Tuscany itinerary questions
 

I'm starting to plan out the Tuscany leg of our first trip to Italy. We'll be there in late September for three days.
I had a couple questions I was hoping to get some advice on:

1) We've booked a room for three nights at the Il Giglio in Montalcino. The hotel looks nice, but I'm having second thoughts about basing ourselves in Montalcino vs. Montepulciano ... any thoughts on this? I've read some posts suggesting Montepulciano is a better base and there's more to do there.
2) Based on my research, here are the towns we're looking to visit so far -- what are some others that shouldn't be missed? Montalcino (where we're staying), Montepulciano, Pienza, Siena.
3) We'd like to do one or two winery tours in the region --perhaps one brunello and one chianti. Any suggestions? Do most wineries require reservations in advance?
Many thanks for the help.
Best,
Kelly

Kelly, toss a coin--both are great. They are at the ends of the S-146 corridor that is the best part of Tuscany. We stayed at Il Giglio and it is fine and close to all the shops etc.
Do not miss St. Antimo and the Fattoria Barbi winery on the same road south of town. Also, search and find Castello Banfi---a nice setting but a bit commercial. See Bagno Vignoni as well. Buona fortuna !

If you base in Montalcino, Castello Banfi would be a nice place to visit. Their wine tasting was free and the have an extensive wine/gift shop.

You can make a reservation for lunch -- for 40 Euro, the food was good, but the wines were great. They kept your glasses charged!! ((b))

>>1) We've booked a room for three nights at the Il Giglio in Montalcino. The hotel looks nice, but I'm having second thoughts about basing ourselves in Montalcino vs. Montepulciano ... any thoughts on this? I've read some posts suggesting Montepulciano is a better base and there's more to do there<<<

Both of these towns are excellent bases. I perhaps prefer Montalcino because it's relatively flat, compared to Montepulciano, and because it's perhaps a little more centrally located. Just a little east of Montepulciano, the countryside is not quite as pretty as the area west of Montepulciano all the way to the coast. From Montalcino, you can drive in any direction for an hour or so, and the countryside is fantastic. I think Montepulciano is the prettier village.

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2) Based on my research, here are the towns we're looking to visit so far -- what are some others that shouldn't be missed? Montalcino (where we're staying), Montepulciano, Pienza, Siena.<<

San Quirico, Monticchiello, Pitigliano, Sorano, plus the ones bobthenavigator suggested. In my opinion, however, the "star" in this region is the wonderful countryside - the Val d'Orcia. I posted a driving itinerary through that area last week - see if you can click on my name & find it.

Stu Dudley

It depends on what you want to do. IF you want to go to "big" cities like Arezzo, Cortona, Perugia, etc., then Montepulciano is the better choice. If you're more interesed in the smaller cities west and south of Siena, or maybe the Maremma, then Montalcino is better.

MP is much better from a logistics/transportation perspective. MC is smaller and more out of the way, and less touristed. Plus, I like drinking Vino Nobile di MP more than Brunello di MC. 8-) Don't get me wrong, Brunello is the best wine in all of Italy and you don't have to twist my arm to get me to drink it, but Vino Nobile is much more approachable and friendlier. And what's better to do in Italy than drink wine?!

I've been to MP twice, once in 1999 and once in 2002. In 1999 there were not many tourists in MP, but in 2002, there were considerably more. MP was far from being overrun by tourists like in Florence or Rome, but I noticed a significant increase in just those three years. I wonder what has happened in the three years since 2002.

Hi Kelly --

I stayed at Il Giglio last summer and really enjoyed it. As others have said, it really depends on what you want to do. We were interested in experiencing a smaller village and getting a chance to relax. We took beautiful drives to Montepulciano, Pienza, and Siena during the day and enjoyed peaceful Montalcino at night.

Also, if you're interested in visiting the Brunello wineries, Montalcino will be a great base for doing so. Enjoy!

>>Plus, I like drinking Vino Nobile di MP more than Brunello di MC.<<

Our closest friends have a second home close by in San Quirico. They like the Rosso de Montalcino the most.

Stu Dudley

We have been going to Umbria (and prior to that to Tuscany) for over 10 years and found Montelcino, Montepulciano and Pienza very much of a muchness.

You have not said where you are starting from or aiming to go on to. We prefer to stay at Castiglione del Lago and take day trips to all the places mentioned as well as Orvieto, Todi and Perugia as well as other hill towns including Assisi. They are all with a 30 minute - 1 hour drive.

