Italo Disco

August 12, 2008 3:16 PM

Got a week in Pisa, Italy - looking for good places to camp nearby the beach and wonderful metafiltery things to do : )

Yep, I heard about - see the tower and thats it but me and the kochanie are into being by the beach, camping, maybe some good food and how to get to rome or florence by train and quick back would be really helpful - I'm sure there's some beautiful scenery there also thats off the beaten track and someone from mefi would know about as well : ) - some italo disco clubs would be really funny : )

posted by sgt.serenity to Travel & Transportation around Pisa, Italy (3 answers total)

Best answer: There's lots of campings all along the coast, which is sandy - this site has listings for campings in the area. You're interested in the Pisa province, but in fact the coastal part of the provinces of Lucca and Livorno are just a few kilometers away, and there's plenty of buses and local trains connecting the towns there (in most places the train station is a few kms from the sea, so if you plan on walking, have a look at the map in advance).

The coast is more or less filled with establishments which rent you an umbrella and a couple beach recliners for the day for a ridicolous amount (one of the main themes of summer news in Italy: how much prices have gone up from last year) but every town has at least a bit of free beach where you can just drop your towel and relax (ask or search for "spiaggia libera").

Trains to Florence: more or less hourly from Pisa central station, see trenitalia website for timetables and tickets, it's an hour-something ride on regional trains. Direct trains from Pisa to Rome on the other hand are a bit more far between, but there are some during the day. A lot more leave from Florence, but you'd have to make Pisa > Florence > Rome.

Other recommended daytrips might be the Cinque Terre, Lucca (by train) Volterra (bus), Livorno is not that interesting but there's a few good places to enjoy the seaside just south of the city and you should have a Cacciucco (a fish soup) in some small place near the port, which is a nice area with canals that extend into the city. "Tuscan" scenery is in the interior, the hilly area behind Pisa and Livorno is nice, and so are the hills between Pisa and Lucca, if only a bit less negotiable (not impossible, though) without private transportation.

Italo disco: I'm a bit behind with trends and all :), but there should be clubs more or less everywhere near the coast. The really trendy places are north of Pisa, namely Forte dei Marmi with Viareggio being a close second (this applies to food/drinks/beach prices too). Lido di Camaiore is more family oriented.

Feel free to ask for more detailed information :)
posted by _dario at 4:35 PM on August 12, 2008

Response by poster: I'm shocked at how good that answer was, dario you are a legend.
posted by sgt.serenity at 6:04 PM on August 12, 2008

dario you are a legend

Thanks but no, I'm just from (t)here!
posted by _dario at 6:45 PM on August 12, 2008