[purplefrog]

I'm planning a family holiday to Florence. I'm just wondering whether we should spend 5 or 7 days there?

Here is a list of stuff I'm planning on seeing:
- Duomo and Baptistery
- Medici Chapel
- Gitto's Campanile
- Uffizi gallery
- Pitti Palace
- Boboli gardens
- Santa Croce
- Gallery of the Academy (to see David)
- See a few squares, bridges etc.

Could the above be done in 5 days?
Also plan to see the leaning tower of Pisa on the final day as we are flying in and out of Pisa.
And is worth dedicating one day for a trip to Siena?

Any thing I've missed out that you recommend? And should it be a 5 day trip or a 7 day one?

[rockrunride]

In Florence itself, 5. You'll end up spending lots of time doing nothing otherwise!

[Samz]

I agree with 5. I had a good time in Florence and it's a lovely place which I would go back too but I was only there for 3 days, I think 7 would be a bit much personally. I really liked Pisa too, it's really touristy around the actual tower but still good fun, Have an awesome holiday!

[JoannaMilano]

I went to Florence for 3 days and felt like I'd had enough of it by the end. Florence is a lot smaller than people expect it to be. My friends and I went for a quick wander shortly after arriving without a map. When we got back to the hotel an hour or two later and inspected the map, we realised we'd walked past pretty much everything touristy that we'd want to see. Five days is definitely enough to do the city.

[standreams]

Depends how interested you are in the art which is inside those buildings.

Art lovers could spend weeks in Florence and not get bored.

Personally, not being a huge art fan (sculpture aside), I found Florence to be a beautiful city but lacking in charm to some degree. Swarms of tourists and quite an oppressive atmosphere (hard to explain, it just doesn't feel very relaxed as a city, probably due to the lack of green space distributed around the city). The Duomo is spectacular, as are some other buildings- it's definitely a 'must see' city but I can understand those who don't really like the place. The tower in Pisa was surprisingly beautiful and impressive. I also think Lucca is worth a visit (at least one day).

Florence really seems to be one of those 'love it or hate it' kind of places. I don't hate it, but I won't be back in a hurry. Nonetheless, I'd still recommend everyone visit.

[purplefrog]

Thank you all From reading around and placing things on a custom map I guessed as much that 5 days is ample time within the city. I've allowed for 7 days (excluding the day we arrive which will be late in the evening and the day we leave as our flights from Pisa near noon). Hopefully we can get the city done in 4 of the 7 days and we can spend our day of arrival just walking round in the evening to orientate ourselves etc.

Does anybody know how much return train tickets will cost from Florence to:
1) Lucca
2) Siena
3) Vinci (birthplace of Leonardo Da Vinci)

I've heard about places in Tuscany that are farms/vineyards/olive-presses that give tours to visitors and host a seasonal Tuscan meal. Does anybody know where I can go seeking these out and whether they are expensive or not?

(Original post by rockrunride)
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(Original post by Samz)
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(Original post by JoannaMilano)
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(Original post by standreams)
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[JoannaMilano]

(Original post by purplefrog)
Thank you all From reading around and placing things on a custom map I guessed as much that 5 days is ample time within the city. I've allowed for 7 days (excluding the day we arrive which will be late in the evening and the day we leave as our flights from Pisa near noon). Hopefully we can get the city done in 4 of the 7 days and we can spend our day of arrival just walking round in the evening to orientate ourselves etc.

Does anybody know how much return train tickets will cost from Florence to:
1) Lucca
2) Siena
3) Vinci (birthplace of Leonardo Da Vinci)

I've heard about places in Tuscany that are farms/vineyards/olive-presses that give tours to visitors and host a seasonal Tuscan meal. Does anybody know where I can go seeking these out and whether they are expensive or not?

You can check any train prices and schedules online here: http://www.trenitalia.com/ (I thought that linked the the English site- apparently not. There's an English flag in the top right hand corner if you need it). There are also machines in every train station in Italy so you can check times and prices when you arrive without having to deal with trenitalia personnel who from my experience don't speak too much English.

Your best bet for finding vineyards and stuff would either be google searches, or asking at the tourist information office when you arrive in Florence You can find Tuscan food all over the place- Italy is a strange country in that each region is insanely possessive over it's local cuisine, so even food from the next region over is considered 'foreign'. You'd have no trouble finding traditional tuscan restaurants in any Tuscan town you visited. If you do find an agriturismo/vineyard that does meals and tours, I'd imagine they'd be fairly expensive but I couldn't guess at a price.

Oh, and have you done any research on Vinci? From what I know it's a ridiculously small place and there isn't really anything worth seeing. Siena however is lovely

[purplefrog]

(Original post by JoannaMilano)
You can check any train prices and schedules online here: http://www.trenitalia.com/ (I thought that linked the the English site- apparently not. There's an English flag in the top right hand corner if you need it). There are also machines in every train station in Italy so you can check times and prices when you arrive without having to deal with trenitalia personnel who from my experience don't speak too much English.

Your best bet for finding vineyards and stuff would either be google searches, or asking at the tourist information office when you arrive in Florence You can find Tuscan food all over the place- Italy is a strange country in that each region is insanely possessive over it's local cuisine, so even food from the next region over is considered 'foreign'. You'd have no trouble finding traditional tuscan restaurants in any Tuscan town you visited. If you do find an agriturismo/vineyard that does meals and tours, I'd imagine they'd be fairly expensive but I couldn't guess at a price.

Oh, and have you done any research on Vinci? From what I know it's a ridiculously small place and there isn't really anything worth seeing. Siena however is lovely

Thanks for the link. I tried a few different searches but none of them show the price as it doesn't let you book tickets for those routes in advance. Would roughly €10 each way be a good ballpark estimate?

And yes, I've done quite a fair bit of searching and it turns out all those tours or farm lunches are incredibly expensive. Do you have any tips for finding good local places to eat that aren't touristy within Florence? And what dishes/style dishes is traditionally signature Tuscan?

[JoannaMilano]

(Original post by purplefrog)
Thanks for the link. I tried a few different searches but none of them show the price as it doesn't let you book tickets for those routes in advance. Would roughly €10 each way be a good ballpark estimate?

And yes, I've done quite a fair bit of searching and it turns out all those tours or farm lunches are incredibly expensive. Do you have any tips for finding good local places to eat that aren't touristy within Florence? And what dishes/style dishes is traditionally signature Tuscan?

If you try booking too far in advance, it won't show up. Try putting your journey in the planner as if it were this week, and it will usually come up with actual prices. There's no price advantage to booking in advance and it's rare that trains get sold out seat-wise, if you were wondering €10 each way sounds about right for Siena, it might be slightly less.

I'm sorry, I don't. I don't know Florence very well, and I've never spent much time in Tuscany to know their foods. I think google or guide books would be your best bet. Bistecca alla fiorentina is Florentine Steak, which is meant to be good, but it will be pricey anywhere you go.

[purplefrog]

(Original post by JoannaMilano)
If you try booking too far in advance, it won't show up. Try putting your journey in the planner as if it were this week, and it will usually come up with actual prices. There's no price advantage to booking in advance and it's rare that trains get sold out seat-wise, if you were wondering €10 each way sounds about right for Siena, it might be slightly less.

I'm going next week booked a very last-minute holiday. It just specifically is one of those routes you cannot book online by the looks of things - and I only wanted to see the price, wasn't intending on booking anyway. Just trying to work out how many Euros to take as my dad is not keen on taking his card abroad. So currently estimating how much eating out, entrance and travel will cost etc.

Thanks once again for your advice, its all been really helpful