is the one at La Spezia; all regional trains depart from here. Just note that some trains only stop at Monterosso al Mare.
Departures from Florence's SMN to La Spezia include both direct trains as well as ones that require train changes in Pisa Centrale. From the station at La Spezia, you'll catch the regional trains for any of the five Cinque Terre. Travel time: about 2 hours, 50 minutes. Ticket cost: € 16 - 20.
For those interested in seeing all of Tuscany on daily tours with a guide, we can recommend the company Caf that from Florence offers comfortable coach buses that offer guided tours in English, French, Spanish, German, and Russian.
Regular tours run to Pisa, Siena and San Gimignano, Chianti and Cinque Terre.
For further details, contact us or visit their website at: www.caftours.com