by Ilaria Gelichi
One of the
first questions asked by foreign students and tourists visiting Florence is “where can I
find free Wi-Fi?”. Well, good news is coming: starting from September, 5
2013, Florence is the first city in Italy to
have free Wi-Fi connection – without asking for registration or password.
To be
honest, Florence
has had Wi-Fi spots since 2009 but it was necessary to register and wait for
the password via text message. Now, you just need to turn on your device and join
“FirenzeWiFi”: the only limit is 2 hours (even divided) or 300MB per
day. The best spots are the main squares of the city centre, Cascine park and
the tramway line – on board and at the stops, from Santa Maria Novella train
station to Scandicci. Other spots are historic palaces (museums,
villas), libraries, main parks, universities (Viale
Morgagni, Via Alfani, Arcetri Observatory, etc.), parking (Santa Maria
Novella, etc.). Please notice that the connection may not work or be slow
because of the huge amount of people using it.
Good to
know: owners of the Firenze Card (http://www.firenzecard.it/index.php?lang=en)
can use the connection for 72 hours – the duration of the card.
In the last
few years, many cafes and restaurants has started offering free Wi-Fi
connection for their customers; sometimes the spot is open, but most of the
times you have to ask for the password. A “Wi-Fi” sticker on the door means
that the café or restaurant offers this service.
Some examples:
- Caffè
Strozzi (open
hotspot)
Palazzo
Strozzi, Firenze
- Caffè
Florian (ask for
the password)
Via del
Parione, Firenze
- Caffetteria
delle Oblate (open hotspot)
Via
dell’Oriuolo 26, Firenze
- Hard
Rock Cafè (open hotspot)
Via Dè Brunelleschi
1, Firenze
