Someone describes the island of Pianosa as the “silent island” or the “wild island”… the truth is that Pianosa is an ex prison and there are no hotels and no inhabitants at the moment, just a few daily tourists and an A-M-A-Z-I-N-G sea 
You are not allowed to rent a boat and get there on your own, you have to plan your visit with the help of authorised agencies or ferry companies, so the Park of the Tuscan Archipelago can monitor the number of tourists entering the island (maximum 250 per day).
There’s no need to say that tourists must respect the island of Pianosa’s wild nature and the heritage that has survived through the centuries: Pianosa is a treasure and must be preserved!
Activities
No matter how old you are you’ll love the isle of Pianosa: you can take a mini bus to visit it or a carriage or a mountain bike, otherwise you can choose trekking or kayak excursions! The sea is incredibly crystal clear, a dream for snorkeling and scuba diving lovers.
How to get there
Daily excursions to Pianosa start from Piombino and Elba Island. Then there are tons of possibilities to reach the island through private companies that organize excursions on the island starting from Isola d’Elba and the other islands of the archipelago, but it’s impossible to write them all down: just keep your eyes open and you’ll find nice schedules! 
Here are the main ferry contacts (since these websites are in Italian, we suggest you to buy your tickets at the port!):
- Aquavision – tel. (+39) 328.7095470 – 329.2021220 – 0565.907274; website: www.aquavision.it. Call to ask for rates and to book your tickets, otherwise request online the possibility to book online (
yes it’s a bit weird…) - Toremar: tel. (+39) 02.39595013 – 199.11.77.33; website: www.toremar.it. Ferries leave from Piombino and Rio Marina.
Travel Information:
- APT Arcipelago Toscano: tel. (+39) 0565.914671; mail: info@aptelba.it
Interesting information
Entering Pianosa’s city walls is odd because no one lives there since the jail closed its gates definitely at the end of the ’90s. Prisoners took care of the buildings in the isle so nowadays the small town is in ruins, while the nature and wildlife are taking over the island .
At the moment, the prisoners’ refectory is the tourists’ office.
If this post made you want to visit the island of Pianosa, you may also like to see other magical places in our beautiful Tuscan archipelago:
- How to get to the island of Elba
- Capraia island: wonderful beaches in Tuscany
- Montecristo: tuscan island of secrets and mysteries
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Pictures by Flickr users: Laurina, Zymil, Roberto Miliani
[...] to visit: Pianosa – [...]
First time I read any information regarding these gorgeous islands, they should be perserved, but need more publicity and open for tourist to see and admire the beauty.u00a0 Must keep accessible prices, low cost, to invite tourist on this adventure.
[...] – reassured me that although it is impossible to go to Montecristo – Capraia and Pianosa are very similar, so why not go there instead? Otherwise, there are boat tours that go near the [...]