Best Day Trips from Florence

There are many wonderful places to visit from Florence. Depending on your interest and preferences, you can choose from a variety of destinations.

If you want to explore the charming historic towns of Tuscany and its surroundings, you can take a day trip to Siena, San Gimignano, Lucca, Pisa, Cinque Terre, Volterra, Arezzo, Cortona, Bologna, Milan, Assisi and Orvieto.

These towns offer stunning architecture, art, culture and scenery as well as delicious food and wine. You can reach most of these towns by train or bus from Florence (the trains are fairly cheap which is a good thing), or you can rent a car for a day or two or hire a driver. Organised tours are also available from Florence.

From Florence you an even make a day trip to the capital city of Rome, and visit attractions such as the Colosseum, the Vatican, the Pantheon and many others. Trains between Florence and Rome and frequent and the quickest ride is only 1h 30 minutes.

The city of Venice, situated north of Florence, built on a lagoon is known for its landmarks such as St Mark's Square, the Doge's Palace and the Rialto Bridge.

You can catch the high-speed train to Venice from Santa Maria Novella and in only 2 hours you'll be there. Once there you can enjoy a gondola ride, explore sights, taste delicious food and wines or visit nearby islands of Murano and Burano.

These are some of the best day trips from Florence, but there are many more options to suit your tastes and budget.

Day trips from Florence to Chianti region

Beautiful Tuscan countryside

Chianti is a region of Tuscany, lying between the cities of Florence and Siena, famous for its landscape and its excellent wines. Once visiting Florence, you should definitely visit this region and explore its charming villages, ancient castles and vineyards.

If you wish to do this independently, the only option would be renting a car for a day. The beautiful small villages for wine tasting are scattered all around countryside and cannot be reached by train or bus.

Another solution would be taking an organised guided trip that include return transfer by van or mini bus. Guided tours usually include lunch, a visit to a vineyard and several wine tastings.

Here are some of the most popular day trips from Florence to Chianti region:

La Casa di Chiara
Beautiful and Cosy
Apartment in Florence

Siena, the best day trip from Florence

The town of Siena, Italy

One of Tuscany’s most enchanting destinations is Siena, a charming hill town that will transport you back to the Middle Ages. There, you’ll stumble upon a dazzling wealth of medieval buildings and Renaissance palaces, as well as a fabulous historic center that has been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Filled with history, art, and culture, Siena makes a fabulous day trip from Florence, as it’s located just 80km from the city.

Siena is small and its historic center can be explored entirely on foot, but there are so many places to see, churches and museums to visit that one day is just enough.

Siena is about an hour’s drive from Florence, or an hour and a half by train. The regional trains from Florence Santa Maria Novella to Siena FS are frequent (one every 30 minutes) but often crowded and late.

If you get to Siena on your own, then take a guided tour of the city to optimize your time (we recommend this skip-the-line Siena Duomo and city walking tour). For foodies, we recommend guided food tour around the city.

For visiting Siena on organised tour from Florence, we have these recommendations:

Private tour in Siena, San Gimignano and Chianti

San Gimignano, visiting from Florence

San Gimignano is a beautiful town nestled between the Sienese hills and the sunny Val d'Elsa hills, surrounded by thirteenth-century walls and rich in still intact medieval charm. It's famous for its towers and the historic centre.

San Gimignano is also home to one of the best and most famous gelato makers in the world, winner of countless awards, Gelateria Dondoli. Be prepared to queue a lot to eat a gelato here!

San Gimignano is located in the province of Siena, about halfway between Florence and Siena. By car from Florence it takes about an hour, driving along scenic roads of the Tuscan countryside.

There is no train station in San Gimignano, so it cannot be reached by railway. There are local buses, but they are infrequent and we don’t recommend them.

San Gimignano is very small, it can be visited entirely on foot and half a day can be sufficient. For cook lovers, we recommend this great pasta cooking class in Ulignano (close to San Gimignano).

Being close to Siena, the two cities can be visited together, during the same day trip.

As for organized tours from Florence, take a look at these:

Cinque Terre, great day trips from Florence

The Cinque Terre region is situated in Liguria, but it's quite close to Florence. Day trips to this region from Tuscany are among the most popular one among travellers.

The Cinque Terre are made up of 5 villages located along the coast in the line, and are connected by local trains that stop in each one (and connect them to the city of La Spezia).

There are 2 easy options of visiting this area. Taking a train from Florence, which takes 2.5 hours (with chaning trains twice, in Pisa and La Spezia). Or opt for organised tour including return transport. Organised tours usually include a boat ride and hike around the villages.

Day trips from Florence to Bologna

The city of Bologna, Italy

The city of Bologna is a wonderful city, rich in art and history and above all a gastronomic capital of Italy. It's situated in Emilia Romagna region, home of many iconic food products of Italy, such as balsamic vinegar, prosciutto and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Don't forget the most delicious pasta - tagliatelle, lasagne and tortellini.

Between one meal and another, don’t forget to visit its ancient towers, churches full of artworks and its unique museums.

Day trip to Bologna is one of the best one you can take from Florence. The best way to reach it from Florence is by high-speed train (takes only 30 minutes).

Most popular activities to do in Bologna: