Shrink

Hi All
Virtually every European venture we have undertaken, we have requested and received fantastic help from you guys.....so I am asking for your help again.
We (wife, myself, and another couple) are looking at going to Tuscany for a week or 10 days. Thats about as far as we have progressed. I have gone thru the postings here and find myself rather confused. Let me just ask a few general questions and would really appreciate your responses to one or all of them.
1. Time of year to go..thinking maybe October.
2. Idea is to stay in one place- preferably a small town, and take small day trips to surrounding areas.
3. Rent a car or stick with the train?
4. Stay at a Hotel in town or rent a villa somewhere.
5. We love sightseeing, food, wine, atmosphere etc. Not party types.
6. Have done Venice, and Florence but wouldn't mind a day trip there.
7. I think we would like the hills rather than the beach.
8. Lake Como????
Obviously, we have no idea what we really want at this point. Please comment on some of the above things so we can begin to focus our plans.
As always, I thank you for your wonderful help and advice.

Shrink

bilboburgler

Tuscany in Oct will be great with autumn coming in and the wine harvest almost over. Still warm during the day. No need to go to Venice as Pisa, Lucca, Siena will fill up the main parts of the trip and you could even pop down to Rome.

I would use the trains for the main cities and then rent a car for a few days in the hills. For me a smaller town (search this site for alternatives) but stay in the city centre even if you have to catch a bus to the station.

Small town allows you to eat at all the restaurants and Tourist Info will let you into the local festivals

Lucca or St Querico might be good

Lake Como no

TuckH

1. Time of year to go..thinking maybe October.
- Spring is more colorful with blooming poppy fields, etc. Daylight hours are longer too.
2. Idea is to stay in one place- preferably a small town, and take small day trips to surrounding areas.
- Yes. Make a pick somewhere in the vicinity of Siena because it is most central for daytripping.
3. Rent a car or stick with the train?
- Rent a car, by all means! The Tuscan countryside does not lend itself to train travel.
4. Stay at a Hotel in town or rent a villa somewhere.
- Stay in a villa (agriturismo), preferably not too distant from a town, say San Gimignano.
6. Have done Venice, and Florence but wouldn't mind a day trip there.
- Florence, yes; Venice, no (too far).
8. Lake Como????
- No. Too far.

TDudette

Hi Shrink,
Hub and I made Spoleto our base and trained to Asissi, Orvieto and Spello. We ran out of time to visit Montelpulciano. We loved Spoleto and the hotel (Clitunno) was owner run and had an excellent restaurant. Local football team lived there so there was some eye-candy!
Looking back, I think we should have stayed in Orvieto as it was less hilly (once you go up the funicular) and I was having breathing issues. So bear that in mind if you all aren't in good walking shape.
Other posters can suggest things about renting a car but we wished we had one whilst waiting in Spello station for train to come along.
Enjoy and please report back about your trip.

WebVisionItaly

Hi Shrink,

First, nice video intorduction to Tuscany here:

http://www.webvisionitaly.com/catego...p;ref_item=268

1. Time of year to go..thinking maybe October.

Weather will be fantastc.

2. Idea is to stay in one place- preferably a small town, and take small day trips to surrounding areas.

Good idea. Montalcino, San Gimignano, Volterra, Chiusi, Siena, Chianti, Montepulciano...

3. Rent a car or stick with the train?

Train or bus is good going long distance. Rent a car here and there for day trips, to cruise around Chianti, down to Chiusi, Siena etc. I doubt four people and four people's luggage can go comfortably in a car all over Italy.

4. Stay at a Hotel in town or rent a villa somewhere.

I prefer both methods. In Tuscany a farmhouse, villa is the dream. if so, rent the car when you get to Tuscany.

5. We love sightseeing, food, wine, atmosphere etc. Not party types.

Tuscany is perfect. Maybe go into Umbria for a day. Orvieto, Assisi etc

6. Have done Venice, and Florence but wouldn't mind a day trip there.

Train into either one from Tuscan hillside. Another idea is to stay in Emilia Romagna - near like Bologna or Parma, which also makes day tripping in central Italy easy.

7. I think we would like the hills rather than the beach.

Tuscany has both. Bocelli prefers Forte di Marme on the beach. The artists do Pietrasanta, also on the coast. Lucca and Pisa are other places worth a visit on the coast.

8. Lake Como????
I would not. If I was going to Tuscany I would stick to it and do Umbria too, but in my opinion Lake Como is too far for a day trip.

Another video about Umbria here:
http://www.webvisionitaly.com/catego...p;ref_item=271

bobthenavigator

You seem to have a ton of questions, most of which you can be answered in more depth at www.slowtrav.com
We prefer the region south of Siena--location is the key. Small villages such as san Quirico, Montalcino, or Pienza are good , but Lucca is a city of 75000 and not close to this region. Read a good guide book first then come back for more questions.

