Looking for some help as this will be my first time in Italy.

My wife and I will be getting off a 7 day cruise in Venice and are trying to figure out what would be the best way to get to our hotel in Florence. We'll probably have at least a couple of suitcases so we want to make sure that whatever means of transportation we choose will be the easiest.

Thanks for any help/advice.

CS

I know there are fairly frequent trains...you might want to check the Trenitalia site to see times:

http://www.trenitalia.com/en/index.html

Suitcases shouldn't be a problem if you aren't arriving last minute - there's usually space. Just keep an eye on your bags during stops/transfers.

Although I've never driven, I imagine you can rent a car, but you probably want to drive between cities and not into them.

you'll love it. They use the high speed Eurostar Italia rolling stock--running time between Venice and Florence is roughly 2 hours 45 minutes (the high speed 150 mph line in Italy is between Bologna and Rome, Florence is roughly 55 miles south of Bologna).

Trains go at least one an hour--Santa Lucia station in Venice is adjacent to the Grand Canal, and the public transit "vaporetti" call there frequently (no more than a 10-15 minute ride down to the Piazza San Marco). Santa Maria Novella station is almost in the heart of Florence, probably no more than 1 mile from the Ponte Vecchio. Enjoy.

Agree with the above poster. The faster eurostar is more expensive and alternate between slower less expensive Intercity IC trains that make more stops. The price ranges from 25 euros to 45 euros on that route depending on the train and departure time. The ticket machine has english language option and you can pick the date, route, all the departure times, and price for each train - very very useful to help you plan ahead. I would go to the train station ahead of time to buy ticket to avoid sold out situations if you have to take a certain train. The machine accepts cash and credit cards. For IC trains, you sit anywhere you want within a certain sections of the train. There are overhead compartments to store your luggage. I really like the trains in Italy, comfortable, clean.

Thanks so much for the advice. Sounds like the train is the way to go.

Would you recommend buying tickets online in the US ahead of time or do you think it would be safe to buy the tickets once we arrive in Venice? Our ship arrives into Venice a day ahead of our departure date. Should we just buy our tickets the first day our ship gets into port?

Thanks again everybody. Love FT

CS

You should have no trouble buying the tickets in venice. There are at least 2 ticket offices at a travel agency in central venice.

An IC takes about 10% more time than the ES. Sometimes the IC is a lot less than the ES. First class in the IC is a delight. it is not reserved.You much stamp your ticket when you get on. the ES requires a reservation. no stamp ticket.

If you have heavy luggage with rollers, follow the handicapped entrance on the right hand side of the station as you approach to avoid the steps. you can also look around for a loose luggage cart. I always leave them at the water's edge when I board a taxi(to the far right).

Take a through train. changing trains at bologna requires steps.