We would appreciate any time Fodorites might take to help us wittle down our lodging choices after all this research (!).

We are two ladies, first timers to Tuscany for 5 days in late March---on a budget. Need 2 beds or bed + sofabed. We want to stay in or very near Siena, but can't find anything in our budget range. We'll have a car and want to tour around hill towns, Cortona area and Volterra.
We prefer in-town places (with parking nearby) or close enough for easy walk into a town.

The hardest thing for a first timer is knowing whether a particular town is good for day trips to the rest of the region.

The choices so far are:

SAN GIMIGNANO:
Sangirooms
www.sangirooms.com
Double Room - in town
67 Euro
or
Hotel San Michele (1.5 km out of town)
Looks fabulous!
http://www.tuscany.net/sanmichele/pages/profile.htm
80 euro to 90 euro (w/ view)

MONTALCINO
Hotel Il Giglio-in town
Double 85 euro

MONTEPULCIANO
Il Marzocco--in town
http://www.albergoilmarzocco.it/hotel.en.php
Double 90 Euro

PIENZA
Mario e Chiara--in town
http://www.rentalholiday.com/mauro&chiara/
Double -2 beds--78 euro
or
Oliviera Camere--in town
http://nautilus-mp.com/tuscany/affitti/oliviera/
Multiple choices under 65 euro

Whew!
Anyone stayed in any of these or have input about them? My head is spinning after looking at all these sites (so is my computer!).

We have stayed twice at Oliviera Camere--in town
http://nautilus-mp.com/tuscany/affitti/oliviera/
Multiple choices under 65 euro

The people who own it could not be any nicer. They do not live in the home but within walking distance. The son cleans the rooms and I don't think I have ever stayed anywhere quite as clean.
Each of the rooms we have stayed in were roomy especially the bathrooms.
They do not serve breakfast but that is not a problem as there are several nice coffee bars within walking distance.
Parking is very easy either in the front or back of the property.
They speak little English but it was never a problem.
We stayed there for a full week the last time and it was easy exploring the whole area including Siena, Cortona, Montalcino, Montepulciano, Sarona, Pitigliano etc..
Pienza has several great restaurants.
As you have probably guessed Pienza is one of my favorite places. I feel very at home there and have found the town very friendly.
A couple of nearby villages worth a look are Montefollenicco and Montichiello.
Have a great trip.

You should get a prize:

"Helpful Post of the Month" or something!

Thank you very much.

Jeanne, I love all these towns, but San Gim is not as centrally located as the other 3 in terms of day trips around the region.

Between Montepulciano, Montalcino, and Pienza, there is a difference in the size of the town, from large to small as I listed them. Pienza is tiny, but a lovely little gem and one of my favorites. Montalcino might be the best location of the 3 for exploring the whole region, since Volterra and Cortona are pretty much in opposite directions. I haven't been to Cortona, but Volterra is another favorite of mine. Be sure you get a good map -- Italian Touring Club is excellent.

Jeanne, Did you miss my recent trip report--just click on my name above and find " Navigating in Toscana". We did stay at Il Giglio and found it very convenient in my favorite hill town.

We stayed in Montepulciano a few years ago and loved it. Montepulciano is a little bigger than Montalcino and Pienza, and seems more of a 'working' town - not as touristy or catering to the upscale wine buyers as some other towns. It is also one of the highest hill towns, so the views are fabulous.
Just by chance,we came upon this small, inexpensive hotel, the Terrazza, located in an apartment building in the heart of the town. The owner, Roberto, was the most gregarious, friendly person we met on our entire trip. The room was very comfortable, and there was parking right in the back. However driving to the hotel is nearly impossible, Roberto will gladly escourt you in, waving to all his friends and relatives along the way!
Here is the website:
http://www.montepulcianohotels.it/terrazza/

Bob: No I didn't miss your report...you're the reason Il Giglio is on my list!

From studying the map, it looks to me like Pienza is more centrally located for touring other places. Do you agree? But does Montalcino have more character, restaurants, etc?
______________________________
Zootsi:

Roberto sounds like his own parade...what a hoot!

But, if we're touring in the car every day would he have this little parade everytime we return for the evening???
(Or do I assume that's only when we're dropping off luggage?

It looks great!

