Dmgmd50 Posted May 21, 2011 #1 Share Posted May 21, 2011 I just realized the Marina does not depart Livorno until midnight, meaning that we would have more time for our day in Florence. Has anyone taken the train to/from Florence? Also, can we prereserve tickets to visit the Uffizi Gallery? If so, what is the best time to request? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoHoHo Posted May 21, 2011 #2 Share Posted May 21, 2011 I just realized the Marina does not depart Livorno until midnight, meaning that we would have more time for our day in Florence. Has anyone taken the train to/from Florence? Also, can we prereserve tickets to visit the Uffizi Gallery? If so, what is the best time to request? Yes, in fact pre-purchasing tickets for the Uffizi is the way to do it. Even at that the line to pick-up pre-purchased tickets can be long depending on the time of day and the time of year. Tickets are purchased for entry intervals throughout the day On-line searches you can find guide & tickets packages. For me a licensed guide in the Uffizi is very worthwhile. We had one on a land trip a few years back and was a very significant memory of the trip. The Gallery is huge so interesting and significant works can be easily missed and it can get tiring. The packaged tours only have entry purchased for certain times (if you want to join one of their groups) and may start too early for you to make them from the ship. When I was researching last year there was also a tour mid afternoon as I recall but because our sail away was much earlier than yours it was not practical for us. A midnight sailing from Florence would be great. If you check out the Ports of Call section for Italy Ports there will be lots of very good information including links to train schedules and how to catch them, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmgmd50 Posted May 21, 2011 Author #3 Share Posted May 21, 2011 I just realized the Marina does not depart Livorno until midnight, meaning that we would have more time for our day in Florence. Has anyone taken the train to/from Florence? Also, can we prereserve tickets to visit the Uffizi Gallery? If so, what is the best time to request? Correction: The ship sails at 8 PM, not at midnight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirkNC Posted May 21, 2011 #4 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Yes the train is easy to do. We took a taxi to the train station (20 euros) and RT tickets are 13 euros/pp. The train station is about a 5 minute walk from the heart of Florence. Yes also on reservations for Uffizi (and Academia also if you are interested in seeing David). Here is a great write up on going by train: http://www.ftroute.com/LIV_FIR_LIV.htm Kirk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
potterhill Posted May 21, 2011 #5 Share Posted May 21, 2011 When we were there we set out to take the train with another couple we had met on the ship and the taxi driver offered to be our guide for the day. I seem to recall that we agreed on 140 Euros for the day. The best part was that he took us first to a large church overlooking the city and there were artists working in the couryard. I forget the name of the church. I was all churched out by this point in our trip, so that was not so important. But we enjoyed the view, bought some watercolour paintings that were the best we saw on the entire trip, and some jewelry as well. This was somewhere we would not have gone on our own so we were happy. He dropped us off, we did the city on our own and then we went to Pisa on the way back to the ship. We had been there but our friends hadn't, and I love Pisa so would be happy to stop there anytime. We had a great day, and returned to the ship with time to spare. This was critical as our friends had missed the ship in Barcelona, and had to catch up with us in Marseille! She (who worked on 24 hour time her entire life, saw the departure time as 17:30 and read it as 7:30. They were strolling down to the ship two hours early, only to hear the whistle and watch it pull away...) Maybe we were lucky with the taxi, maybe we overpaid, but we were happy and that was what mattered in the end. Mo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted May 21, 2011 #6 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Regarding tickets for the Uffizi (and also the Accademia) you can book them ahead AND you can take a 2 hour walking tour which includes a guided tour of the museum(s). When we were there several years ago I had booked admission to the Accademia, not realizing that our walking tour included admission. So we bailed out of the tour and came back later at our scheduled time. We did the Uffizi tour with the walking tour guide and it was excellent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmgmd50 Posted May 21, 2011 Author #7 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Regarding tickets for the Uffizi (and also the Accademia) you can book them ahead AND you can take a 2 hour walking tour which includes a guided tour of the museum(s). When we were there several years ago I had booked admission to the Accademia, not realizing that our walking tour included admission. So we bailed out of the tour and came back later at our scheduled time. We did the Uffizi tour with the walking tour guide and it was excellent. Do you remember how and with whom you booked the walking tour? