Does anyone know of cooking classes in Florence or the Tuscanny area?

thank you for your help - slowly making progress on an itinerary- just soo much informatoin!

Cooking class thread:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34685964

I agree with what a few others said - having a car might be a problem, but if you're driving in the countryside, then it should be ok. The train from Rome to Florence is only about 2hrs.

I lived in Florence for 4 months (Sept-Dec) and also visited again last January for a week. I went on a wine tasting tour in November without a problem and they were available in January, too. If you are near the Santa Maria Novella train station in Florence, there's a bus tour that leaves in that plaza. It's directly across from the train station, close to the McDonalds (ugh) - if you face the McDonalds, go to the right and its not far. It's the only tour busline in the square, so it's hard to miss. It's cheap (I think it was only $20) and takes an entire afternoon. I believe the tour leaves at 1pm and returns at 6pm. It's a great experience - you tour a family run winery, get to taste 3-4 wines along with fresh olive oil and then they stop in one of the small towns in the countryside for about an hour.

The temperature in Florence/Tuscany will be in the 50/40s or so, so be prepared for some cold weather. Of course, it can randomly get up to the 70s - its crazy weather. The leather markets near San Lorenzo in Florence will still be open and you can haggle for some lined gloves and scarves to help keep warm.

I would highly recommend going to Siena for a day. It's a beautiful town and has some great sites. The cathedral itself is worth the visit. I took my mother there last winter (January) and it was her favorite place out of Florence, Rome and Siena. There's a bus that goes to Siena (1.5hr/2hr trip) and any hotel consierge would be able to tell you where it is.

Now, I've noticed you talked a lot about day tours - have you ruled out the Florence sites completely? For instance, you could easily see the best of Florence in a day and a half, if time and day tours is an issue/must. If you're looking for advice on what to see and skip in Florence, please just ask - feel free to email. I fell in love with Florence while I lived there and could probably help with tourist traps.

Thank you! What is the name of the wine tour via bus that you mention? Also we prob will be in Florence for New Year's - any ideas? It sounds to be a walking city- so where should we stay-? And do you know of any cooking classes in Florence we could look into. Thanks very much- unfortunately I'm clueless.

I had to go digging into my box of Florence things to find it, but I found the bus company name: Lazzi.

Their website doesn't allow you to buy tickets to their tours so if you wanted to buy a ticket ahead of time, you should use this contact information:
Address: Piazza Stazione, 3/r Phone 055 215155 Fax. 055 284427
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday and on Sunday only for special events in Florence from 9.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m.
Your consultants: Rossella, Francesca, Claudia, Giacomo, Tiziana, Silvia e Daniela.

They do guided tours to the Chianti wine region every afternoon and it's probably the least expensive one you can find. I usually walked in the day I wanted to go, bought a ticket for that day and it was fine. It doesn't get booked up, especially not so late in the year. A lot of people tend to go with private tours, which can get up towards the 150/200 euro mark. It was far too expensive for a student like me! But I went on two tours with them while I was in Florence and we went to a different place each time. The tours were informative, fun and really interesting. They take you to a family run winery that's in a castle in the countryside. You had plenty of time to explore the area around the family castle after the tour was finished, which was great - you can walk through the grape vines and olive trees, or check out the castle a bit more.

Good hotels - Hotel Cavour was clean, good staff, but the rooms were a little small. But then again, it's hard to find large hotel rooms in Florence. Another good hotel is Grand Hotel Baglioni, but it's close to the train station so its a bit louder over there.

However, I would strongly recommend the Brunelleschi Hotel over any other. It's built in an old tower of the city, so it's classic Florentine through and through. It's a romantic hotel, located in the center of town, off a side street, so it's quiet. All of the hotels in Florence are well heated in the winter, but I'm not sure if any of these have fireplaces.

As about Florence being a walking city - absolutely! The buses are OK - a little confusing and can go on strike for any reason. The center of the city is only about 1.5square miles, so it's easier to walk usually. The center of the city is a "walking only" area, and cars aren't allowed around the Duomo, and most of the plazas (piazzas).

There's a good restaurant near the Piazza della Republicca that I love - the Grotto Guelph. It's classic Florentine style food and it's relatively inexpensive. I ate there with my boyfriend for about $50 and that was with an appetizer, full meal and house wine. If you get other wine, it can get a little more expensive. The atmosphere is wonderful - the light is dim because its mostly candlelight, they have a friendly staff and fantastic food all around. If you go there, stop by earlier in the day and put your name down for a reservation. I went there at 6pm and was sat immediately - but if you eat later (7/730), then you'll need a reservation for most of the restaurants around. Dinnertime in Italy is usually 7/730 and lasts about 2hours on average, so if you don't have a table by 730, you could be in for a bit of a wait or you might have to find another place to eat. (especially for New Year's Eve!) It's also open for lunch if you're looking for something different for dinner. The minestrone soup (i believe its just called vegetable) is amazing and their taglioni dishes are all great.

And I don't have any information on cooking classes unfortunately - I never took one while I was there.

Hope this is helpful!