Florence - Undecided

[Joy Scott]

Need help in decision of what to do. Of course there is not enough time in one port day to do all. We will be traveling with our teenager starting in Paris with big city, museums etc, then on to cruising that will also include Rome with big city, museums etc.

At the Livorno port, she wants to see Pisa. What we can't decide is what to do with the rest of the day. Trying to decide between Florence, another big city, museums etc or maybe a nice drive through Tuscan hillside towns (renting a car). Is Florence something that we should just not miss?

Decisions, decisions.:rolleyes:

[euro cruiser]

Florence is a place everyone should experience, but that doesn't mean it has to happen on this particular trip.

 

One day isn't enough time to fully see anyplace, so set your expectations accordingly and enjoy what you do. The Piazza dei Miracoli, where the leaning tower is located, can easily consume half a day between the tower, the cathedral, the baptistry, the cemetery and the duomo museum (which is wonderful, by the way), not to mention a stroll through all of the souvenir vendors' stands.

 

Lucca is a nice place to visit along with Pisa. This can be done by train or by car.

 

For a more unusual, but low stress day, you could combine a visit to Pisa with a visit to Montecatini Alto (about an hour drive), where you can ride a funiculare (one of the oldest still in use) to the mountain top town and have lunch. You can read about it here: http://www.funicolare1898.it/english/montecatini_alto.html

[stumart]

Florence is great..Duomo Cathedral church is beautiful...statue of David on display...muesum has priceless items & paintings...every thing is in walk distance; one mile radius. Food was good, great peppercorn steaks.

[euro cruiser]

Here's some information on the beaches south of Livorno: http://www.maremmaguide.com/maremma_livornese.html

[chipmaster]

A lot depends on your and your "teenager's" interest.

 

You could be all museumed out and not want to see Uffizi or Academia, or Paris could have just whet your appetite.

 

If you do private tour you can likely do Pisa and climb the tower in the early morning, be in Florence for by lunch time. We did such a tour and did the Academia and David, pre-reserved. Then did several churches, Dumo and few other major sites in Florence. Unfortunantly a day is simply not enough to do more but just scratch the surface. A lot depends on what you want to do. Florence is afterall the center of some very historical time periods of Western cultural, worth a go unless one is certain they will return on a land trip or multiple cruises to take it bit by bit.

 

Good luck

 

 

Need help in decision of what to do. Of course there is not enough time in one port day to do all. We will be traveling with our teenager starting in Paris with big city, museums etc, then on to cruising that will also include Rome with big city, museums etc.

At the Livorno port, she wants to see Pisa. What we can't decide is what to do with the rest of the day. Trying to decide between Florence, another big city, museums etc or maybe a nice drive through Tuscan hillside towns (renting a car). Is Florence something that we should just not miss?

Decisions, decisions.:rolleyes:

[-Lew-]

By the time you get to Livorno, you may need a break from big cities and museums. Personally, I'd skip Pisa and make my way to the Tuscan countryside.

 

Rent a car, take a ship's or private excursion to visit San Gimignano and Voltera. It'll be a relaxing day that you will enjoy.

 

Enjoy your cruise...

 

Lew

[ActiveTraveler]

If you do private tour you can likely do Pisa and climb the tower in the early morning, be in Florence for by lunch time. We did such a tour and did the Academia and David, pre-reserved. Then did several churches, Dumo and few other major sites in Florence. Unfortunantly a day is simply not enough to do more but just scratch the surface. A lot depends on what you want to do. Florence is afterall the center of some very historical time periods of Western cultural, worth a go unless one is certain they will return on a land trip or multiple cruises to take it bit by bit.

 

Are you saying Pisa only takes a few hours? If there is so little to see in that town, I'm staying out of it to concentrate on Florence because I know that city has a lot more for me to see and do. I am not a morning person, so there is no way I can get to the tower in time to beat the long lines. Just wondering though, does the Leaning Tower have any purpose outside of tourism?

[Keith1010]

Do not try to do Pisa and Florence the same day. You just can't do both justice.

 

While we loved Florence this is one of those trips that you need to pace yourself a bit. Florence is very crowded so and given you will have a teenager with you I would go to Pisa and spend the afternoon back in Livorno where you can just walk around for a couple of hours.

 

Keith

[kuldalai]

One would be doing Florence a great disservice by trying to do anything there in half a day, at a minimum you need 3 days in Florence it is one of the earths cradle of the arts . Much better option from Pisa is to take the train to LA SPEZIA which is on the Mediteranean Coast and is a lovely coastal village that the local Italians swarm to on Weekends in the Summer months .

[Archie's Mom]

I am curious why your daughter wants to see Pisa. To me, it is a third tier attraction. I first saw the Leaning Tower as an 18 year old recent high school graduate. It was fine and the basilica nearby was lovely. But it was nothing compared to what I experienced in Florence. If your daughter saw nothing more than Michelangelo's David on her entire cruise, I think it would be a fabulous memory for her. Seeing David and its unbelievable perfection ranks right up there with Machu Picchu, the Pantheon and the Pyramids for me. Just me, but I would rank Florence above all other attractions in Italy.

[Joy Scott]

I totally get where you are coming from, I feel the same way about the Pieta, it made me cry and can't wait to see it again on this trip. And yes, the pyramids where incredible - won't be doing that this time.

She too is an 18 year old, we are doing this trip as a graduation present in hopes of extension of her education that only travel can give her (as your Mark Twain quote so aptly says) and Pisa was just something she really wanted to see... so on we go.

 

Thanks for all the input!!!!

[diathoney]

We're doing the same with my daughter next year! I thought a European cruise was a great graduation present and kick-off for college.

[euro cruiser]

She too is an 18 year old, we are doing this trip as a graduation present in hopes of extension of her education that only travel can give her (as your Mark Twain quote so aptly says) and Pisa was just something she really wanted to see... so on we go.

One of the things I've learned after about ten years of traveling all over with the kids is that they get the most out of the places they want to see - and even more if they do some of the preparatory research. The places I dragged them to because it was something I thought they should/needed to see, not so much.

[epixx]

One of the things I've learned after about ten years of traveling all over with the kids is that they get the most out of the places they want to see - and even more if they do some of the preparatory research. The places I dragged them to because it was something I thought they should/needed to see, not so much.

 

I agree. We have stopped 3 times in Livorno on cruises with our teen and preteen. They both felt the same way about the Leaning Tower as your teen. They had heard about it and learned about it in school, and they both were extremely eager to climb it, not just to see it. We had no trouble climbing the Tower in the morning and proceeding to Florence. Note: before our last trip to the Med, I checked out a copy of The Agony and the Ecstasy for our teen to read. She loved the book, and she really wanted to see the David and other sights in Florence mentioned in the novel. She got much more out of Florence this time than the previous occasions.