Florence
Emergencies
Students will find a list of emergency numbers on the Middlebury Sede website. Once they arrive, they will also receive a card with numeri utili during the on-site orientation, which they should carry on their person at all times. In addition, students should memorize the following emergency numbers:
U.S. Consulate in Florence
Lungarno Vespucci, 38
50123 Firenze
Tel. (+39) 06 46741
Temporary Accommodations
If you have not pre-arranged housing, you should make hotel/hostel reservations for the first week. Because August and September are still peak tourist periods in Italy, it is VERY DIFFICULT to find rooms in reasonably-priced pensioni and hotels upon arrival. Therefore, please reserve a room in advance before you leave for Italy. To find a hostel or a hotel in Florence, visit:
https://it.hostelbookers.com/ostelli/italia/firenze/
https://www.trivago.it/
www.hometogo.it
www.airbnb.it
Hostels/Hotels frequented by students in the past:
The Social Hub
https://www.thesocialhub.co/it/firenze-lavagnini
Hotel Meridiana
https://hotelmeridianafirenze.com/it/
The Student Hotel
https://www.thestudenthotel.com/it/firenze-lavagnini
Plus Florence
https://plushostels.com/en/florence
Hotel Loggiato dei Serviti
http://www.loggiatodeiservitihotel.it/
Hotel Le Due Fontane
http://www.leduefontane.it/
Hospitals and Medical Services
Medical Service Firenze (24H Medical Service in English) [On-call doctors]
Via Roma, 4
Tel. 055 475 411
http://www.medicalservice.firenze.it/
Ospedale Santa Maria Nuova
Pronto soccorso
(Emergency service in the center of Florence)
Piazza Santa Maria Nuova
Tel. 055 69381 / 055 27581
Ospedale Generale di Careggi
Pronto soccorso
Viale Pieraccini
Tel. 055 794 111
Here you can find a list of English-speaking medical professionals in Florence: https://it.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/doctors/
Buses
The public transport system in Florence is called Autolinee toscane; it is convenient and efficient. You may find it crowded at rush hour. Service begins at 5:30am and continues uninterrupted until 12:30am. Tram service ends at 2:00 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. The main ticket office, is located inside the Santa Maria Novella train station at the station’s ticket office. You can visit the website: www.at-bus.it to purchase tickets and for information.
Many people use the Moovit, Tabnet, or At Bus app or find information to travel to any destination around Florence on the website https://www.at-bus.it/it/strumenti/trip-planner.html. The Moovit app will let you know exactly where and how far to walk, wait times, how many stops are left until your final destination, and they will alert you when it’s time to get off. You can buy and validate tickets with the Tabnet or At Bus apps, or via SMS.
For ticket prices you can check the following page:
https://www.at-bus.it/en/ticket
Tickets can be purchased at most bar-tabacchi, at some newsstands, and automatic ticket machines, through the Tabnet app and on the website www.at-bus.it You can also purchase tickets via SMS by dialing 4880105 and texting Firenze (this service is available with the telephone companies TIM, VODAFONE, WIND3 ITALIA. The cost of the SMS is added to the cost of the ticket. You must wait for the confirmation message before boarding. You can purchase tickets on board, but they are not always available and are sold at a higher cost. Be sure to carry extra tickets with you. Tickets must be validated upon boarding at one of the two validator machines located in the front and back of the bus. Bus passengers en route are periodically checked by Autolinee Toscane controllori, and if you are traveling without a ticket, or without having punched your ticket or validated the electronic one, you will be subject to a fine of up to €240 + cost of a ticket bought on board.
Tourist Information Offices
The City of Florence’s Official Tourism Website
https://www.feelflorence.it/it
Università Degli Studi di Firenze
General Website
www.unifi.it
Scuola di Studi Umanistici e della Formazione
http://www.st-umaform.unifi.it/
Scuola di Scienze Politiche “Cesare Alfieri”
Via Delle Pandette, 21
http://www.sc-politiche.unifi.it
Other Scuole are only open to students based on their major.
Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze
Via Ricasoli, 66
http://www.accademia.firenze.it/it/
Mensa Universitaria (Open Sept – July)
https://www.dsu.toscana.it/i-ristoranti-universitari#firenze
Santa Apollonia
Via Santa Reparata, 12
Caponnetto (Polo Scienze Sociali)
Via Miele, 2
Ask the School in Italy staff for further information and hours.
Libraries
The small library at the Sede is open during regular hours. When checking out books (2500 volumes plus videos/DVDs) it is necessary to register the book into the computerized catalogue system, which will be done by the administrative assistant. You can take out a maximum of five books for two weeks. You will also want to take advantage of Florence’s many public libraries as well as the outstanding libraries at the University of Florence.
Biblioteca Università degli Studi di Firenze
https://www.sba.unifi.it/
Biblioteca delle Oblate
http://www.biblioteche.comune.fi.it/biblioteca_delle_oblate/
Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale
(only for books that cannot be found elsewhere—requires introduction letter)
http://www.bncf.firenze.sbn.it/
Biblioteca Marucelliana
https://marucelliana.cultura.gov.it/
There are many specialized and smaller libraries in the center of the city. Information on libraries in general is available at the Sede. A letter of introduction from the Sede is usually requested.
