mjs

Am going to Europe on the 26 of May and have scheduled an itinerary myself to go to The Loire valley/Bordeaux and the Dordogne. In the meantime I had my adult daughter try her hand at planning a trip and gave her Italy. We have been to Provence/Rome/Normandy/Berlin/London and Paris etc within the last two years and spent a week in Florence about 10 years ago. I think this is a reasonable alternative trip and would appreciate comments as I am considering it over my previous posted plan.
Fly SFO to CDG on the 26. Arrival 1035. Af 1535 to Genoa arrival 1710. Stay night at NH Marina hotel and see aquarium in morning. Taxi to Hotel Astoria Rapallo May 28 to June 1. Explore area and rent car on the first to travel to Castillo delle Serre near Siena to use as base to explore Tuscany from Volterra/San Gimignano to Montepilciano/Pienza/Montalcino and possibly Assisi and Orvieto. Have already been to Pisa and Siena. Leave for Florence on the 7th or 8th for one or two nights than fly to London on the 9th.

bilboburgler

My only concern is you are visiting the big drawers, there are an aweful lot of smaller "citta'" you could see which are worth some time in the same area, just riding the usual US tourist routes will get to some lovely places but there are some others.

bilboburgler

"Castello"

Probably a bit too much to the east for me, some of those Tuscany roads don't half wiggle

bilboburgler

Ah, my fault, the castello website's location file is wonky, finally tracked down where it is, it'll be fine.

massimop

Unless aquariums are really important to you or your daughter, I suggest you simply get into a taxi at the Genova airport and go right to Rapallo. It will only add about 25 minutes to your travel time. You'll arrive in Rapallo in time for dinner.

After you pick up your rental car in Rapallo, suggest you aim to eat lunch near San Gimignano/Volterra area. See them before you land in Castello delle Serre. In that location, it makes sense to focus on daytrips south or east of Siena.

mjs

Am concerned that our car will be broken into if we stop to tour Volterra/SG but could stop for a night or two in Volterra. Was hopeful we could do everything from Castello delle Serra.

frencharmoire

Thousands upon thousands of tourists visit go traipsing around sightseeing in Tuscany, including San Gimigiano & Volterra, with luggage in their trunk and never report a thing stolen. Everybody is advised not to leave anything in plain sight, and most people feel better taking computers & cameras with them rather than leaving them in the car. Some people have tricks like leaving an Italian newspaper & cigarettes in the car or making sure the rear of their car is parked against a wall or tree.

Of course there is no guarantee that a theft couldn't possibly ever happen, and it's also true that thousands of tourists have a policy of never leaving their luggage in the trunk anywhere in Tuscany, because they simply are not comfortable doing that.

Many people say that San Gimignano is much more charming a place to visit at night after hordes of daytripping tourists have left, so that might be an incentive. And if it makes you feel more protected, a large section of Volterra has been, for centuries, a maximum security prison. Presumably sends a deterring message.

bilboburgler

St G is so much nicer at night.