Monday, June 30, 2008

Florence - the capital city of Tuscany

Florence is the capital city of the region of Tuscany in Italy and of the province of Florence. It is the highest populated city in Tuscany with a population of 364,779. Florence was also the capital of the Kingdom of Italy from 1865 to 1870. Florence lies on the Arno River and is well-known for its history and importance in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, more so for its art and architecture.

The International Airport of Florence Amerigo Vespucci or FLR is situated about four kilometers north from the city of Florence; there is not much by public transport connecting to the city. You can choose between a taxi, rent a car or avail of coach service. You will find neither train connections nor recurring buses plying from FLR.

There is a coach which you can take from FLR to the railway station and bus stand of Santa Maria Novella, which is at the centre of the city. This ride could last about twenty minutes depending on the traffic. There are departures from the FLR every half an hour from 6:00 in the morning to 8:30 in the evening, and then after each hour until a half hour to midnight. Whilst returning from the city to FLR, the coach leaves the bus stand after every half an hour starting from 5:30 till 8:00 in the evening and thereafter after each hour till 11:00 at night. The one-way tickets which cost about four euros can be bought on the bus itself.

You might avail of a taxi from the front at the terminal of arrivals of FLR or you may summon one through Radio Taxi. It normally takes roughly fifteen minutes for the drive to the middle of Florence taking the airport as the starting point. Of course, this depends on the amount of traffic then. You will have to shell out at least ten euros if you choose a taxi ride.

If you visit the right website you can get the right travel airfare which allows you to choose from a whole lot airlines that fly into Florence from various destinations around the world. There are some sites which enumerate the lowest fares on all airlines. Also, they include special fares that the traveler can only purchase from the airlines’ own website.

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