Getting from Florence to Pisa (& vice versa)
· Updated · BootsnAll
With so many works of stunning architecture and design throughout Italy, it’s a bit amusing that one of the country’s most popular tourist attractions is perhaps the world’s most famous example of faulty engineering, the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Pisa’s best-known attraction is easy to visit during a brief “layover” when you’re taking the train from one place to another, or you can make it a more leisurely day trip and see more than just the Campo dei Miracoli. I’ve written about making a 2-hour stop in Pisa during a trip from the Cinque Terre to Florence (or vice versa), so in this post I’m going to talk about how to get to Pisa from Florence as if you’re making it a day trip.
Note that you can also use this information to get from Pisa to Florence at the end of the visit, or if you’re making Pisa your base and going to Florence for a day trip. The ticket prices and trip durations will be the same, you’ll just need to double-check departure times.
Taking the Train from Florence to Pisa
The cities of Florence and Pisa, once fierce rivals, lie less than 100km apart, and the easiest way to get from Florence to Pisa is by train. There's no high-speed line between them, just frequent regional trains from Firenze Santa Maria Novella to Pisa Centrale with no change.
Two kinds of train run the route, and it's worth picking the right one. The Regionale Veloce (RV) trains make few stops and take about an hour, sometimes a bit less. The ordinary Regionale (RE on the departure boards) trains stop at every town along the Arno and take 1 hour 10 to 1 hour 20 minutes. The fare is the same on both, so look at the timetable and aim for an RV. On a typical weekday there's an RV about once an hour, usually at the same minute past the hour, with the slower trains filling the gaps.
The fare is fixed, so it's the same whether you buy it a month ahead or on the platform: 9.80 euros one way in second class in 2026 (check trenitalia.com before you go). No reservations are required, and there are no assigned seats, so pick any available seat. You have three ways to pay:
- Paper ticket from the machines or the ticket office. Validate it in one of the small green-and-white machines before you board, or you'll pay a fine on top of the fare.
- Digital ticket in the Trenitalia app or on trenitalia.com. It's for the train you chose and validates itself; you can switch to another train free until yours leaves.
- Tap&Tap: all journeys within Tuscany are covered by Trenitalia's contactless system. Tap a contactless Visa, Mastercard or Amex on the validator at Santa Maria Novella, ride, and tap the same card again at Pisa. Forget the second tap and you're charged the maximum regional fare. It only covers one full-price adult per card, so couples need two cards.
Trains are equally frequent making the return trip from Pisa to Florence. If you're beginning your trip in the afternoon and plan to go back the same day, check that day's schedule before you leave so you know when to get back for the return train you want.
Which Pisa station? Pisa Centrale is on the south side of town, about 2 km from the Leaning Tower. The walk takes 25 to 30 minutes, straight up through the center and across the Arno, and it's a pleasant one. If you'd rather not walk, Pisa San Rossore station is a few minutes' walk from the Campo dei Miracoli; regional trains heading from Pisa Centrale toward Lucca stop there, a few minutes up the line. It's a useful trick if you're carrying on to Lucca anyway.
If you have bags, KiPoint runs the left-luggage office at Florence Santa Maria Novella. Pisa Centrale isn't on its list, so if you're arriving in Pisa with luggage, check what's available at the station or use a luggage-storage app.
Driving from Florence to Pisa
The distance between Florence and Pisa on the highway is less than 100km, and, assuming there’s no traffic and you don’t take any wrong turns, it’s a trip that should take roughly 1.5 hours. It’s a do-able drive, but I’d still recommend you take the train (unless you’ve rented a car and you won’t be returning to your starting city, in which case, you don’t want abandon a rental car in Italy, so driving is the way to go).
Aside from the fact that the train trip typically takes less time than the drive, there’s the additional hassle of driving in and out of two popular tourist cities (potentially during rush hour on both ends), not to mention the headache of parking. As long as you’re doing this as a day trip and plan to return to the city from which you started, then taking the train is really the best option, even if you’ve got a rental car for the rest of your trip.
For those of you who are still going to drive, I’d recommend scouting out a general route on ViaMichelin.com and then having a good map and a GPS unit (if possible) in the car with you.
Taking the Bus from Florence to Pisa
For a trip between the two city centers the bus doesn't make much sense: the train is quicker, cheaper and runs far more often. The bus earns its place in two cases.
From Pisa airport. Caronna’s Sky Bus Lines runs coaches every day between Pisa Airport and Florence, taking about an hour. Daytime buses stop near the “Guidoni” stop of Florence’s T2 tram line, which runs into the center, and night buses go to Santa Maria Novella station. These buses can also be booked through FlixBus. Terravision’s Pisa-Florence bus is listed as suspended. Check fares and times on the operator’s site before you go. If you’d rather take the train from the airport, the PisaMover shuttle links the airport terminal with Pisa Centrale station in a few minutes (about 6.50 euros in 2026), and trains to Florence leave from there.
From Florence to the tower. FlixBus listed about five trips a day from Florence to Pisa in September 2026, taking from about 1 hour 5 minutes, and one of its Pisa stops is the Pietrasantina coach park, a short walk from the Leaning Tower. If a bus time happens to suit you, it saves the walk from Pisa Centrale. Check which Florence stop yours leaves from, since some FlixBus stops are outside the center.
Taking a Guided Day Tour from Florence to Pisa
If Pisa is a day trip for you from a base in Florence, then you might also want to consider an organized tour that includes Pisa’s major sights and that leaves from Florence itself. This means that not only will you have all the sight-seeing taken care of, you’ll also have transportation rolled into the deal as well.
Tour companies in Florence sell half-day trips to Pisa, during which you’ll be led by a local guide to the major sights and then have time to explore on your own before heading back to Florence. If a stop in Pisa isn’t enough, there are full-day “Tuscany in one day” tours that combine Pisa with places like Siena, San Gimignano and a Chianti winery. It’s a long day, but you’ll get a taste of what Tuscany has to offer.
If you’d rather get to Pisa on your own, you can still book a guided walk in the city while you’re there to make the most of your time.
And if you’re staying in Pisa…
If Pisa is the next stop on your trip through Italy after Florence and you’re planning to stay for a night or two, then here are some links to resources that will help you plan your stay in Pisa:
photos, top to bottom, by: Henri van Kalkeren, manelzaera, j.reed, RoelV2009, Tchacky’s