World Travel Guide

City Guide  - Florence  - Air
Air

Galileo Galilei (PSA)
Tel: (050) 500 707. Fax: (050) 598 097.
Web site: www.pisa-airport.com

Pisa's airport, Galileo Galilei, is the international gateway to Florence. Situated 80km (50 miles) from Florence, it provides easy access to the city by road or rail. As one of Italy's busiest airports Pisa handles around 1.1 million passengers per year.

Major airlines:
Italy's national airline, Alitalia (tel: (055) 27881; web site: www.alitalia.it) connects Pisa to all the major Italian cities, including daily flights to the intercontinental airports of Milan and Rome. British Airways and Ryanair operate daily flights to London (Gatwick and Stansted respectively), and Lufthansa and Corsair fly to Munich and Paris.

Airport facilities:
Facilities include a bank, bureau de change, ATMs (bancomat) and a selection of restaurants. La Corte shopping mall offers a wide range of shopping, as well as a hair salon. Tourist information, a post office and car hire operators, including Avis, Europcar, Hertz and Maggiore, are available at Arrivals.

Business facilities:
Business-class travellers have access to the Galilei VIP lounge, which offers on-the-spot check-in for passengers carrying hand luggage only. Refreshments and travel information are also available, but there is no dedicated business centre.

Transport to the city:
The most hassle-free way to travel to Florence is on the train. The station (Pisa Aeroporto) is just short stride from the airport via a covered walkway and tickets can be bought on the concourse. Trains take one hour and depart more or less every hour, between 0830 and 1900. On departing Florence, visitors can check in at the railway station's Air Terminal in Florence (platform 5) from 0700 to 1730. Passengers with luggage must check in 20 minutes before the train departs, and arrive at least 30 minutes before flight departure. Tickets cost L7400 one way.

Amerigo Vespucci (FLR)
Tel: (055) 373 498. Fax: (055) 318 716.
Web site: www.safnet.it

Florence City Airport underwent extensive rebuilding in the early 1980s and reopened for regular flights in 1985. Situated just five kilometres (three miles) from Florence city centre, the airport is steadily increasing in capacity.

Major airlines:
Meridiana, Air France, Lufthansa and Sabena all provide regular services to major European cities. Alitalia links the city with Milan and Bergamo in the north, and Rome and Palermo in the south.

Airport facilities:
Tourist information, banking and exchange facilities are available during office hours, and there is an on-site restaurant (lunchtime only) and snack bar. Avis, Europcar, Hertz and Maggiore all provide car hire facilities.

Business facilities:
None.

Transport to the city
: The 'fly by bus' shuttle service departs approximately every hour and takes 15-30 minutes. Tickets cost L6000 and can be bought onboard. The shuttle drops passengers off at Florence's central railway station. A cheaper alternative, the local ATAF bus, runs to the same station approximately every 25 minutes between 0630-2000, and then every hour until 2320. A ticket costs L1500 and can be bought at the airport bar in the departures terminal. Taxis (tel: (055) 4242 or 4390) to the centre cost approximately L20-25,000 and take up to 30 minutes, depending on traffic.

Approximate flight times to Florence:
From London is 2 hours 15 minutes; from New York is 12 hours 30 minutes; from Los Angeles is 18 hours 50 minutes; from Toronto is 12 hours 50 minutes; and from Sydney is 21 hours 25 minutes.

Arrival/departure tax:
None.



Copyright © 2001 Columbus Publishing
    
GENERAL
City Overview
City Statistics
Cost of Living
 
GETTING THERE
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GETTING AROUND
Getting Around
 
BUSINESS
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SIGHTSEEING
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ENTERTAINMENT
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