My husband and I have been to Rome, so have some idea of the challenges related to transportation in a large italian city with beautiful ancient monuments. But we are heaaded to Florence in December. We need help figuring out the smoothest way to navigate around the city with our elderly, mobility-challenged parents. They are celebrating their 70th anniversary and have never been to Europe! My challenge is that they can walk short distances, like through a museum, but not if they also had to walk a kilometer or two just to reach those museums. I assume we will be using taxis often, but will that allow us to get close enough to the major sites in the city center of Florence? (We chose the Anglo American hotel as our home base). Are there alternative transport options that anyone can think of to help us? We are taking a golf cart tour in lieu of the popular walking tours...other ideas? Are there plenty of benches for resting along the major walkways? And, if anyone has Christmas time must-see activities, please share. I was thinking of hiring a car to take us to Siena one day and also a train one day to see the festive sights in Pistoia.
Extra challenges in getting around Florence-Grazie per l'aiuto
- Thread starter DawnB
- Start date
Ciao Dawn,
It sounds like you will have a great time in December with your family! You're very right in being concerned about moving around with elderly parents, so the benches will come in handy. There are various large planters with benches along the streets near the Duomo and Palazzo Vecchio, so you should be able to find spots to rest. The good news is that taxis can go anywhere in the center, so you can most definitely plan to get to a sight almost to the front door of the majority of them.
What are your dates in December? Because there is a large Christmas market in Siena the weekend of the 7th/8th of December that I highly recommend, so if possible I'd say go to that. There is the German Christmas market in Piazza Santa Croce every year through the middle of December as well. If you think it can help, you can also look into renting a wheelchair or two to use with your parents, it could help you a lot if you feel that they might enjoy the sights more if they aren't too tired. The Misericordia in the center rents them for free on a first-come first served basis but they aren't motorized, so it could be tough to use on the cobblestones (although the newly paved streets are much better with less gaps and slowly most of the center is getting better). This page - https://www.visitflorence.com/moving-around-florence/physical-disability.html - has more links in the section toward the end of shops that rent the motorized ones, if you wish to try that as a solution.
Otherwise, the golf cart tour is definitely recommended as an alternative to get to view most of the sights without the walk, then you can definitely head to the specific ones you're visiting with a taxi.
It sounds like you will have a great time in December with your family! You're very right in being concerned about moving around with elderly parents, so the benches will come in handy. There are various large planters with benches along the streets near the Duomo and Palazzo Vecchio, so you should be able to find spots to rest. The good news is that taxis can go anywhere in the center, so you can most definitely plan to get to a sight almost to the front door of the majority of them.
What are your dates in December? Because there is a large Christmas market in Siena the weekend of the 7th/8th of December that I highly recommend, so if possible I'd say go to that. There is the German Christmas market in Piazza Santa Croce every year through the middle of December as well. If you think it can help, you can also look into renting a wheelchair or two to use with your parents, it could help you a lot if you feel that they might enjoy the sights more if they aren't too tired. The Misericordia in the center rents them for free on a first-come first served basis but they aren't motorized, so it could be tough to use on the cobblestones (although the newly paved streets are much better with less gaps and slowly most of the center is getting better). This page - https://www.visitflorence.com/moving-around-florence/physical-disability.html - has more links in the section toward the end of shops that rent the motorized ones, if you wish to try that as a solution.
Otherwise, the golf cart tour is definitely recommended as an alternative to get to view most of the sights without the walk, then you can definitely head to the specific ones you're visiting with a taxi.
Taxis in Florence can get you relatively close to the main attractions, but some areas may still require a short walk. Consider using Florence's accessible public transport options, such as buses with low floors or private car services for more flexibility. For sightseeing, the hop-on-hop-off bus might be a great option. There are plenty of benches in popular spots like Piazza della Signoria, and the Christmas markets around the city are definitely worth exploring! Your car and train ideas to Siena and Pistoia sound perfect for a stress-free experience.