We’re so excited that all of you are about to start your journey to Italy to celebrate with us! Below are a bunch of details on various subjects that we hope will make your travels easier.

Airport Transportation

If you are flying into FLR, you are flying into the closest airport to Florence. This airport is only 4 km from the city and a taxi is a quick 15 minute drive. For more information on how to go to and from this airport, please click here.

The Pisa Galileo Airport (PSA) is about an hour from Florence. Pisa has transport options to the Florence city center via train or bus. For more info, click here.

Most of you are flying into Bologna Airport (BLQ), so we’ll provide the most details here. This airport is about 90 minutes from Florence. There are 4 ways to get from BLQ to Florence.

1. Rent a car and drive. It is easy enough if your GPS is good. However, driving into the Florence city center has MANY restrictions as it requires a toll for any non-residents and has many pedestrian streets during the day. It can be a test of patience to navigate all of the pedestrians.

2. Hire a private car/van. This is the most expensive option. The rate for a car/van can run from 200 Euro – 260 Euro.

3. Take the Aerobus shuttle from BLQ to Bologna Centrale train station and take the train to Florence. The shuttle ticket is about 7 Euro. You can buy the tickets on the bus or from the Bologna Welcome desk in the airport along with other establishments in the airport. The train ticket from Bologna to Florence depends on the time and whether you chose the bullet train or the regional, but it is about 25-35 Euro. The train is very easy and just like taking Amtrak.If you prefer, you can take a taxi to the train station (instead of the bus), but it is about 17 Euro.

4. Last option is a shuttle bus from BLQ Airport to the Florence train station. This option is 20 Euro (or 25 on the bus). Website is

For more details on these options, please visit the Bologna Airport website.

How can I contact Angela or Algie?

Email is great!

Please email us at [email protected] or [email protected]. Both of our phones currently have international service.

Text is great too!

What’sApp is a great app. It allows you to text anyone using data and it won’t cost per text. This tool will be most useful to those of us with an International SIM card. Please sign up for What’s App and add Angela and Algie as contacts. We will use this tool for any mass messages required.

This is also the best way to text us.

First, download this app on your phone, then follow instructions on their website on how to add a new contact.  You can add Angela by using her cell number +1 703 226 9972.  Please note this number is only for adding her as a contact to What’sApp.  She isn’t avaialble with this number in Italy.

If a conversation is needed, call us!

Algie’s phone number is +703 455 4717. Angela has an International SIM card, so her phone number is +39 345 0657298.

Note: Most smart phones will automatically dial international numbers properly, however if you are using your US phone and dialing a US number, you will need to add a 1 (1 703 455 4717). If you are on a US phone and dialing my number, you will need to dial (011 39 345 0657298).

What to do for International phone service?

So, many of you have already contacted your service providers and selected an international package. If you have done this, you’re good to go. Unfortunately for some, if you have too much time left on your service contract, you don’t have a choice and have to go this route.

If your phone is eligible, you can actually have it unlocked and purchase an International SIM card in Italy. I purchased a SIM card for 30 Euro that includes 2 GB of data, 300 phone min to Italy or my home country, as well as 300 texts to Italy or my home country. Great deal! I barely use 2 GB in one month at home!? Unfortunately, with this option you do have an Italian phone number, but with so much data, people can contact you using other modes of communication (email, skype, etc.)

Money & Banking

In Europe, it’s a good idea to have some cash. In the city centers, most storefronts accept credit card, but if you decide to venture off or purchase something from a street vendor, cash is king! Additionally, small denominations of euros (the coins like ¢.50; €1; €2) are great for tips at restaurants and even for a public bathroom!

We recommend you contact whomever you bank with and ask if they have any partner banks in Europe so you can use the ATM with no ATM fee. There will still be an international transaction fee, but if you can save $5/transaction just because you didn’t use your home bank, this is helpful. We bank with Bank of America, so FYI, the partner bank in Italy is BNL and there is an ATM in Piazza Reppublicca.

Lastly, make sure to contact any of the credit cards/debit cards you plan to use abroad. They need a heads up that you are traveling outside of the country so they don’t flag your purchases as fraud and turn off your account. Also, please note that American Express isn’t typically widely accepted. Most large hotels and restuarants will have no issue with AMEX, but many smaller restaurants and hotels do not accept it. The transaction rate is too expensive here, so bring your Visas and Mastercards!

Restaurants

If you are staying in a hotel, ask your front desk or concierge for restaurant recommendations and reservations. Depending on the restaurant, reservations are great, but they aren’t necessary. We have wondered into many restaurants without reservations and had a great meal!

Expect to pay for water. In America, house water is available for free, however all the restaurants serve bottled water and there is a charge for the water.

Enjoy the house wine, it is usually pretty good. We are in Italy and they are known for some great chianti and red wines. Typically, the house wine is really cheap and really good.

Tipping isn’t the same as America. You won’t need to tip 20% here. The servers earn a living wage, so a 20% tip isn’t required although it could be expected of Americans. If you leave a 10% tip, that is more than enough. Also, when paying with a credit card, there is never a “tip” line. So, if you’d like to add a tip to your credit card payment, ask them if you can add the tip to the card BEFORE they charge it. If they say yes, just update the amount to charge. So, if your bill was 40 Euro, just ask them to charge 44 Euro instead. Another option and easiest option is to leave the tip in cash.

Bathrooms & Facilities

If you’re planning any road trips, please note most of the bathrooms in gas stations or rest stops on the highway require 1 Euro. If it is a designated rest stop, the machine gives you a 1 Euro coupon to use in the gas station…so it is like a rebate. Remember: keeping some cash and change is useful here!

If you are in a restaurant or museum, bathrooms are typically free for patrons. Don’t expect anything too glamorous, but they are functional. Occasionally, the bathrooms won’t actually have the seat. This is more of an FYI…not sure why, but it is very common in Italy, so be prepared.   I used the bathroom in Bologna airport and it was clean, but no toilet seat.