Day trip from Florence to Pisa: how to get there and what to do

Pisa sits on the same regional line as Florence, so the train is the default. Regional trains run roughly every 30 minutes through the day from Firenze Santa Maria Novella to Pisa Centrale, take about 50–60 minutes and cost around €9–10 one way in second class (2026 estimate). Buy at the machine or app before boarding and validate a paper ticket; regional fares are not tied to a specific seat, so you can take the next departure.

Faster Intercity and Frecciabianca services also stop in Pisa and cut the time slightly, but they cost more and run less often, which rarely pays off on a route this short. Book those only if you are continuing south towards Rome afterwards.

By car it is about 80 km on the A11, an hour outside rush hour, but you then pay for motorway tolls and parking near the tower, and you cannot use the limited-traffic zone in the centre. A coach tour from Florence bundles transport and a guided walk; it suits travellers who want the commentary and no logistics, and costs more than doing it yourself.

Pisa airport (Galileo Galilei) is a five-minute people-mover ride from Pisa Centrale, which matters if you are flying out of Pisa rather than returning to Florence.

Take an early regional train, ideally the first one after 8am, and you will reach the Piazza dei Miracoli before the coach groups. The walk from Pisa Centrale along Via Santa Maria takes about 20–25 minutes and is flat; the LAM Rossa bus does the same trip in about 10 minutes if you would rather save your legs.

The square holds the Duomo, the Baptistery and the Camposanto as well as the tower, and one ticket covers the cathedral plus a choice of the others. Climbing the tower is a separate, timed ticket with a fixed number of slots per day, so book ahead in summer if the climb matters to you; otherwise the exterior and the square are free to walk around.

Cross the Arno on Ponte di Mezzo for the Borgo Stretto arcades and a coffee, then loop back past the market square. That fills a comfortable half-day. If you have time left, Lucca is 25–30 minutes further on the same line and makes a natural second stop before returning to Florence.

A do-it-yourself day trip is cheap by Italian standards: return regional train, a combined monument ticket and lunch land around €40–60 per person (2026 estimate). The tower climb is the single biggest add-on and sells out on peak days, so treat any price you see as a 2026 estimate and confirm on the official site.

A coach tour from Florence typically costs more than double the DIY version but removes the ticket queue and the walking. If you are travelling with children or have limited mobility, that trade is often worth it.

For most travellers, no. Pisa's headline sights fit into half a day, and Florence has more to fill the evening. Come back on an afternoon train and keep your Florence base.

Stay one night if you want to see the tower lit up after the day crowds leave, if you are flying out of Pisa airport early, or if you plan to add Lucca, the Versilia coast or the Cinque Terre the next morning. Pisa also works as a stop on the way to or from Cinque Terre rather than a destination in itself.

Pisa Centrale station sits south of the river; the Piazza dei Miracoli is in the north-west of the centre, roughly 2 km away. Everything on this page is walkable in a loop, with the Arno crossing in the middle.