Mimar

TDudette is talking about Umbria, not Tuscany, but Umbria is interesting also and with 10 days you could spend a few there.

For both places you will need a car. It gets you into the beautiful countryside and between the small villages.

Pienza makes a good base. It's easy to drive in and out of, and is centrally located in southern Tuscany, a favorite area of many of us.

I seek out places to stay that are on the edge of a small town. Big enough to have several good restaurants, small enough so, after a day of sightseeing, we can walk into town for dinner and everybody can drink wine.

Especially if you want to rent a villa, do look at www.slowtrav.com. Lots of good information about traveling in Italy there.

Shrink

Hey guys
Thanks so much for your guidance. I really appreciate it. We now have a feel for what we probably will want to do. Thanks for the links, advice and general help. I will be back later with more questions I'm sure as we get closer to the time. Since my wife is a school teacher, the only time we could go in the "spring" would be around the first or middle of March. I think Oct would be easier to handle.
I read some blog somewhere about the mosquitos being terrible in Tuscany. Is this true?
Thanks again for your help.
Shrink

Henry

Shrink,
For Tuscany at the end of October consider http://www.montalcino-tuscany.it/sagra_del_tordo.htm

Henry

zeppole

Be aware that a great many rentals in Toscana require driving to and from restaurants for dinner unless you are willing to cook. Since I enjoy drinking wine with dinner, and don't like to spend my vacation days cooking, I prefer to make sure I am always within walking distance of at least one good restaurant, and probably more.

Also, were I traveling with another couple, I would want to be located where there was some public transportation, even if I had a car, in case people don't always want to sightsee as a group. I might pick Umbria for a base for its wealth of artistic sights within easy reach.

As for the recommendations for Slow Travel, any advice about rentals should be double checked against other independent reviews.

TDudette

Oops, sorry! But isn't Umbria nearish?

StCirq

Yes, Umbria is more than nearish, it practically blends right into Tuscany.

And with 10 days I'd try to spend at least a few in Umbria, which is less crowded and IMO more interesting than the usually visited Tuscan towns.

zeppole

Well, some parts of Umbria and Toscana blend together and others blend into distinctly different places. I also think there are very distinct differences between the food and high art culture of the land dominated by St. Francis of Assisi and the merchants of Perugia and the land once inhabited by the Etruscans and dominated by the Florentines and the Sienese -- and more recently British and Americans.

When people on message boards ask about "Tuscany," about 99 percent of the time they are asking about Chianti or the small towns nearest Siena. These are small aspects of Toscana -- roughly like saying "New England" when you all you really mean is the Berkshires and parts of Vermont.

sandra3120

Hi, Shrink and other posters: I highly recommend basing in Umbria and doing all the Umbrian towns; as St. Cirq said, it's less crowded. But no matter where you decide to base, you really should have a car so that you can travel directly from where you are based (when your luggage is already stored) to where you want to go that day. Rent your car close to your base after getting rid of all 4 people's luggage: as one poster said, it won't all fit in one car unless each of you only uses one small carryon.

Your budget will determine where you stay, but Palazzo Terranova, www.palazzoterranova.com, in Ronti, in Umbria, gives you the best of both villa and hotel: it's on a mountaintop with only 12 rooms, and has a serving restaurant with marvelous food and the atmosphere is unbeatable. You have the feeling of being in a villa, but the advantages of a small hotel. At the end of a long day of sightseeing, no one cares about getting in a car and finding a restaurant because there's one on site, so you can enjoy the lovely local wines with impunity and just go upstairs to bed. There are lovely walking trails around, plus you are within an hour of many major sites. Have a look at their website; it that's not in the cards, I do know other places in Umbria - that's just my favorite and I've stayed there twice a year since 2001.

WebVisionItaly

I agree with Zeppole. Umbria and Tuscany are different regions because they are well, different.

Umbrii people and Sabines settled Umbria and the Etruscans Tuscany.

More recent history, Medieval to Renaissance, reveals Umbria more Medieval in architecture and art and Tuscany more Renaissance in its architecture and art. Both regions are wonderful. Take that car, once you get there, take out a map, and leave some time to explore.

I also agree with Zepploe about drinking and driving. Italy is no place for it - nor is it fun to ruin a vacation. Find a palce be it a rental or hotel in a town with some restaurants.

rfbk50

I just booked the apartment for next April. (Top website) Check out these two websites - the same family own both. I love all of the other tours they can arrange.

The owner has been most prompt in answering my emails.

www.lecasinedicastello.com

www.cretaiole.it