How do I get around Florence?

Florence is one of those rare cities where walking is not a backup plan but the actual fastest way between attractions. The centro storico sits inside a rough rectangle, about 2 km east-west and 1.5 km north-south. Santa Maria Novella station to the Uffizi Gallery is a 12-minute walk. The Duomo to Ponte Vecchio takes 8 minutes. Palazzo Pitti to Santa Croce, crossing the Arno, runs about 18 minutes if you stop to look at the river. North-bank streets are mostly flat, with uneven flagstones and sidewalks that narrow to nothing on lanes like Borgo degli Albizi. Summer temperatures at the moment sit around 35°C by mid-afternoon, so the shade along Via dei Calzaiuoli matters more than the shortest route. Good shoes with actual grip make a real difference on the smooth pietra serena stone, which turns slick after 10 minutes of rain.

For anything beyond the old walls, Florence runs a two-line tramway and a bus network operated by Autolinee Toscane. The T1 line connects Santa Maria Novella to Scandicci, roughly 30 minutes end to end. The T2 line, which opened in 2024, runs from Piazza dell'Unità to Peretola Airport in about 20 minutes and has likely replaced the old airport shuttle bus as the cheapest transfer into town. A single ticket costs €1.70 for 90 minutes of unlimited transfers between bus and tram. Buy it at any tabacchi, the shops with the blue "T" sign, or from the Autolinee Toscane app before you board. Most tram stops lack ticket machines, which catches visitors at the Peretola airport stop on arrival. Validate the paper ticket in the green reader on board or risk a €50 fine from plain-clothes inspectors who seem to ride the T2 route constantly.

Taxis in Florence are white, metered, and more honest than in Rome or Naples. Flagfall is €3.30 on weekdays, rising to €5.30 on Sundays and holidays, with roughly €1.10 per kilometer after. Santa Maria Novella to Piazzale Michelangelo runs about €12-15. The catch is supply. You cannot hail a taxi on the street here. You either walk to a rank at SMN station, Piazza della Repubblica, or Piazza Santa Croce, or you call 055-4242 or 055-4390. Wait times of 15-20 minutes are normal on weekend evenings. Uber operates in Florence but only the Uber Black tier, which costs roughly double a standard taxi. That said, Free Now connects to the same licensed fleet and tends to be more practical. Download it before you land at Peretola.

Do not drive into the centro storico. The ZTL, Zona a Traffico Limitato, covers most of the area inside the old walls, enforced by cameras that photograph every plate entering between 7:30 and 20:00 on weekdays, with extended hours Thursday through Saturday. The fine runs €80-100 per camera trigger, and some visitors have collected €500 or more from a single wrong turn through multiple zones. Your rental car company will forward every fine plus an administrative fee of €30-50 each. If you need a car for day trips to Siena or Val d'Orcia, park at the Fortezza da Basso garage at €2 per hour or the cheaper Parcheggio Piazza Ghiberti, then walk in. Mind you, some hotels in Santa Maria Novella and San Lorenzo will arrange ZTL permits for guests, but the permit sometimes fails to register with the cameras, and the fine arrives 3 months later at your home address.