Stay in Montepulicano for 3 days, tour Cortona, Montalcino, Pienza, maybe even Perugia? Then head N through Siena for 2, tie in Mt Oliveto Abbey if possible, and stay in San Gimiganno for the last 2 nights. We stayed with www.sangiapartments.com (is this the same as sangirooms?)? 60 euro for huge double bed room with private bath, super nice family, daughter spoke great english, you go into the pastry shop on the main walk to get your key, just fabulous. Frm here you can get to Volterra and Lucca. Enjoy, We toured a lot of N/Central Europe (I have a trip report on here you could search for) and these areas of Tuscany were our favorites!

I come here very red faced. I have made a mistake and recommended Camere Olivera when it is actually Camere Andrei where we stayed in Pienza.
After posting I got this uneasy feeling that the name was not correct. I double checked and found my mistake.
I stand by my recommendation for Andrei and apologize for the slip-up.
I do wish there was a delete button for our postings!!!

Bummer.

But, on the bright side, Camere Andrei looks good too! And the price says 45 euro per night per room...can that be right?!

Just to be on the safe side this time, here's the website I found...is this it?
http://www.nautilus-mp.com/tuscany/a...drei/info.html
____________________________________
Bob:
would you please email me? I'd like to ask you something rather off the subject from this post.
[email protected]

He escorted us in since it was almost impossible to find the hotel parking lot in the maze of tiny streets. We left our car there until we left for good. Maybe you could find the spot once Roberto escorted you in the first time. Roberto WAS a character - shirt open to the navel, gold chains and medals around his neck, thick black mustache, and a voice you could hear across the town! We still talk about that stay!

Take a look at www.bardotti.com - we stayed in the village of Barberino and absolutely loved it. It is halfway between Florence and Siena. We did not have a car, but used buses to visit neighbouring towns and villages. With a car you will find it very easy to visit the areas you wish to see.

The apartment we stayed in was just outside the walls of the village and exceeded our expectations. It had the best view of the Tuscan hillside from the bedroom window. The website no longer shows the 1 bedroom apartment we stayed in - I think it has been combined with the apartment across the hallway to cater for more people, but I am sure that if there was a vacancy that the smaller apartment could still be requested. It was 340 Euros for the week (and that was in the high season).

Giovanni, the owner is a delight and most helpful.

Good luck - you will enjoy your time, no matter where you end up staying!

My husband and I spent several nights in Montalcino and stayed at ll Giglio in October 2002. Our room was simple, but very adequate, nice bathroom and the view from our outdoor patio was absolutely spectacular. The hotel is very centrally located, the owners extremely helpful and Montalcino was one of our very favorite towns in Italy. Lucky you!

We have also stayed at Il Giglio in Montalcino, but the affitacamera, not hotel. It was wonderful! And a great price! I highly recomend it. We loved Montalcino. It was a bit touristy, but not losing the local flavor. There are lots of shops, resturants, wine shops in town. And the country side is beautiful to drive through. There was free parking nearby also.
Banfi vineyards has a very good web site of the accomadations and resturants in town and nearby.
-Katie

Katie:
Is "affitacamera" what's referred to on the Il Giglio website as the "Annex"? Do you think two ladies would be comfotable there vs. the hotel? With what we could save, we could then afford a nice hotel in-town in San Gim.

Hi Jeanne
I just came back from Europe and was in Tuscany for a few days. My partner and I stayed in Montepulciano, in a little hotel, the name of which escapes me right now. It was clean and had a bathroom ensuite and we paid only 55 Euros. We booked it through this website which has very comprehensive lists of hotels or B&Bs
www.venere.com

From Montepulciano, we took day trips to Pienza (very quaint and very small, but there are great views), Siena (you could spend a whole day walking on the little streets there), and also made a stop to a town with natural sulfuric hot springs (I can't remember the name!)

Have fun!

The hot springs town is probably Bagno Vignoni, quite close to Montalcino and Pienza.

Grimmy:

Do the rooms and Camere Andre (Pienza) have private baths?

Is the establishment in-town?

I spent a week in Montepulicano at an apartment. It was wonderful to have a nice place to live for the week while my cousin and I did day trips to many towns. We stayed at the Politian apartment in town http://www.luvtotravel.homestead.com/italyhotels.html (this is my web site with the link to the place). The apartment was 400 Euros for the week, an excellent price.

This is the link to my journal which you can read about our day trips. Warning: It is long, but will give you an idea of what you can see in a day. http://www.luvtotravel.homestead.com/ItalyJrnl04.html

Tuscany is wonderful! Have a great time.

Monica

Jeanne,
Each room at Camere Andrei has a private bath and they are huge.
The house is right outside of the town walls. Walk to town in less than 2 minutes.