ideas sought
 

Heading to Lucca, ViaReggo for a week at end of January for anniversary week.
Looking for members to offer up itinerary ideas. Been to Florence, Siena in spring and fall.
Seek suggestions about January offerings aside from thermal springs/spas. Have car, want to: explore, shop, enjoy food, wine, get to KNOW nuances of this Val d'Orcia area of Tuscany .

Only requesting ideas, nothing comprehensive. Surprised no response.

I suppose you mean Viareggio? I have not been there, but it looks like you will just be missing Carnevale, which is a big deal in Viareggio.

Also, this is not the Val d'Orcia region of Tuscany--that is further south.

I have stayed in Lucca. Day trips that would make sense are Pistoia, Montecatini and Pisa, which can be done by train. Barga is supposed to be lovely and probably easier by car--I am not sure what it would be like at this time of year.

In Lucca, we enjoyed visiting the churches and strolling around within the walled, old town. We especially enjoyed dinner in the garden at Cauleia and lunch at Paris Boheme Bistrot.

It could be because your question is confusing. Lucca and Viareggio are nowhere near the Val d'Orcia. Where will you be going exactly?

Sorry for confusion, staying in Lucca, reading of Val d'Orcia as a must see.

Yes, but you couldn't get much further from Lucca and still be in Tuscany! The website I just consulted says it's 196km from Lucca to Pienza in the Val d'Orcia, and I can tell you that's mainly on narrow winding roads.
In January Val d'Orcia won't be at its best anyway.

You need a good map.
That time of year I would stay close to home and see Pisa and maybe Volterra if the weather is good.

have maps and a car, have driven from france throughout italy.live in eastern US,used to snow,back roads. questions are to folks living in the region, or frequent visitors to learn best go to spots especially at end of January. what is open, what is great to see, where to head for fabulous food, walks, shops- these are questions not answered in articles. Tuscany in Winter raved about Val d'Orcia, learn from blog, not so much? 7 days to visit towns spread out into this area. Have driven to Florence and Sienna, love entire area. Winter is different, but how different.

I second Bob's suggestion of Volterra which is closer to Lucca. We've spent a full day there on two different trips.
Is it possible to stay in the Val d'Orca before after Lucca? That would give you two excellent bases. I would think larger towns anf cities would offer more in winter, Arezzo,mCortona for example, but far from Lucca.

Just changed our hotel from Lucca to San Gimignano. Access to Val d'Orcia is no longer a problem.

San Gimignano is still a distance on curvy roads. If you want to visit Val d'Orica, why not stay there?

The area of Val d'Orcia is more than 90 minutes' drive one-way from San Gimignano, and that's in good, dry weather. Then, for each town you visit, you need to add time for parking and walking into and out of the towns. You can't drive into the town centers anywhere. It will be dark by 5:30p.

If you're settled on SanG, I'd concentrate the exploring in Chianti and the Val d'Elsa. Or split your week between SanG and a town in the Val d'Orcia.

Be prepared for some cold temps and a chance of a little snow. Even without snow, if there is any precipitation overnight and temps dip into the low 30s(F), you may have to wait a bit in the morning before driving away to be sure there's no ice on the shaded parts of roads.

You need a better map !
Val d' Orcia is still a long drive. Why not stay CLOSER?

map in hand shows us now more centralized with Siena, Volterra, Livorna, and Firenze closer. this will be an exploration of the area as intended, driving, walking, perhaps hiking the areas features. used to driving long distances, savoring what we see/learn. we know the time of year presents chilly, rainy, even snowy weather, thus the questions to this blog - what to do, what is open, where to head for best food, activity, wine, given the season in which we were married - love this part of Italy, so why not celebrate here.