Are you thinking of doing a Florence to Venice day trip?
Venice intrigues visitors with its unique atmosphere, from the romantic gondola rides along the Grand Canal to the awe-inspiring St. Mark’s Basilica and Doge’s Palace.
Exploring Venice is like stepping into a living museum, similar to Florence but with more attractions to see in every square meter of the city that you step foot on!
No matter whether you are an art and architecture lover, or interested in its local culture, Venice offers an unforgettable experience that you will never forget.
The good news is that you can easily discover the beauty of Venice from Florence on a day trip, even if, I recommend spending more than a day. Simply get a high/speed train from Firenze Maria Novella and in 2 hours you will find yourself in Venice!
Florence to Venice Day Trip
If you’re currently in Tuscany’s capital and thinking about visiting Venice for a day to fulfil your dream to see both places during one trip, know that it is certainly possible!
Florence is another city to visit at least once in your life, also called the cradle of the Renaissance so in my opinion, you have made a great choice by visiting it.
Now I reccommend that you read below to learn how to organize your Florence to Venice day trip. First, let’s start by looking at the position of both cities on the map:
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Where is Venice, Italy
Venice is the capital city of the Veneto region, located in north-east Italy. It is made up of 118 small islands all based in the Venetian lagoon.
These islands are connected by bridges. You can reach Venice by crossing the Liberty Bridge, connecting Mestre (the closest mainland town) to the city of water.
Travelling to Venice from Florence: is it worth it?
The main reason why it’s worth visiting Venice from Florence is because the two cities are very well-connected by public transport.
Another reason to organize a Florence to Venice day trip is because you’ll have the opportunity to see two of the most beautiful Italian cities during one trip to Italy!
They both have something unique characterizing their historical city centres, their food scene and landmarks. I firmly believe that as a visitor, you won’t want go back home without enjoying the panoramic views from the Arno river and Canal Grande.
Want to know for which other reasons you should visit Venice? I invite you to read my post that gives you my 7 reasons to visit Venice before its too late!
Tips for your Venice from Florence day trip
A day trip from Florence to Venice is a good way to get a taste of the city of canals and bridges without investing too much of your time, especially if time is limited.
In one day in Venice you won’t get to see all the city’s best attractions the however…
You can definitely include:
- St. Mark’s Square and Basilica
- St. Mark’s Campanile
- Doge’s Palace
I highly recommend that you book your ‘skip the line tickets’ to both the basilica and the palace in advance to optimize your time.
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After visiting these landmarks, take a picture of the Bridge of Sighs and move towards the Rialto Bridge and Market area. From here, you can enjoy a fantastic view over the Grand Canal and even take a gondola ride if that’s something you plan to do.
Then there’s La Fenice Theatre and Santa Maria della Salute. If you feel you’ll have more time, why not find out more on what to see in Venice with my post on more on what to see the best Venice tourist attractions so you know exactly what not to miss?
Where to stay in Venice
Will you be staying the night? Due to low availability it’s important to organise your accommodation in advance while arranging your trip from Florence to Venice.
In Venice there’s no shortage of hotels, B&Bs, guest houses and hostels. But knowing exactly which ones to choose can be a minefield especially during peak season.
Here some of my best suggestions for your stay:
- UNAHOTELS Ala Venezia: this is a lovely hotel if you’re travelling as a couple or friends. The hotel is located in a 18th century-building and only a few minutes walk away from St. Mark’s Square.
- Hotel Agli Alboretti: this 3-star hotel is based in Dorsoduro, which I believe is the best nightlife in Venice. Additionally, it’s only a few minutes away from the Guggenheim Collection and Gallerie dell’Accademia museums.
- Ca’ Angeli: is based in the San Polo district and offers epic views over the Grand Canal. It’s not far from Santa Lucia railway station and Rialto Bridge.
Looking for more ideas on where to stay in Venice? see my post looking at the best places to stay in Venice divided by the six neighbourhoods of the city.
How far is Florence from Venice?
