michelley573

I'm planning a first time trip to Italy, for my boyfriend and I, for next March. The trip will begin with a couple nights in Venice and end with 4 nights in Rome. I'm undecided about the middle portion of the trip. I originally planned to stay in one of the hill towns of Tuscany, but also considered staying in Florence and taking a couple day trips for wine tasting and sightseeing.

I like the idea of staying in a smaller town and really exploring the local food, wines, and scenery of Tuscany. From what I've read, renting a car seems to be the way to go for that type of stay. I'm curious about the challenges for a first time visitor driving a car in Italy? Should I stick to staying in Florence and taking some guided day tours instead? Would staying on the outskirts of Florence be an option? Seems like public trans might not be as accessible on the outer edges of town..

Any suggestions??

sandralist

Most people find it simple to drive in rural Tuscany unless they come from a country where people drive on a different side of the road. Most people find it very stressful to drive in Florence itself.

Staying in the Oltrarno with a car is an option. There are some nice restaurants there, but on the days you want to go sightseeing in Florence itself, you will have a longer walk to sights -- but not an unmanageble one unless it is pouring buckets. (Even then, you can take a bus.)

Which days in March would you be in Tuscany? There is often a very noticeable difference in weather between the first days of March and the last days, and the clocks are switched at the end of March, so there are more daylight hours.

vincenzo32951

The Oltrano is a good option. Some other ideas:

You probably need to set priorities. What's in Florence that you want to see? How many days will that take? Is staying in a small town more preferable for you than staying in a city like Florence? If you stay in Florence, would your budget allow you to hire a good guide/driver to explore Tuscany on day trips? (You can get some recommendations here on that.)

michelley573

If we stayed in Florence I don't think we would consider renting a car, only if we stayed in a smaller town. Also, we will be from a country that drives on the opposite side of the road. That's why I was curious about how difficult it might be.

Lastly, it will be closer to the middle of March, before the time changes.

sandralist

If you are not going to have a car on the outskirts of town, there is almost no advantage to being there, except there are some nice restaurants that are less touristy than the ones you will find in the very center of Florence. But as you already figured out, most public transportation that might take you the countryside departs from the central train station area in Florence, so no advantage to being there in that respect.

To explore Tuscan wines, unless you have a specific list of small, prize winning wineries you want to visit in remote locations, you would actually do better to go wine tasting in Florence (try some place like Pitti Gola in the Oltrarno or take a wine tasting class.)

In March, there is a special truffle in parts of Tuscany called "tartufo marzuolo" that is dug up not too far from Florence. There are a couple of small towns that hold usually hold weekend truffle festivals in March to celebrate, and you might think about taking a train to participate. One of the towns is Certaldo, and the other is San Miniato (not the church in Florence, but the town between Florence and Pisa). Often you need to take a taxi or bus from the train station to get up the hill, but it's a very brief ride.

So something you might consider is staying Florence, and if you have a chance, go to one of these festivals, or go to the town and eat in one of the restaurants with a truffle menu. Or, if you've got the dough, hire a driver for the day to take you for a ride through the countryside, maybe some wine tasting too, or something that includes a lunch -- although bear in mind that in March you are unlikely to find anybody serving lunch outdoors with a view of vinyards.

But one of the advantages of staying in Florence is that if you get consecutive rainy days, when the Tuscan scenery is not vibrant, or worse, you get flashes of ice and snow, then it's really no loss to be right in Florence, with loads to see and do and a great central market plus the whole world of Tuscan wine in the shops and bars.

michelley573

sandralist - Thank you for all the insight! I was thinking that Florence might be the best overall option after all that I've been reading. We can still take a day trip into the countryside just to get a glimpse of the area. Maybe if we were going at a different time of year I might think differently.

sandralist

If you want a cheap, very brief glimpse, maybe one fun option is to take the 20 minute bus ride out of Florence to Sant'Andrea in Percussina to the family house of Machiavelli, where he spent his time writing when he wasn't welcome in Florence itself. The little borgo has wonderful vinyards behind it, and the house itself is quite fascinating, with an atmospheric wine cellar. On a clear day, you can just see the dome of Florence in the distance, which apparently made Machiavelli very wistful. There is a small restaurant there, so it's one quick way to have a lunch out of town in a very quiet place if you can't invest in a driver and full countryside tour. You'd need to call or e-mail ahead to make sure they are open for lunch during March and that there was someone available to give you the short tour of the house.

http://www.villamachiavelli.it/en/

If you do want to go truffle hunting, here is bit more info on the marzuolo truffle events from past years

http://www.pisaunicaterra.it/en/arti...fair-2015.html

http://www.tuscanypass.com/events_tu...-florence.html

http://www.restipica.net/en/2013/03/...tufo-marzuolo/

Whilte those two can be reached by train in less than an hour from Florence, here is another one further out, in San Giovanni d'Asso, that would require a driver

http://www.turismo.intoscana.it/allt...-crete-senesi/

To get to San Giovanni d'Asso from Florence, the least expensive way would probably be to take a train to Siena or Buonconvento and meet up with a driver there -- and even then it wouldn't be cheap.

michelley573

Any suggestions on specific hotels or B&Bs in Florence? Looking for something with a little charm or a view for around €160 a night. It would be nice to be within walking distance of the city center, if possible.

kja

As vincenzo said, it really depends on what YOU want to see and experience, and only you can decide that!

Perhaps I missed it, but how long do you have for this segment of the trip, and for the trip as a whole?