Thanks to its location in central Italy and on the Mediterranean coast, Tuscany is easily accessible by high-speed trains, long-distance coaches, ferries and, thanks to its two international airports, by plane.

By air

The main belt of historical sites and natural attractions between Florence, Pisa and Siena is situated in the north of the region and is served by Tuscany’s only two international airports:

• Pisa Airport (PSA)
• Florence Airport (FLR)

You can generally find cheaper flights from Pisa, where Ryanair has a large base, whilst more traditional network airlines fly to Florence.

Combinations involving Pisa or Florence with a departure or arrival at Bologna Airport are also popular; Bologna is easily and quickly accessible from Tuscany by high-speed rail.

The southern parts of Tuscany may be more easily accessible via Rome, where you can use Fiumicino Airport and Ciampino Airport.

By train

Tuscany is very well connected to the rest of Italy by rail.

Trains are generally by far the best way to travel between any cities of any significance in Italy. Furthermore, the main high-speed rail line connecting northern and southern Italy runs through Tuscany, with most high-speed trains stopping in Florence, which serves as one of Italy’s largest transport hubs.

The busiest route is the high-speedMilan/Venice – Bologna – Florence – Rome – Naples line, on which trains run several times an hour.

To get the lowest price, it is best to book tickets for these services at least three weeks in advance via the official websites of the two main operators; the latter, Italo, often offers cheaper tickets than the state-owned Trenitalia when it comes to high-speed trains:

• trenitalia.com
• italotreno.it

You can also compare prices and buy tickets via the well-known website thetrainline.com.

The second very popular route is theMilan–Genoa – La Spezia – Pisa – Livorno – Grosseto – Rome, where, although there are no direct high-speed trains, long-distance services are still provided by high-quality InterCity or Frecciargento trains (mostly Pendolino trains, which we are also familiar with in the Czech Republic). Only the state-owned operatorTrenitalia operates on these routes.

The most popular domestic train services from Tuscany, with the main stations being Firenze S.M.N. (Florence) and Pisa Centrale:

• Florence – Rome (1.5-hour journey by high-speed train, fares from 24,90 eur)
• Florence – Milan (just under 2 hours, prices from 29,90 eur)
• Florence – Bologna (37-minute journey by high-speed train through long tunnels, fares from 13,90 eur; alternatively, a scenic route through the mountains taking 1 hour and 45 minutes from 9,45 eur)
• Florence – Venice (2¼ hours, prices from 26,90 eur)
• Pisa – Rome (3–4 hours, prices from 10 eur)
• Pisa – Genoa (2½ to 3½ hours, prices from 10 eur)
• Pisa – Milan (4 hours, prices from 11 eur)
• Pisa – Vernazza / Cinque Terre (approx. 2 hours, prices from 9,20 eur)

By coach

Long-distance buses in Italy are merely a supplement to trains.

Although tickets may be slightly cheaper, journey times are significantly longer on almost all routes. The operator Itabus.it offers significantly cheaper journeys as part of special offers, selling one-way tickets from as little as 5 eur on routes such as these; in exceptional cases, tickets can also be found for 2 eur:

• Florence – Bologna – Padua – Venice
• Florence – Bologna – Parma – Piacenza – Milan – Turin
• Florence – Bologna – Verona – Bergamo Airport
• Florence – Rome – Naples
• Pisa – La Spezia – Genoa – Turin
• Pisa – Rome

Ticket prices to more distant destinations start at 8 eur or 10 eur, which is always cheaper than the train.

Another popular coach operator isthe well-establishedFlixbus, which operates an extensive network of routes across Italy with prices starting from 5 eur, even on long-distance routes; again, it will often be cheaper than the train, though the journey time is significantly longer. Book your tickets on the flixbus.com website. Flixbus offers relevant services on routes such as the following:

• Pisa – Rome
• Pisa – Genoa
• Florence – Bologna – Modena – Parma – Milan
• Florence – Bologna – Ferrara – Padua – Venice
• Florence – Rome – Naples

By ferry

On the Tuscan coast you’ll find Livorno, Italy’s third-largest port. Ferries also sail from Piombino.

Ferries to other Tuscan islands, such as Capri, Giglio and Capraia, are described in the Transport section.

Ferries operate on the following routes from Tuscany to other regions or countries.

From the port of Livorno

• Golfo Aranci (Sardinia) – 2 to 3 times a day, journey time 7.5 hours
• Olbia (Sardinia) – 4 to 8 times a day, journey time 9 hours
• Palermo (Sicily) – twice a week, journey time 19.5 hours
• Bastia (Corsica) – 2 to 4 times a day, journey time 4.5 hours
• Ile Rouse (Corsica) – 2–3 times a week, journey time 5.5 hours

From the port of Piombino

• Olbia (Sardinia) – once a day, journey time 5.5 hours
• Golfo Aranci (Sardinia) – twice a day, journey time 6.5 hours
• Bastia (Corsica) – 3 to 4 times a week, journey time 2.5 hours

To find a connection or buy tickets, we recommend using the search engine directferries.com, which compares all available ferry operators.