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VAN_2153Firenze, the Italian name for Florence, is a gem of a city.  Many years ago our family visited Italy.  We started in Venice and made our way south through Rome and onto Pompeii near Naples.  We absolutely loved Venice, who wouldn’t? We found Rome a little scruffy and crowded and then things deteriorated as we hit Naples. As we headed north, we knew we had fantastic accommodation waiting for us in pristine Switzerland.  So I took the executive decision to miss Florence.  A big mistake. Florence is a great city.  Easy to visit because it is compact and a lot of the sites can be done in a short period of time.  However, there is no reason not to linger in this wonderful city longer  (and eat their wonderful gelato).

Arriving by train is easy.  The station is within walking distance of all the major sites and much of the accommodation. Just outside the station there is a tourist office that is very helpful. If you arrive by car it is generally best to park outside the city (vehicle traffic is controlled) and take their very clean trams into the city (see the picture to the right).  The trams are cheap and terminate at the train station.  

If you arrive in Florence by car, there are places along the tram line where you can find parking, some of it free. The one we used, based on reviews of others, was the parking lot of the large COOP supermarket off Viale Nenni (called Nenni-Torregalli). Coming off the highway follow signs to Scandicci.  If you have a GPS put in “Nenni-Torregalli” as this is the station name. It is only about 15 minutes from there into the center and the trams run frequently.

If you plan to visit the statue of David, bear in mind that the Accademia Gallery museum is closed on Monday. (Check for other days that it is closed). If you can, avoid July and August because of long lines to major sites.  Below is a picture of the famous Duomo Cathedral taken earlier this year.

duomo cathedral

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Piers van der Merwe

Born in Zimbabwe, educated in Cape Town (UCT), now living in Knoxville, USA. I travel a lot for work, to a wide variety of venues that affords me the opportunity for taking interesting and varied photos. Hobbies, other than photography, include cycling and reading.
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