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Florence from port (La Spezia) or Rome?


ckelly14
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We are on the Symphony of the Seas in July 2018. Taking my parents and it's their first time to Italy. We are staying in Rome 3-5 days prior to the cruise (still a work in progress).

 

My wife and my mother really want to go to Florence. We are considering a private tour from La Spezia (12 hour stop), but the tour operator (as well as a number of people on these boards) were hesitant to recommend it due to distance and logistic of the port (shuttle). They recommended this trip:

 

http://www.romeinlimo.com/la-spezia/lucca-and-the-tuscan-riviera.htm

 

As an alternative, I was considering a train ride from Rome to Florence for the day and seeing Florence on our own vs. motor tour from Rome, but it looks like quite a drive from Rome compared to La Spezia. I will have 2 elderly (but mobile) parents and 2 pre-teens in tow, which complicates matters.

 

Any thoughts?

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We are on the Symphony of the Seas in July 2018. Taking my parents and it's their first time to Italy. We are staying in Rome 3-5 days prior to the cruise (still a work in progress).

 

My wife and my mother really want to go to Florence. We are considering a private tour from La Spezia (12 hour stop), but the tour operator (as well as a number of people on these boards) were hesitant to recommend it due to distance and logistic of the port (shuttle). They recommended this trip:

 

http://www.romeinlimo.com/la-spezia/lucca-and-the-tuscan-riviera.htm

 

As an alternative, I was considering a train ride from Rome to Florence for the day and seeing Florence on our own vs. motor tour from Rome, but it looks like quite a drive from Rome compared to La Spezia. I will have 2 elderly (but mobile) parents and 2 pre-teens in tow, which complicates matters.

 

Any thoughts?

JMHO...

I would not attempt Florence from La Spezia - too far to travel with scant time in Florence. I would advise Rome to Florence via train with an overnight in Florence. If you added just one day to your pre-cruise stay in Rome, you could use a day to travel to Florence (preferably early morning), spend the day exploring Florence & then return to Rome early the next morning.

There is an early morning Frecciarossa that leaves Rome at 6:20am and arrives Florence at 7:51am. You could drop your luggage at your hotel, have breakfast & then begin your exploration of this fabulous Renaissance city. :cool: There are later trains as well.

You can check-out the trains from Rome to Florence on the Trenitalia site: http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en

Make sure that you input:

From: Roma (choose your station in Rome)

To: Firenze S.M. Novella (Florence, Santa Maria Novella train station)

Note: if you plan on visiting the Uffizi or Academia, pre-purchase your tickets online so that you need not queue.

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Florence is an easy day trip from Rome by train. The station brings you right into the heart of Florence, which is very walkable. If some in your party want to rest their feet, there are small city buses that navigate through Florence's narrow streets.

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Thanks for the info. I think an overnight trip is out due to the composition of our party- not interested in being responsible for kids, parents and bags on a train.

The other option is a day trip. From Rome to Florence r/t, the train takes only about an hour and a half each way. Leave Rome early morning & Florence late evening - doable?

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Will consider going from Rome. I think the excursion from La Spezia is out.

 

 

OK. So Florence is out.

 

Would love to go to Cinque Terre, but concerned about my parents mobility there. Also considering Pisa (kids would love it), Lucca.

 

There is a tour of Lucca and the "Italian Riviera" (Forte dei Marmi and Viareggio).

Any thoughts on these?

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OK. So Florence is out.

 

Would love to go to Cinque Terre, but concerned about my parents mobility there. Also considering Pisa (kids would love it), Lucca.

 

There is a tour of Lucca and the "Italian Riviera" (Forte dei Marmi and Viareggio).

Any thoughts on these?

We are not on your cruise, but on in june. We looked at options in LaSpeiza and decided on the on board excursion to, Portofino, Rapallo, Santa Margherita. We are both in our mid 60's and looks ok for us. Good Luck, lot's of options. Enjoy

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  1. We did Rome to Florence as a day trip to avoid the worry of hotel and overnight stops. We booked on the day the tickets became available through the website given and paid 9 euro each way pp. They have very limited discount tickets and price increases as the time gets closer to travel. We took the train around 7.30 am from termini and returned about 7 pm. It was September 2013 so still daylight on our return. We were very happy with what we achieved in the time we had in Florence. Be very very very careful about pickpockets everywhere in Italy.
  2. From Livorno we took a private shuttle with another family of 4 we met on the ship to Lucca and Pisa and had a wonderful day. Pisa is one of my favourite places in Italy however I know many who don't consider it worthwhile visiting.

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