If you like a simple apartment hotel, try Residence Castiglione. If you prefer a more traditional hotel there are several which can be found via the internet.

Wine tasting is easily available in Montelcino, Montelpulciano etc. You don't tend to find the wine runs in the same way as in France.

Montalcino is a fine location for a Tuscany base, again depending on which towns and sites you want to visit.

We also stayed at Il Giglio and it met our needs very nicely for the portion of our trip that I call "Brunello country." However, we also stayed in Castellina for our "Chianti country" portion...and we enjoyed both areas very, very much.

After a day of touring the countryside, Montalcino has a fine selection of restaurants, wine bars, pizzerias, etc. to choose from for dinner. We would come back to the hotel late afternoon, relax, freshen up and then take a short walk to dinner.

As Bob suggested, Bagno Vignoni is worthy of a visit, and I would add Greve and San Gimignano as two of my favorite towns.

As for the wineries, we visited Avignonesi in Montepulciano but it is closer to Cortona, and Verrazzano in Greve. Both were very nice although very different experiences and both do require a reservation and charge a fee.

Also, I know everyone's definitions are a bit different, but I would not call Montalcino "flat" as said above. In fact, I thought it was one of the steeper towns although the street where Il Giglio sits is flat.

>> would not call Montalcino "flat" <<

I said flat, compared to Montepulciano - the two towns Kelly is considering. Hilly compared to Pienza and San Quirico.

Kelly,

When will you be in Montalcino? I have reservations at the Il Giglio for four nights starting Sept. 29 and have similar questions.

Stu, How "steep" are the streets in Montalcino? Do they present a walking problem, or is it just a comment? I'd like to go to the Fortezza and wonder if that's a difficult walk.

Have you been to Les Baux? If so, how does the "steepness" compare?

Thanks.

The main street in Montalcino is not that steep at all. Some of the smaller streets are a little steep. The walk up to the fort is a little steep, but it's really not that long of a walk. The best place to park the car is actually in the large lot next to the fortress.

Montepulciano is quite steep - the main street through town is long and steep almost the entire way.

I've been to Les Baux many times, but not within the last 5 years, so I don't remember how it compares with Montalcino.


Stu Dudley

Thanks, everyone, for all the experienced advice. I have a much better base to plan our Tuscany itinerary from!
Luisah -- We will be staying at Il Giglio Sept. 19 - 22 (check out), so we'll be there about a week before you.
We wanted to add an extra night there, but the hotel is full the night of the 22nd for a wedding party. So we decided to drive a little closer to our final destination -- Rome -- and spend a night at La Badia (near Orvieto) before dropping off our rental car at the train station there and continuing on to Rome.
I've heard Orvieto is great, too, so we're not too upset about the change of plans.
Thanks again!

Hi Kelly,

I'll be at Il Giglio 9/22 to 9/25! I just hope the "wedding party" stays under control! Noisy partyers are not what I have in mind!

I have heard La Badia is wonderful, but having stayed in Orvieto 3 nights - I would want to be IN the town. It's really a special place.

Buon viaggio! Maybe I'll see you along the way...

Kelly and Stu,
Thanks for your replies. Sounds like Kelly and Dayle may be passing one another on Sept. 22. Funny if Dayle gets Kelly's room. I think the wedding may be interesting (hope it won't be too rowdy) and would love to read Dayle's reports on the event.

Some posters who have been to Montalcino before mention good restaurants, pizzeria, etc. Any names? How is the restaurant at the Il Giglio? Breakfast, lunch, dinner? Any favorites?
Any special shopping other than for wine? I also wonder if it's possible to buy wine at the airport in Rome. It would be easier than carrying it around for two weeks.

Thanks.

Yes, I've heard there are drawbacks to staying outside of Orvieto at La Badia vs. in town, where you can walk around in the evening. However, we looked into a few options in town that ended up being booked up on our date. And this place looked really nice. So I think it will be fine. We definitely plan on spending some time in town, though!
Also, does anyone know if you need to make reservations in advance for most wineries in Tuscany? Any particularly good Chianti wineries to visit?
Thanks again for the help!

Luisah, yes, you can buy wine, limoncello, and grappa at the Rome airport. In fact, you can buy lots of stuff at the duty free shops. ((b))