To give you an idea of the distance, Florence is 269 kilometres away from Venice by car and it will take more or less 3 hours to get from one city to the other.
It’s pretty straightforward to reach Venice from Florence, and they’re connected by efficient motorways. You’ll have to change motorway 4 times.
If you don’t want to think about motorways, tolls and parking space (which is always a bit tricky in Venice, if not expensive) then I really recommend getting there by train.
In my opinion, traveling by train is the best option for this route as both Florence and Venice have their railway stations based conviently in the city centre.
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How to get from Florence to Venice
Now that you know already how easy it’s to plan a day from Florence, and some of the reasons why you should visit the city of bridges and canals, let’s find out how to get from Florence to Venice by train, by car and by bus.
Train from Florence to Venice
As I said, this is the easy way to get from Florence to Venice. The ideal way is to get an high-speed train from Firenze Santa Maria Novella towards Venezia Santa Lucia (railway station names in Italian). Read all about Venice train stations for more advice.
You won’t find the fast trains from any other station in Florence, so double check you’re going to the right station. You can either book your ticket online or from the ticket office from Trenitalia or Italo.
Always check both websites to find the best deals. It’s good to know that during the summer the two companies run promotional campaigns and you can find tickets for a very good price! Knowing some basic Italian can help you out at the station too.
Then, to save money, I also recommend booking your ticket in advance, if possible, as prices for these trains can increase the closer that you book to the departure date.
On a normal day it should take 2 hours and 15 minutes to get from Florence to Venice with the Frecciarossa direct trains which is usually faster than driving.
There are also regional trains, and the ticket is less expensive than the Frecciarossa ones, but it will take up to 5 hours to reach your destination. It doesn’t make any sense to get this train if you’re planning to spend just one day in Venice.
Driving from Florence to Venice
You can also rent a car and drive from Florence to Venice. It will take less than 3 hours, depending on the traffic situation, to reach Venice.
I suggest that you hire a car with a sat nav or use the GPS from your phone in order to check what’s the traffic situation, motorways and speed detectors.
There are 4 motorways to take: the A1, the A13, the A14 and the last bit is A4 motorways also called Autostrada Serenissima.
You’ll drive on the A14 and A4 motorways for a short section. There are going to be tolls to pay and you can check you much it can be on the Autostrade website.
Once in Venice, the only place where you can park is the Tronchetto car park. You can easily follow the signs at the end of the Liberty Bridge that you’ll cross before getting to Venice, or put the car parking space name on the GPS.
After parking, you should get the people mover service that connects the Tronchetto island to Piazzale Roma. From here you can start exploring Venice.
You can also park at the City Parking Garage, near Piazzale Roma which is more expensive than the Tronchetto car park, but closer to the city centre.
Bus from Florence to Venice
It’s possible to get from Florence to Venice by bus? Yes!
This is normally the cheapest way to get from one city to the other but it will take a bit longer than the fast train and driving yourself to the destination.
There are three different companies you can rely on:
- Flexibus: with buses leaving every day almost every hour from either Villa Costanza (23 minutes by tram from city centre) or Piazzale Montelungo (behind Santa Maria Novella railway station, in the city centre) and arriving in Venice Tronchetto. It will take 4 hours and 15 minutes with no change or 4 hours and 50 minutes with a change.
- Italbus: with only three buses leaving every day (3.15am, 11.35am and 3.55pm) from Villa Costanza. It can take between 3 hours and 35 minutes to 4 hours and a half, depending on the bus you choose. The buses stop at Venice Mestre and Venice Tronchetto.
- MarinoBus: the most expensive option that leaves once a day at 2.10am to arrive in Mestre, near the station at 6am. The buses leave from Villa Costanza.
Getting from Florence to Venice
Now you should have a better idea of how to get from Florence to Venice and how easy it’s to plan (even last minute) a day trip to the lagoon city!
If you have an extra day to spend in Florence and looking for other Italian cities to visit in a day, Venice is a great choice and you won’t regret visiting!
While you’re still here, why not see this post that compares Florence and Venice to see what differences matter to you so you know what to focus on here?
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