Visiting Tuscany
Florence fits in a handkerchief: you cross the historic centre in twenty minutes, and everything you came to see is inside it. Pisa is an hour away by train, its Field of Miracles set apart from the town.
Then there is the other Tuscany, the one the coaches skip. An archipelago off Leghorn, of which Elba is the largest, and a scrub-covered peninsula in the south, Monte Argentario, where the Romans already had their villas.
You will love it if
- You want painting in the morning and a cove in the afternoon
- Walking suits you: Florence and Pisa are done on foot
- You come in May, June or September, when the heat is bearable
Look elsewhere if
- You hate crowds: central Florence is saturated from March to October
- You are after cool air: the Arno valley passes thirty-five degrees in July
- You plan to visit the museums without booking: the Uffizi sells out days ahead
The must-sees
The highlights
-
1 Florence Cathedral +24 recs
Brunelleschi's dome, four million bricks laid without central scaffolding, still the largest masonry dome of its kind. Four hundred and sixty-three steps lead to the lantern, between the two shells, and booking is compulsory.
-
2 The Uffizi Gallery +25 recs
The Medici administrative offices, turned into the museum of their collection. Botticelli's Birth of Venus and Primavera hang in the same room. The last Thursday evening slot of the month is the quietest.
-
3 The Ponte Vecchio +31 recs
The only bridge in Florence spared in 1944, lined with shops since the fourteenth century. The butchers were thrown off in 1593 by a duke who found the smell incompatible with the Vasari corridor running above.
-
4 The Leaning Tower of Pisa +20 recs
Five degrees of lean after twenty years of straightening work, on ground that started tipping it at the third storey. You climb a spiral stair whose steps are worn hollow on one side, and your legs notice it.
-
5 Biodola Beach +7 recs
Six hundred metres of pale sand in a bay on Elba, near Portoferraio. The water shelves gently, which is rare on a granite island, and the bottom is visible twenty metres out.
The classic mistake
Booking Elba without booking the boat. The ferries leave from Piombino and fill up, vehicles first, from June onwards. With no reservation in August you wait for several sailings, and the last crossing is early evening.
Our itineraries in Tuscany
| Length | Itinerary | What you see |
|---|---|---|
| Long weekend (3 days) | Florence › Pisa | Dome, Uffizi, Field of Miracles |
| 1 week | Florence › Pisa › Portoferraio | City, coastal train, Elba |
| 10 days | Florence › Pisa › Leghorn › Elba › Monte Argentario | Art, archipelago and southern coast |
The train is enough for Florence, Pisa and Leghorn, which sit on the same line, and it also serves Piombino where the boat leaves from. In Florence a car is a liability: the centre is closed to traffic and the fines arrive by post months later.
It becomes useful on Elba and along the southern coast, where the coves are at the end of tracks. Take a small car rather than a large one: the island roads are narrow and parking is scarce.
When to visit Tuscany
| Rating | Season | Weather | Crowds and prices |
|---|---|---|---|
| May, June and September | 20 to 28 °C, sea at 22 | Busy, mid-range prices | |
| April and October | 15 to 22 °C, showers | Moderate in the cities, islands quiet | |
| July and August | 28 to 36 °C, sea at 25 | Peak, very high prices | |
| November to March | 6 to 14 °C, wet | Quiet, islands closed |
Our advice
The second half of September brings both Tuscanies together: the sea is at its warmest, the Florence museums can breathe, and island prices drop after the fifteenth. It is the only stretch where you can do everything without choosing.
Getting to Tuscany
-
1 By plane Fastest
Pisa takes direct flights from across Britain, with easyJet and Ryanair on most routes, in under two and a half hours, and a train links the airport to the station in five minutes. Florence has its own airport, smaller and dearer.
-
2 By train Most comfortable
Eurostar to Paris, then Paris to Milan and Milan to Florence, around fourteen hours in all with two changes. Worth it if you want the Alps through the window rather than a boarding gate.
-
3 By car On the ground
useful only for the islands and the coast. Central Florence and central Pisa are inside a limited traffic zone, filmed continuously, and your hotel must register the plate or the fine follows.
