6 adults in our party. Some first timers, some revisits. Staying in a 4br apartment in Florence which is supposed to right at base of Ponte Vecchio. (good location? View looks amazing!)

Our main objective is to enjoy Italy. No one in group feels like we need to see it all, do it all in a week. Want to immerse ourselves in the culture and surroundings, people, etc.

That being said, we would like a balanced trip. Art, culture, wine, scenery, wine, oh did I say wine? We are all very much looking forward to the food and the wine. My husband is a Chef and part of the trip is to inspire him for new ideas for our restaurant. We are taking 2 employees, and our wine distributor. This is my first trip, but almost everyone else has traveled to Italy several times before. That being said, they would like for me to plan it. Good grief!

So I was thinking:
2 days Wine/vineyard tours
2 days local trips. (Sienna is on my must do list!, any other suggetions, so many wonderful places....can't decide)
2 days Art, Culture, Museums, etc

Will be there 7 nights. Flying into Rome on overnight from FL, so one day might be a fog. Then on outbound have 1 night in Rome to see one or two highlights. (probably more wine!)

We won't have a car and be relaying on trains/buses. From all the reading I have done on here and in guide books seem like it is easy and manageable.

So is it good plan so far? How to split up days? (wine day, day trip day, museum day?)
Transportation for wine tours? I did find one that would pick us at at Apartment but seemed costly. ($130 per person) Or is that reasonable?

I do appreciate all your good expert advice. Any advice on restaurants in Florence and Sienna is also appreciated. Thank you!!

Chianti-en-greve for winery tours - short bus ride from Florence - buy a day ticket to tour and sample at several in-town wineries.

Try Luca Garappa of hillsandroads.com, a private guide with a van that will fit your entire group for your winery and countryside touring. He is a very personable, knowledgeable fellow, well-liked by me as well as many others on this forum.

The location of your apartment in Florence in fine.

I agree with ellenem. I'd do the wine touring part with a guide and transportation rather than being tied to bus schedules. Your wine distributor should be able to identify particular wineries and perhaps set up appointments.

When is this trip? You'll want to make museum/sight reservations wherever you can, but even with reservations two days in Florence will be eaten up quickly if you're contending with high-season crowds. Siena is easy to reach by bus. Pisa and Lucca by train (even in the same day, IMO). (Make reservations to climb the Leaning Tower if that interests you.) Bologna, Montecatini Terme and Arezzo also by train.

But if this trip is, say, July or August when temps/humidity will be high, you may find you're not up to a fast pace and moving around a lot.

How you split the days is really your call, especially since this is somewhat a business trip. I'm a museum junkie, so that would interest me more than two days of winery tours.

Thank you for all your kind replies! Jean, I am a museum junkie too! I can barely sleep in anticipation to see these masterpieces. I wish we had 2 weeks....

Our trip is end of Feb of next year. How far in advance does one need to make reservations for museums, trains, etc? Thank you for the suggestion of the Pisa tower climb. That sounds like something my husband and I would love.

Also how long does a average tour of a winery take? I see the rates for the driver are hourly and just trying to put figures in my head. I don't want to be rushed, yet I am sure we wouldn't camp out there at the winery. (even though some in our party may like that idea...)

Also, what do you recommend to plan for on a day tour of Sienna, etc? We are all early birds and would hopefully be making the first bus out. I love the idea of staying for dinner. I guess I need to go study that bus schedule!

Thank you again for your help--this forum is great! I have learned so much in just a short amount of time. Much more than my stack of guidebooks by the bed.

Florence tours, Florence sightseeing tours and Florence day trips from Viator. Find and book Uffizi Gallery tours, tickets to Florence attractions, Florence city.
www.viator.com/Florence/d519-ttd
eurocheapo.com/florence great budget tips
MANY options based on desire budget when there last did all the museums and a day trip to San G
Your location is great relax enjoy have fun!

If I were you planning you day driving to wineries, I would plan for a full day out with a guide and start from there. We spent a lovely day with Luca, stopping in quaint towns, stopping at one one winery for a tasting, having a delicious lunch in a lovely setting. (The timing of the winery tour may not be the best indicator since if will take time to drive there, to drive back, and so forth.) If your group of 6 spends 8 hours, it will cost about 70 euro each for what we found to be one of the best days of our vacation.

Siena has a combined ticket for its most famous sights that is a good guidelines for what to do and see there. It is possible (but might be challenging) to see all the included sights in one day. You can read how I spent a few days there in my trip report--scroll down to Day 15.
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm

>>>Our trip is end of Feb of next year. How far in advance does one need to make reservations for museums, trains, etc?<<<

You might not need advance reservations for the museums in Florence at that time of year especially if you visit in the afternoon. Most museums won't be booking that far in advance (usually a couple of months). Here is the official museum website for Florence.
http://www.polomuseale.firenze.it/en/index.php

I wouldn't book trains in advance either since you don't know if your flights will be on time. You could save a few euro by booking the Florence/Rome and Rome/Florence legs in advance (no more than four months), but there is no advantage/savings for booking to places like Pisa. Those are old slow R trains that don't have reserved seats and don't sell out. The cost is less than 10€.

