My mom and I are traveling to Italy in May, and will have 2 days in Siena. We will have already spent 6 days slowly travelling from Florence to Siena, exploring the Chianti area. Our thought was to spend both nights in Siena, and 1 day in Siena and 1 day on a day-trip to San Gimignano. Is this our best option, or is there a little town or place to visit that you'd recommend over San Gimignano? We like history, art, walking, photography (me), and nature.

Thanks!

Hi misqui,

If you are spending 6 days just between Florence and Siena, exploring Chianti, I would suggest going further south instead. I would think that one of your 6 days could easily include SG.

Southern Tuscany is very different from Chianti and worth a few days too!

We visited a beautiful winery outside of Siena last April. Dievole. www.dievole.it/ Wonderful wine, olive oil (damn, my bottle I've been hoarding is almost empty...should have gotten 2). It has a great story behind the vineyard as well!

I'm guessing you will have a car?

I'd suggest a drive to Pienza, with a stop in San Quirico, possibly a short visit to the nearby Bagno Vignoni ruins, and perhaps into Montepulciano. It would be a great day from Siena.

And to avoid the often complained about crowds in San Gimignano, I'd consider staying to explore Siena one day and leaving for San Gimignano in the mid afternoon, arriving as the crowds are starting to leave. Climb one of the towers, explore the town, and then head back to Siena just before dark.

Thanks for the suggestions. No, we won't have a car (we'll be with a walking tour from Florence to siena, and are visiting Cinque Terre and Rome by train, so don't really want to rent a car for just 2-3 days in and around Siena).

Are there towns other than S. Gimignano that you'd recommend as day trips? Would you recommend staying in Siena in the first place, or would somewhere else between Siena and Rome on the train line be better, esp. considering we already will have seen lots of northern Tuscany?

Well, maybe you'll be walked out in that case, but you can easily take a bus from Siena to Pienza, then walk to Montepulciano -- with a stop in the pretty little town of Montichiello, perhaps for lunch. Then take a bus from Montepulciano back to Siena.

Bus service to much of southern Tuscany is better than train service from Siena.