Three days in tuscany without a car
Dear kris_76,
I understand your excitement for this trip, especially if it is your first trip to Italy. Three days are not a lot too see all that Tuscany offers so if you like our suggestions of all there is to see both in Florence and Tuscany, you might be able to dedicate another day or two from your overall trip
.
Since there are a lot of things to see and to do just in Florence, not counting the rest of Tuscany, my first advice is to be realistic that 3 days are not a lot and do and see what you do decide on without being in a hurry to see more, to pack more things in. This way you enjoy more whatever you end up doing. Another thing to keep in mind is that moving around by public transport can be time consuming, since you need to make time schedules fit in correctly.
Aside from that, let me offer a possible itinerary to get the most out of your holiday in Tuscany!
First I recommend you
stay in Florence's city center so that you're within walking distance to all the main sights as well as to the train and bus stations that will take you elsewhere. Regarding suggestions on accommodation: what about staying in a youth hostels in Florence such as
these? They have affordable prices, several services and are good places for meeting new people. Otherwise if you want to stay outside the city, I suggest a comfortable apartment in a farm near Florence:
Agricola Poderino offers an apartment located within 15-20 minutes by bus from the city center. If you want a B&B near Florence instead of an apartment, I recommend
La Paggeria, also located within 25 minutes by bus from the historical center although in the opposite direction from Florence.
You can spend your
first day in
Florence visiting its museums, monuments and churches. Here is an article about what to see in
Florence in 2 days from which you can pick out the main sights you truly want to see. I don't know if you are a museum person or not, but I strongly suggest you
book in advance any museum tickets, at least for the Uffizi and the Academy Gallery, if you want to go there. These are two of the most important museums in Italy displaying unique works of art and often have long lines.
On the
second day you can visit
Chianti, the Tuscan region famous for its wine and landscapes,
or Siena, the city of the Palio. Both day trips are beautiful, one different from the other. It depends what you'd like better: countryside and wine tastings or visiting a medieval city. Siena is very different from Florence. You can also do wine tastings in Siena or Florence, where there are many wine shops offering tastings so that shouldn't influence your decision. I suggest you read about
visiting wineries in Chianti by bus and seeing
Siena in one day to find more information about these different destinations in Tuscany.
On the
third day you can spend
a half day in Pisa, visiting the Leaning Tower, the cathedral and baptistery, all located in the same square. Then you can either catch a short train to
Lucca and visit this beautiful walled city in Tuscany for the rest of the day or come back to Florence to spend some more time in the Renaissance city.
There are several threads on this forum and articles about
itineraries in Tuscany, if you look through those I am sure you'll have some better ideas of what to see and do.
Don't hesitate to come back with any other question