As mentioned above, some towns are easier visited by bus (Siena, San Gimignano). Winter schedules may be reduced and it will be dark early. Always make sure to buy your return ticket and know the times of the last return bus or train.
http://www.sitabus.it/sita-toscana/F...-Siena2010.pdf

Florence Tourist Board.
http://www.firenzeturismo.it/en/

Siena is wonderful, and a must-see for wine lovers is the the Enoteca Nazionale in Siena. It is the national "library" of wine and it is located in the old Medici fortress. They have hundred of Italian wines available, many of them by the glass.

Thank you for all the help! I am sure I have a million more questions, nice to know I have experts to consult. It is all making a little more sense now.

From your apartment, which is a great location, you can easily walk to Bobili Gardens which are far more than gardens having several fine museums on the grounds and terrific views.

hi Rozzie.

in a week's trip, i feel that you want to devote at least 1/2 of your time to Florence itself and I always like to intersperse a day trip with a day "at home". so you cold think of your trip like this:

DAy 1 - arrive. settle in. orientation walk.

Day 2 - museum visit [i suggest as early as you can, then the rest of the day is available for less rigidly planned sightseeing] followed by a day in Florence. you should also try to group sights together.
for example, in one day you could see the David at the accademia , followed by the museo di san marco just round the corner [only open mornings] the medici chapel and san lorenzo market.

Day 3 - day trip to ...

Day 4 - Florence. The uffizi followed by a walk over the ARno to Altarno for lunch, then a walk up to the piazzale michelangelo, and san miniato al monti. walk down through the bobboli gardens back into Florence taking in whatever museums you fancy on the way.

Day 5 - day trip to ...

DAy 6 - Florence. possibly the Bargello museum, then Santa Croce and the nearby market [or vice versa - the cafe in the market is terrific if you want a taste of traditional tuscan food].

Day 7 - home.

have a great trip!

I agree with most of annhig's suggestions, especially grouping sights by location. But do note the open/closed days of the museums/sights you want to see in Florence before you set up any guided tours that take you out of the city for a day.

Don't miss the Duomo and do climb to the top of the lantern if you can. Don't miss both the outside and inside of the Baptistery located opposite the front door of the Duomo.

Personally, I wouldn't bother walking the Boboli Gardens in February. Although there are interesting fountains, statuary, grottoes, etc., the planted areas will be winter-dull.

I would taxi up to Piazzale Michelangelo and then walk back, just to save a little precious time. If you are running short on time, the views from the Belvedere are also lovely and it's just a short walk from the Ponte Vecchio.

Less-mentioned museums/sights I love in Florence:

Brancacci Chapel
Palazzo Medici Riccardi
Opificio delle Pietre Dure
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo

Add Palazzo Davanzati to my list and make a reservation to tour the upper floors.

Don't miss the Duomo and do climb to the top of the lantern if you can. Don't miss both the outside and inside of the Baptistery located opposite the front door of the Duomo.>>

when i was last in florence in May, the queues for entrance to the duomo itself and the Dome were very long - an early start might be necessary to avoid them even in Feb.

Agree entirely with jean, BTW.

Thank you everyone! My notebook has some great notes tonight!

Found another apartment tonight that is on residential side of Ponte Vecchio. Should only be 10-15 min walk to all the sights from reviews. Kicker is it's almost $800 less a week than other place we had tagged. More money for private tours and shopping! Does anyone have any thoughts on staying in residential area in Florence? (I can't remember the name of the street, but states view of Duomo)

I am thinking I am going to need a month! Good thing we are hoping to go over once a year for a few years or so with business partners/employees.

I appreciate all the great advice! Love the idea of climbing Duomo and Pisa tower. We are athletic and love challenges.

I think most parts of the Oltrarno have views of the Duomo, so I wouldn't put too much store in that description. More important might be how far up or down the river it is or whether it is much beyond the Pitti Palace. Post the address if you find it. Florence isn't that big, but you don't want to be too far from what you're going there to see or be so far that you don't want to return until after dinner. JMO.

"I think most parts of the Oltrarno have views of the Duomo, so I wouldn't put too much store in that description. "

This is not true at all. Only the areas that are on a hill or in a tall building (not many of those in this historic area) would have views of the Duomo. Many parts of the Oltrarno are on level ground, not on the hillside and would have no view whatsever of the Duomo.

Rozzie, Can you share a link to the apartment website you are considering? I think the Oltrarno is a good option, but won't say for sure without seeing the exact location. Some areas are closer than others.

OK, 'most parts' was overstating, but it also depends on how 'the Oltrarno' is defined. Many hotels and apartments south of the river promote their views of the city. Some are in Bellosguardo or San Niccolo, some nearly in San Gaggio.

So, location would be more important to me than a view which could be from quite a distance.