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted May 22, 2011 #8 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I believe I do. It was online. I'll have to check my file. I'll get back to you soon, probably at the same time, same station! Aha! Found it!!! (Of course, it may be a lot more expense six years later!) Here's my record to myself about the walking tour: Date: Sat, 29 Jan 2005 11:00:30 +0000 (GMT) From: info@tours-italy.com Subject: Tour Voucher AVVENTURE BELLISSIME San Marco 2442/A, Venice Tel 041-5208616 Fax 041-2960282 http://www.tours-italy.com TOUR VOUCHER To be paid in cash on the day of the tour RESERVATION NO.: 10144 NO. OF PARTICIPANTS: 2 RESERVATION MADE BY: Mura Kievman TOURS & DATES: Florence in 1 Day, May 5, 2005 TOTAL COST:80.00 Euro TOUR MEETING POINT Meeting point: 9:30am - Original Renaissance Walk 2:00 pm - Uffizi gallery tour Infront of Palazzo Strozzi ( same for both ) Infront of Palazzo Strozzi in Piazza Strozzi (nearby Louis Vuitton shop) there will be a guide waiting for you holding a sign/brochure with the name of your tour on it. SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS Please arrive 10 min. prior to the start of each tour. Bring plenty of water and wear comfortable shoes too ************************************************************* Please note that this is a PREPAID voucher. Only the 12.50E p.p. entrance fee is to be paid in cash on the day of tour. Disregard the above, Thank you! ************************************************************* Looking forward to seeing you in Florence and Have FUN! Our telephone number is: 041 5208616 Contact person: Monica. Thank you for choosing Avventure Bellissime and we wish you a pleasant stay! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmgmd50 Posted May 22, 2011 Author #9 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Thanks Mura. I checked the website and it shows no tours after October 11th. (We'll be in Florence on the 18th.) I'll send them an email and see what they say. It does sound like a wonderful tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted May 22, 2011 #10 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I confess I never thought of it as being seasonal -- we were there in early May. You might just google Florence walking tours and see what comes up. I found a number of sites that sell tickets to the museums alone. I also saw in looking at my file that I'd contacted a walking tour outfit but it was super expensive and it was more like all day tours. And now I can't find it! http://www.weekendafirenze.com appears to offer at 1:45 walking tour of Florence which includes the Uffizi at 45 euros (the tour is 3-1/2 hours rather than our 2 hour tour) and it looks like it is available on October 18th. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted May 24, 2011 #11 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I know that this is not the same thing at all, but the Rick Steves' guidebooks have wonderful walking tours and particular site tours. We used his "Florence and Tuscany" guidebook when we spent five days in Florence a few years ago, including a day-trip to Pisa and Lucca, and it was very helpful. (We returned to Lucca for a full day visit last May from Livorno and this guidebook was extremely useful for planning our visit.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted May 24, 2011 #12 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Fodors.com also has some excellent walking tours (self-guided of course). I'm sure there are others available online. We had 4 days in Florence in May 2005 and took the two guided walking tours I previously mentioned -- well worth the fee, especially given that they included guided tours of the Uffizi and Accademia. But we also used the Fodors suggestions. There is so much to see in Florence that unless you've been there before, a ship's tour just doesn't let you see enough. But you certainly can get a taste of this beautiful city. The guided tours were so helpful in that they pointed out the little things that you won't see on your own, even if you're following a recommended route. Mura Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmgmd50 Posted May 24, 2011 Author #13 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Good information from all of you. Thanks. Does anyone know if the Uffizi has audiotours with headphones available? We have found those to do a great way to see museums (in Rome and Chicago) and other sights (Doges Palace in Venice). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted May 24, 2011 #14 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Good information from all of you. Thanks. Does anyone know if the Uffizi has audiotours with headphones available? We have found those to do a great way to see museums (in Rome and Chicago) and other sights (Doges Palace in Venice). The guided tours we took 6 years ago used the headphones. That was the first time I'd encountered them. They were great ... the only problem is that I tend to wander off from the group to look at things on my own, and when I could hear what the guide was saying I assumed I was close to them. That wasn't always the case! If you go into the Uffizi on your own, I don't know if they will be available. Just to be obvious: the headphones are different from audio guides where you go around on your own. I'm sure they have those by now, even if they didn't have them then. (I don't know if they had them then or not, but I would guess the DID.) M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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