Quick Answer
The Tram You Didn’t Know You Needed
Nobody warns you about this before you land: Florence’s airport is barely a runway’s length from the city, and the only real question is whether you take the tram or overpay for a taxi to cover the same 20 minutes. We landed at Peretola on a Tuesday afternoon, watched a driver quote a group of jet-lagged tourists a taxi fare that was easily five times the tram, and walked straight past him to the platform. Twenty minutes later we were dragging our bags across Piazza della Stazione at Santa Maria Novella, tram ticket still in hand, wondering why anyone pays for the ride we just took for the price of an espresso.
That’s really the entire Florence airport story: one short, cheap, frequent tram line does almost all the work. The wrinkle is Pisa — plenty of flights into Tuscany land at Pisa Airport instead, and that route needs two legs and a bit more patience. This guide covers both: the FLR tram into central Florence, and the PisaMover-plus-train combination if your flight lands further south.
- Fixed price — pay what you see
- Flight tracking — driver waits if delayed
- Free cancellation up to 24 h before
Every Option Compared
From Florence Airport (FLR, Peretola)
| Option | Time to centre | Cost | Runs | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T2 tram | ~20 min to Unità/S.M.N. | ~€1.70 one-way | Every 4–6 min, ~05:00–00:30 | Fastest and cheapest — the default |
| Taxi | Depends on traffic, no fixed schedule | Confirm the meter before departure | On demand, 24/7 | Only worth it with heavy luggage or a very late landing |
From Pisa Airport (PSA), if that’s your flight
| Option | Time to Florence | Cost | Runs | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PisaMover + regional train | ~1h–1h30 combined | Shuttle every 5–15 min, ~24 direct train connections/day | The standard route if you land in Pisa | |
| Taxi/private transfer, full route | Depends on traffic | Ask/confirm the fare before departure | On demand | Only for groups splitting the cost or very early/late flights |
Flying into FLR is simply faster once you’re on the ground — the T2 tram covers the whole route in the time it takes to walk the PisaMover platform at Pisa. Pisa flights are sometimes the cheaper fare on a budget carrier, so it’s a trade-off between the ticket price and the extra hour of travel.
Step-by-Step: Riding the T2 Tram from FLR
- Follow signs for “Tramvia / T2” out of the Peretola arrivals hall — the Aeroporto stop is right outside, no shuttle bus needed.
- Buy your ticket before boarding, at the machine on the platform or via the GEST/Florence transit app; the single fare is around €1.70 and stays valid for 90 minutes.
- Validate the ticket if it’s a paper one, at the small machine by the platform, before the tram arrives.
- Board the T2 and ride toward the centre — it’s a single line, so there’s no wrong direction to check for.
- Get off at Unità (or continue one more stop) for Santa Maria Novella station and the historic centre; the same ticket covers a connecting city bus or tram within its 90-minute window if your hotel is a short hop further.
Taxis & Ride-Hailing
A taxi from Florence Airport into the centre covers the same short distance as the T2 tram, just at a markedly higher price and with traffic as the wildcard instead of a fixed timetable. It’s worth it mainly if you’re travelling with heavy luggage, arriving after the tram stops running around 00:30, or splitting the fare across a group. Use the official rank just outside arrivals rather than anyone approaching you inside the terminal, and confirm the fare or that the meter’s running before the doors close.
From Pisa Airport, a taxi or pre-booked private transfer can cover the whole route to Florence in one ride if you’d rather skip the shuttle-and-train change — useful late at night or with a lot of bags, but budget for it costing well above the ~€15–16 combined public-transport fare. If anything goes wrong with a fare dispute or otherwise, Italy’s single emergency number is 112, free and reachable even without a working SIM.
Getting Around Florence Once You’re In
Florence’s historic centre — the Duomo, the Uffizi, Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Pitti — is compact enough that most sights sit within about a 20-minute walk of each other, so you’ll rarely need transit for sightseeing itself. When you do want a bus or tram hop, Autolinee Toscane’s “Urbano Capoluogo” single ticket costs around €1.70 and covers 90 minutes on the urban network — the same operator and fare zone the T2 tram runs on. In practice, most visitors buy transit tickets only for the airport leg and the odd trip to the train station, not for getting between sights in the centre.
Onward Travel
Santa Maria Novella is also Florence’s hub for onward long-distance trains — Frecciarossa and Italo run direct back to Roma Termini in around 1h30–1h40 (advance fares from around €15–20), and onward to Venice Santa Lucia in around 2h–2h20 (advance fares from around €19). Compare and book routes on our trains hub .
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Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get from Florence Airport to the city centre?
The T2 tram runs from Florence Airport (FLR, Peretola) to Santa Maria Novella and the historic centre in around 20 minutes, for around €1.70 a single ticket valid for 90 minutes. Trams leave the Aeroporto stop every 4 to 6 minutes from roughly 05:00 to 00:30, so there is rarely a wait, and the ticket transfers onto Florence’s city buses within its validity window.
How do I get from Pisa Airport to Florence?
From Pisa Airport (PSA), take the PisaMover shuttle to Pisa Centrale station, around €6.50 one-way and about 5 minutes, then a Trenitalia regional train on to Florence Santa Maria Novella, around €9 one-way and roughly 52 to 68 minutes. Combined, the door-to-door trip runs around €15 to €16 and takes about 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes including the change at Pisa Centrale.
Is it faster to fly into Florence or Pisa?
Flying into Florence Airport (FLR) is faster for reaching the city: the T2 tram takes around 20 minutes into the centre. Pisa Airport (PSA) is often cheaper to fly into on budget carriers, but the PisaMover-plus-train connection takes roughly 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes in total, so factor that extra time into your itinerary if Pisa is the cheaper flight.
Do I need a taxi from Florence Airport?
Most travellers do not need a taxi from Florence Airport, since the T2 tram covers the same route to Santa Maria Novella in around 20 minutes for a fraction of the fare and without traffic risk. A taxi is worth it mainly with heavy luggage, a late-night landing after the tram stops running, or a group splitting the fare, in which case use the official taxi rank outside arrivals.
Do I need transport to get around central Florence?
No — Florence’s historic centre is compact and walkable, with most major sights within about a 20-minute walk of each other. A single Autolinee Toscane urban ticket costs around €1.70 if you do need a bus or tram, but visitors mainly use Florence’s transit network for the airport and Pisa legs, not for sightseeing within the centre.
Before You Land
Pick the T2 tram if you’re flying into FLR — there’s really no reason to overpay for a taxi covering the same 20 minutes. If your flight lands at Pisa instead, plan on the PisaMover-plus-train combination and build the extra hour into your day. Either way, lock in your flight and your bed before you go:
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