The simplest combination: fly to Pisa, train to Florence, then hire a car at Piombino or in Portoferraio for the sea part. You never pay for parking in Florence.
Getting around Tuscany
Florence is entirely walkable, and it is the only way: the centre is pedestrian or closed. The coastal line links Pisa, Leghorn and Piombino, and buses circle Elba in season.
Worth knowing
The Florence limited traffic zone runs on cameras, including when you are simply reaching a hotel in the centre. The hotel can register your plate, but it has to do it that same day: a fine that arrives six months later can no longer be contested.
What to eat in Tuscany
- Bistecca alla fiorentina: a Chianina beef rib three fingers thick, seared over vine wood and served rare. Ordered by weight, for two people minimum.
- Saltless bread: Tuscan bread contains none, which surprises on the first bite. It is made to go with salty cured meats and to be used in soups.
- Ribollita: a soup of stale bread, black cabbage and beans, reboiled the next day, which is what the name means. A winter dish, better reheated than fresh.
- Lampredotto: the fourth stomach of the cow, simmered and served in a roll with green sauce. The street snack of Florence, sold from kiosks.
- Cacciucco: the fish soup of Leghorn, five species minimum, one for each C in the name, served over garlic-rubbed bread.
- Cantucci and vin santo: almond biscuits to dip in a wine made from dried grapes. Served at the end of the meal, and the biscuit breaks in the glass.
- Aleatico from Elba: a sweet red wine from grapes dried in the sun on racks, made in small quantities. An old survival, served with dessert.
The central market in Florence opens in the morning on the ground floor, among the growers, and the upper floor has become a food hall. Neighbourhood kitchens close between three and seven, and many do not open on Sunday evening.
Where to stay in Tuscany
| Area | What it is for | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Florence, historic centre | Dome, museums, Ponte Vecchio | All on foot, expensive and noisy in summer |
| Florence, Oltrarno | Pitti Palace, workshops, trattorias | Ten minutes from the centre, quieter and cheaper |
| Pisa | Field of Miracles, student city | Worth one night, the airport is next door |
| Portoferraio or Rio Marina | Beaches, diving, island circuit | Seasonal, full in August |
| Monte Argentario | Coves, scrub, Porto Santo Stefano | Smarter than the island, little capacity |
Three nights in Florence is enough for the museums, provided you booked. It is a city you exhaust quickly and which wears you out in August.
For the sea, Elba needs four nights minimum: the crossing eats half a day at each end, and the north coast has nothing to do with the south.
How much does a trip in Tuscany cost?
| Style | Length | Budget per person |
|---|---|---|
| Budget (hostel, markets, free beaches) | 7 days | 450 to 650 € |
| Comfortable (hotel, restaurants, booked museums) | 7 days | 1,000 to 1,500 € |
| High end (boutique hotel, well-known tables) | 7 days | 2,500 to 3,800 € |
- Museum booking: a few euros of fee that save two hours of queueing at the Uffizi and the Accademia. It is the best value of the trip.
- The ferry: the foot passenger fare is modest, the vehicle fare far higher. On Elba, the seasonal buses cover the main beaches.
- Eating standing up: a lampredotto roll or a slice of pizza costs a quarter of a sit-down dish, and you eat at the same hour as the Florentines.
- The cover charge: counter service costs less than table service, and a per-person charge is usual in restaurants. It is displayed and it is not negotiable.
- Free beaches: they alternate with paying ones all along the coast, the island included, with signposted access.
Traditions and way of life in Tuscany
Standard Italian comes from here: it is fourteenth-century Tuscan, the language of Dante, chosen as the national tongue at unification. In Florence you can still hear the aspirated c, which turns casa into « hasa ».
Elba kept the trace of its ten Napoleonic months in 1814 and 1815: two residences are open to visitors, and the emperor left behind an administration, roads and a flag he had designed himself.
Two useful habits. In a café you often pay at the till before being served at the counter, and sitting at a table doubles the price of the same espresso. And in churches, covered shoulders and knees are required, the cathedral included, where entry is refused without discussion.
