Minibus Rental Across Italy

Florence Coach Hire with a Driver

In Florence the coach zone is not just the old centre. The ZTL Bus covers the whole built-up area, every hour of every day, so a coach needs its permit before it turns off the motorway.

Buy the permit before arriving

Permits have been sold only online since August 2020 and must be bought before entering; the old check points are closed. The city has handed the scheme to Servizi alla Strada. The common types are G for ordinary trips, H for groups staying in Florence with the coach at their disposal, and S or T for school groups. Some permits need documents uploaded at least 3 days before use.

Inside the ring of viali, coaches may only follow the set routes to the official stops. Nothing else in the centre is open to them, Duomo and Uffizi included.

Mercedes-Benz 59-seat coach, exterior
Mercedes-Benz 59-seat coach, exterior

Three stops, three different rules

Piazza Savonarola is the closest to the Accademia and the Duomo, but it is set-down only, from 08:00 to 20:00 and for 5 minutes. Pick-up there is forbidden, so the group must be collected somewhere else. Piazzale Michelangelo allows both, at any hour, for 20 minutes, reached by Viale Galileo and Viale Michelangiolo. Piazza Vittorio Veneto also allows both, on compulsory routes from the Firenze Nord or Scandicci exits.

Tell the group where they will be collected before they step off. It saves the long walk back to the wrong square.

Airports for groups arriving in Florence

Stadiums and arenas a coach can reach

  • Stadio Artemio Franchi — Home ground of ACF Fiorentina, in the Campo di Marte district. The coach park on Piazzale Campioni del '56 next to it is not available during matches.

Coach day trips from Florence

  • Greve in Chianti (Chianti Classico) — about 29 km, about 40 min
  • Vinci (Leonardo's birthplace) — about 45 km, about 1 h 5 min
  • San Gimignano — about 60 km, about 1 h 20 min
  • Arezzo — about 76 km, about 1 h 15 min
  • Lucca — about 77 km, about 1 h 15 min
  • Siena — about 80 km, about 1 h 35 min
  • Pisa (Piazza dei Miracoli) — about 100 km, about 1 h 40 min
  • Bologna — about 104 km, about 1 h 45 min
  • Montepulciano — about 111 km, about 1 h 50 min
  • Montalcino — about 139 km, about 2 h 25 min
  • La Spezia (Cinque Terre) — about 150 km, about 2 h 20 min

Coach rules in Florence that shape the day

  • Aeroporto di Firenze "Amerigo Vespucci" (FLR, Peretola) is about 10 km by road from Piazza del Duomo, about 25 min by coach in light traffic; Pisa airport (PSA, Galileo Galilei) is about 85 km, about 1 h 40 min. Journeys take longer at peak times.
  • Florence has a ZTL for buses (ZTL Bus) that, unlike the car ZTL of the UNESCO historic centre, covers the whole built-up area of the city, including Galluzzo, every day from 00:00 to 24:00. Tourist coaches may enter, drive and park only with a ZTL Bus permit (contrassegno) or if exempt. The scheme is run for the city by Servizi alla Strada S.p.A.
  • ZTL Bus permits are issued only online, since August 2020, and must be bought before entering; the check points are closed. Permit types include G (ordinary), H (groups staying in the city, with the coach at the group's disposal for the stay), S (school groups), T (school groups staying in the city), and others for regular services. Documents for some permits must be uploaded at least 3 days before use.
  • The historic centre (inside the ring of viali: Viale Rosselli, Viale Strozzi, Piazza della Libertà, Viale Matteotti, Viale Gramsci, Lungarno Pecori Giraldi, Viale Michelangelo, Viale Galileo, Porta Romana, Viale Aleardi and back to Ponte alla Vittoria) is closed to coaches except on the set routes to the official stops.
  • Coach stops for permits G, H, S and T: Piazza Fra' Girolamo Savonarola (set-down only, 08:00-20:00, maximum 5 minutes; pick-up always forbidden), Piazzale Michelangelo (set-down and pick-up, 24 hours, maximum 20 minutes, via Viale Galileo and Viale Michelangiolo), and Piazza Vittorio Veneto (set-down and pick-up, reached only by the compulsory routes from the A1/A11 Firenze Nord exit or from the A1 Firenze Scandicci exit and the FI-PI-LI). Largo Vincenzo Giudice (24 hours, maximum 5 minutes) is only for transfers to Santa Maria Novella station, with an authorisation for the reserved lane.
  • Unguarded coach parking areas: Viale XI Agosto, "T2 Guidoni" (24 hours for permits G, H, S, T and R); Piazzale Campioni del '56 at Viale Paoli (24 hours, closed during stadium events); Via Palazzeschi at Via della Torre (08:00-20:00); Viale Visconti Venosta (08:00-20:00); Piazzale Galileo (08:00-20:00, via Viale Galileo and Viale Michelangiolo); Viale Piombino between Via della Casella and Via Livorno, on compulsory routes to and from Piazza Vittorio Veneto.
  • Firenze Santa Maria Novella is the main railway station, with high-speed trains to Roma, Bologna, Milano, Venezia and Napoli; Firenze Campo di Marte is the second station. The T2 tram links the airport, Santa Maria Novella and the centre.
  • Under Article 142(3)(f) of the Codice della Strada (D.Lgs. 285/1992), buses and coaches with a maximum laden mass over 8 tonnes may drive at up to 100 km/h on motorways (autostrade) and up to 80 km/h on other roads outside built-up areas. Lower signed limits always apply.
  • Under Article 172(6) of the Codice della Strada, every occupant over three years old of a minibus or coach (vehicle categories M2 and M3) must wear the seat belt fitted to their seat while seated; passengers must be informed of this by signs or pictograms at each seat (Article 172(7)).
  • EU drivers' hours rules (Regulation (EC) No 561/2006) apply to coach drivers: at most 9 hours of driving a day (10 hours twice a week), a 45-minute break after 4.5 hours of driving and at least 11 hours of daily rest, recorded by the tachograph.
  • Most Italian motorways (autostrade) are tolled (pedaggio): the toll is paid at the toll stations or by electronic toll device, by vehicle class. Toll amounts are not given here.

Parking between stops

The coach then waits at an unguarded parking area. T2 Guidoni on Viale XI Agosto is open 24 hours; Piazzale Galileo, Via Palazzeschi and Viale Visconti Venosta from 08:00 to 20:00. Piazzale Campioni del '56 by the Franchi stadium closes for matches. Book group entry to the Uffizi and the Accademia ahead with each site.

Tuscany by coach

Greve in Chianti is about 40 minutes away, San Gimignano about 1 h 20 min and Siena about 1 h 35 min. Lucca and Arezzo are each about 1 h 15 min. For the Cinque Terre, the coach goes to La Spezia, about 2 h 20 min, and the group continues by train or boat; coaches do not reach the villages.

Questions organisers ask

Which airport should a group fly into?

Florence Airport at Peretola is about 10 km from Piazza del Duomo, around 25 minutes by coach, and the T2 tram also runs from it. Pisa International Airport is about 85 km away, around 1 h 40 min, which is worth comparing when choosing flights.

Can the coach pick us up at Santa Maria Novella?

Largo Vincenzo Giudice is reserved for transfers to the station, for 5 minutes and with an authorisation for the reserved lane. Ask the operator to arrange it with the permit.

Is Palazzo Pitti reachable by coach?

The Oltrarno is open to only some permit types, so groups usually walk from the centre or come down from Piazzale Michelangelo, which has a proper stop.

Other group trips we arrange

Vehicles with a driver