Day Trip to Siena and San Gimignano from Florence
 

Hi All

Can anyone recommend a good day trip to Siena and SG from Florence - for me, husband and 8 yr old.

Preferably one that gives a reasonable amount of time to explore on our own as well as a bit of guidance and history on the trip there and back ...

well, you could catch a bus from the bus station next to the main railway station in Florence [SMN] either to Siena or San Gim.

IMO there is quite enough in Siena to see in a day without adding San Gim in as well, which is much better visited as an overnight when all the coaches have gone home.

The bus journey to Siena takes about 1 hour each way and deposits you in the middle of Siena. You can get a train there too, but the train station is further away from the centre so it's not so convenient. You can get an early morning bus there, spend the day, then get the bus back.

On our first trip to Florence, we had the Hotel where we were staying book a day tour to Siena and San Gim. The day tour included history, guidance and lunch in Siena as well as time to wander on our own.

I would do the bus as we did the train and then had to take a taxi to get there. There is a bus station very close to the center.

You can easily take the bus from Florence to Siena (about 8€ each one way). Siena is easy to visit without a tour. You can buy the Opa pass for the Duomo which includes the nearby tower you can climb (your 8 year old might enjoy that).

http://www.operaduomo.siena.it/eng/opa_si_pass.htm

San G is a bit more difficult because it requires changing in Poggibonsi. You need to check return schedules and buses to San G might not run on Sunday or at least not as often.

If you want a tour, CAF operates a reasonably priced tour which includes a drive through Chianti to Siena and San G. You wouldn't get much time in the towns, but perhaps an overview is all you want. Some tours are only on certain days of the week so you would need to check that.

http://www.caftours.com/excursions-and-day-trips.html

If you choose a bus tour check if they allow children If they are stopping at wineries on the way there may be nothing for kids to do.

We spend a full day in Siena then divided another between Pisa (am) and San Gim (through to the evening) but we did it by car.

If you try to visit both in one day, you really wouldn't have much time to explore.

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ok - well I was given a $300 voucher to use for accommodation or tours ... through flight centre (in Aust).

Problem is for accommodation their wholesaler is really expensive, so even with the voucher its still cheaper for me to book the accom directly (and we are staying in apartments some of the time)

So, I have a couple of Tours available ...

we have
3 nights Montreux
4 nights Wengen
3 nights Lucerne
3 nights Bellagio
6 nights Sondrio (family)
5 nights Florence
3 nights Perugia
4 nights Rome

.. so suggestions for Tours we might enjoy are most welcome :D

The Tempo Holidays voucher (which I picked up in Flight Centre last year) has sightseeing tours in places like Rome and Florence (e.g. walking tours, Vatican tours, food tours). So does the Infinity Europe Essentials brochure. Intrepid Travel also have sightseeing tours which can be booked through Flight Centre. I've found that things booked through travel agents like Flight Centre are generally more expensive but if you've got the voucher, then it doesn't matter so much.

I think Siena is worth more than part of one day. I stayed 2 nights and could have used longer.

San Gim can be seen in a few hours.