Dacon_R

We are 6 adults looking to stay in the Chianti region for 4 nights. I had hoped to get an apartment with a kitchen that is either in a quaint town, or a short (10min) walk to town. This is proving harder than I thought!

I have heard Castellina in Chianti is nice. And since I have a couple options there, and in Greve in Chianti, can anyone help me decide which is better? (or Panzano).

What I'm looking for: I've been to Montepulciano, Volterra - and like those pedestrian-only streets/hill town atmosphere. I don't know whether Castellina in Chianti or Greve in Chianti are similar types of towns. Please help!

Also, we aren't really looking to cook in the kitchen, but having at least a frig is nice. I'm down to:
- Castellina in Chianti - none of these have kitchens though: Hotel Colle Etrusco Salviolpi, Albergo Il Colombaio, or Villa Cristina
- Greve in Chianti - these have kitchens: a couple AirBnBs in a pasta factory in Greve in Chianti. Many don't have availability for our dates in May. But other suggestions are welcome, and I'll check them out.

Thanks!

HappyTrvlr

Both towns are very nice, rather similar and flat in their town center. You can't go wrong. We have stayed in Castellina twice and Panzano once, near Greve. I would vote for Panzano, charming with an upper town and a lower town. Beautiful setting among the vineyards. We like how green the Chianti region is.
We rented through Chianti and More which is based in Panzano and had a great experience.

tower

We liked Greve very much and ran into a great family restaurant there, 2nd Floor, right on main square:
<b>Ristorante Giuseppe Verrazano</b>.Castelina is smaller but also inviting. The oval square at Greve has plenty of parking on a weekday if I recall. Since you mention Volterra, it is much larger than Greve with a lot to see. Greve is not a hill town whereas Volterra and Montepulciano both are.

The B and B in a Greve pasta factory sounds interesting.

Dacon_R

Oh dear, I'm going to need a tie-breaker!

HappyTrvlr, thanks for the Chianti & More tip, I'll check them out
tower, love restaurant suggestions, thank you!

zoecat

Given the choice, I'm not sure which one I would choose either. My observations-

I have never stayed in Castelina or Greve but I have visited both. While both had tourists, Greve seemed to have more of a day to day local vibe to it. Castelina seemed to be catering more toward the tourist trade.

Castelina had fewer cars driving through it and was more pedestrian.

I thought Panzano was much smaller than either of the other two and much fewer people visiting.

I like the countryside around Castelina and Panzano better than around Greve.

I think Castelina is more central and convenient for day trips to the villages and sights in the region.

Greve is convenient if someone wants to hop on a bus into Florence for the day.

Be sure to eat at the restaurant (I believe the only one) in Lamole. Excellent food and views. I also enjoyed a casual and excellent lunch at the only bar in Volpaia, Bar Ucci.

Have fun!

Jean

Where in Tuscany did you want to explore? I would pick the town that's closest to or most convenient for the places/areas you want to explore. The drive time between Greve and Castellina is about 40 minutes

maitaitom

Probably my favorite restaurant experience ever was lunch at Ristoro di Lamole, about a 20-minute drive from Greve. It still gets rave reviews...

http://ristorodilamole.it/en/

socialworker

Those 3--Greve, Castelina and Panzano, (as well as Radda) are all of the small towns in Tuscany that we visited in 2000 and we loved them all. I also would have a hard time picking one. We stayed at a B&B just outside of Panzano and did driving trips. We also did a day trip to Siena, that we sadly could not appreciate as it was so HOT and since we were staying elsewhere, we just had to kind of "beat the streets", so not my ideal way of experiencing a wonderful spot such as Siena….

Dacon_R

Jean, We haven't mapped out our day trips yet but since I've done Montepulciano, Volterra, San Gimi, Pienza, I thought we'd focus on the Chianti towns, and Lamole, Panzano. I have a list that is too long!

It is a special family trip, so although we are going budget (ish), I'd like some atmosphere at the place we stay, views, etc. ANd since we want to walk to dinner restaurants, we are focused on in town/close to town.

Any specific accommodation suggestions are very welcome! I'm looking at Hotel Colle Etrusco Salivolpi, Villa Cristina B&B and an AirBnB in Greve in CHianti that says it is in an "Old Pasta Factory"
Thanks!

carolll

All the towns mentioned are major tourist sites. They all suffer from roads bisecting them with lots of traffic during summer months. You don't mention when you hope to travel, but the traffic is likely less problematic during other times of the year.

I think Castellina is the prettiest of the towns and has several good restaurants. You can get to the outskirts of Florence from Castellina in about 40 or so minutes where you can park a car at a soccer field parking lot in Galluzzo. There are buses that get you into Florence very quickly. Buy passes at the tabac on the main road.

I also really love Radda, having vacationed there for over 20 years...! Pretty, small, with great views over an agricultural valley.

Carol

Dacon_R

We'll be there mid-May.

I choose Chianti area because I've never been there, but now I'm wondering if I'll miss staying in a mostly pedestrian street town/hill town.

Maybe there is such a pedestrian hill town near Chianti? Besides where I've been before: Volterra, Montepulciano, San Gimi, Monterggioni

HappyTrvlr

Look at Radda in Chianti as well. We walked into town from our Panzano villa and there were other places to stay nearby.