ZTL Florence: the hours, the night trap, and the Scudo Verde

Only if the property registers your number plate with the council before you drive through a gate — not after. Registration is free and covers the length of your stay, and the hotel knows the procedure and its own booking system, so let them do it. If your accommodation cannot or will not register the plate, park outside the walls and reach it on foot or by taxi. Taxis may enter freely.

Sectors A, B and O are restricted Monday to Friday 07:30–20:00 and Saturday 07:30–16:00, all year. On Sundays and public holidays the daytime ZTL is not active. From the first Thursday of April to the first Sunday of October there is also a summer night ZTL from 23:00 to 03:00 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, and that one extends to all five sectors. As verified on 12 August 2026 with the city's mobility department.

It is a separate restriction that runs on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights between April and October, from 23:00 to 03:00, and unlike the daytime ZTL it covers all five sectors including F and G. That means a street you drove down freely on a Tuesday afternoon can be a fined entry on a Friday night. It is the single most common way visitors get caught in Florence.

No — and this is worth saying clearly, because the name sounds like a charge. The Scudo Verde is a separate environmental scheme covering a large part of the city, live since 1 April 2025 and active 24 hours a day, but it involves NO TOLL of any kind. It restricts only heavily polluting vehicles, under 10% of the Italian fleet, broadly those built before 1997: petrol cars Euro 0 and diesel Euro 0 and Euro 1. Any modern hire car passes. The council provides an online plate check if you want to be certain.

The practical answer is the T2 Guidoni park-and-ride on viale XI Agosto, open 24 hours every day, with the tram and buses running into the centre. It costs €1.50 for up to 5 hours and €2.50 for up to 12. Vehicles heading to a garage or a commercial car park inside the ZTL can also be authorised — ask the operator.

No. Florence's parking meters accept coins and cards, but only on the Visa, Mastercard and Maestro circuits. Bring one of those. Of the seven parking apps the council accepts, only Tap&Park charges no commission — the others may add costs.

The rules for two-wheelers differ from those for cars and are set separately, so do not assume a scooter is exempt. If you are riding rather than driving, check the current provision with the council or ask us and we will confirm it for you.

That is normal: the gates photograph the plate and there is no roadside stop, and with a hire car the request goes through the rental company. The fine should reach an address abroad within 360 days. If you believe it is wrong, you can write to the Prefetto of Florence or appeal through the Giudice di Pace. Note too that since the December 2024 reform of the Codice della Strada, repeated entries into the same zone on the same day count as a single violation, so a multiple fine for one day is worth contesting.

You can buy one yourself. Florence sells a daily permit — the contrassegno giornaliero — in two versions: €5 for transit only, and €15 for transit and parking in the residents' spaces inside the zone. You print it and display it at the front of the car, visible from outside. It is valid from 00:00 to 24:00 on the day chosen, or from the moment of purchase if bought that same day.

Four. A maximum of ten days a month and sixty days a year for the same number plate. Vehicles under 3.5 tonnes only. Once issued it cannot be cancelled or refunded, so make sure the date is right. And vehicles over 3.5 tonnes need a separate authorisation from the Polizia Municipale, granted only for the 06:00 to 08:30 window.

Yes, and hardly anyone asks. Florence issues a permit for people temporarily unable to walk — after an operation or an injury, for instance. You apply online with a medical certificate stating the impediment and how long it is needed, and the permit lasts as long as the certificate says, up to six months and renewable. Up to three plates may be listed, on vehicles under 3.5 tonnes belonging to the person or a close family member.

Only if the property registers your number plate before you drive in, or if you buy the day permit yourself — €5 for transit, €15 with parking, printed and displayed at the front of the car. If neither is possible, park at the T2 Guidoni park-and-ride and take the tram in: €1.50 for up to five hours. Taxis enter the zones freely.

The gates photograph your plate and the fine arrives months later, usually through the rental company with its own charge added. There is no way to regularise it afterwards in Florence, unlike Palermo. The most common way visitors get caught is the summer night restriction: between April and October, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights from 23:00 to 03:00, all five sectors are closed — including streets that are open on a Tuesday afternoon.

Only with a permit, and the historic centre is divided into five camera-controlled sectors. The simplest route for a visitor is to buy a day permit yourself — €5 for transit, €15 with parking — print it and display it at the front of the car. Or have your hotel register your plate before you drive in. Otherwise park at the T2 Guidoni park-and-ride and take the tram in for €1.50.

The gate photographs your plate and a fine follows by post, often months later and through your rental company. There is no way to fix it at the time and no retrospective permit in Florence. If you believe the fine is wrong you can write to the Prefetto or appeal through the Giudice di Pace, and note that repeated entries into the same zone on the same day should count as one violation.

Not necessarily, and this is the trap. From April to the first Sunday of October there is a NIGHT restriction from 23:00 to 03:00 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and unlike the daytime rules it covers ALL FIVE SECTORS. A street you drove down freely on a Tuesday afternoon can be a fined entry on a Friday night.