Translations
Tuscany, Italy
Getting There
The Monash University Prato Centre is a teaching and research centre in Tuscany, a European base for our Australian based university. It is located in an 18th-century palace, the Palazzo Vaj, in the historical centre of Prato. The centre is a site for intellectual and cultural exchange, bringing students and academics together from around the world to meet, learn and collaborate without the long flight to our main campus.
Our centre is located in Palazzo Vaj in the heart of the historical centre of Prato, a 15-20 minute walk from the main train station, Prato Centrale, and a 5 minute walk from the smaller station, Prato Porta al Serraglio.
Florence airport (Peretola) is approximately 25 minutes by car or 40 minutes by bus from Prato. Major airlines operate out of Florence airport including Alitalia, British Airways, Air France, and Lufthansa. A one-way taxi fare from Florence airport to our centre costs 40-50 euro. With public transport options also available. Alternative travel options from airports in Pisa, Bologna, and Rome by bus and train are also available.
Prato is about 30 minutes from Florence, about 1 hour from Bologna, 1.5 hours from Pisa, 2.5 hours from Rome and 3 hours from Milan and Venice by train.
Accommodation
We recommend the following hotels, all are located a less than ten minute walk from the Monash University Prato Centre. Prices range from around 80-100 euro per night. For the symposium we recommend staying from Sunday 21st until Thursday 25th of September. If you wish to stay in Prato longer there are many interesting attractions from the Textile Museum to wine tasting.
Please also consider joining us in Venice for the weekend for the Biennale Architettura 2025, the 19th International Architecture Exhibition (an approximately 3hr trip from Prato).
Art Hotel Milano
Hotel President Prato
Hotel Giardino
Hotel San Marco
When booking please mention you are attending an event at the Monash University Prato Centre, these hotels offer special discounted rates for Monash.
Cost
There is no cost to attend the symposium beyond your own accommodation, travel, and daily expenses. Some meals and catering will also be provided during the event.
We have some limited budget to support attendance if you are unable to obtain financial support from your institution, this will be considered on the basis of need. Please reach out to discuss this.
Interesting Information
These links provide some interesting further context on Prato and information on resturants and activites.
The Chinese Workers Who Assemble Bags in Tuscany. D.T. Max, The New Yorker, April 9 2018.
The Merchant of Prato. Francesco di Marco Datini, 1335–1410 by Iris Origo.
Ciao Prato: more information about Prato, including Attractions, Restaurants & Activities can be found in this document.