Tuscany Neophyte needs HELP!!
 

After spending many hours helping my mom plan a trip to Rome, our family of 4 thinks a trip to Italy might be in order for us.

We would fly in and out of Rome, spending about 3-4 nights. We'd then rent a car and head up to Tuscany and rent a villa for at least a week.

The problem is trying to decide where! The entire region sounds phenomenal. We would like to be in a location which would give us easy touring access. Our plan would be to take day trips to some of the hill towns, maybe drive to Venice and/or Portofino, and of course, Florence.

Our travel dates, out of necessity, are from the 8th of August onward.

Also, any ideas on the cost of renting a car?

Any and all recs are greatly appreciated. Thanks,everyone!!

You can see quite a few hill towns and visit Florence. Venice is kind of far to drive depending on exactly where you're staying most of the day would be on the road. (These are HILL towns and many of the roads between then are winding country roads - not highways - so you can;t count on driving very fast.

Sorry - car rental will depend on a couple of factors

Size vehicle (how much luggage will you have)
If you can drive standard or need automatic (much more eexpsnive)

You need to checek out a bunch of rental agencies for your dates and type of vehicles - and be aware that the same class of vehicle will be much smaller in europe than in the US.

Picking your location is key in Tuscany--it is much larger than people think.
Get a good guide book and see which locations rock your boat and then come back here. I prefer south of Siena. Also, look at slowtrav.com for more input on locations in Tuscany.

staying somewhere near san gimignano is a good spot - it is pretty central for exploring tuscany. you can take day trips all around the chianti region as well as down to the val d'orcia region to towns like pienza, montepulciano and montalcino.

i've always had good luck renting my car through initaly.com (they also have some good villa rental listings as well).

I actually don't think staying near San Gimignano is a good location if the plan is to do a lot of touring of towns.

Portofino and Venice are not realistic day trips from any region in Tuscany.

Most people really HATE driving into Florence. What might make more sense is for the family to take the train from Rome to Florence (90 minutes) and spend a few nights there (if you can spare the time) seeing the town plus Pisa or Siena, and then renting the car.

Or see Florence on your way out of the region.

Another option would be for you to drive the car to a town near Florence with easy parking and a good train or bus connection into the city.

But the suggestion that you start looking at Tuscany picture books is a good one, because you need to pick which area you think works best for family. In August, I would be looking for an agriturismo with a pool and a restaurant on site. That way you won't need to be cooking, shopping and cleaning up every night.

Thanks for the input everyone!

When I checked Mapquest for driving times/distances between Florence and Venice, the travel time seemed feasible: about 1.5 hours for Portofino and 2.5 for Venice. If these times are accurate, why wouldn't day trips be possible?

Any recs for agritourismo properties, preferably with horseback riding access nearby or onsite?

They are not accurate. Try via Michelin or Mappy (others use Google, I've yet to do it.) And remember, you may be coming from a villa further away than Florence.

You are traveling in August, so you also have to account for traffic in tourist areas, especially beach locations. There is only one road into Portofino, which at times it is a one-track road (both directions of traffic need to take turns sharing it). There is only one parking lot in the tiny town. Traffic can get so bad there that the authorities finally installed electronic signs along the road that tell motorists how many hours they will need to wait from that point before they reach town.

The problem with one-track roads and one-parking lot problems exist all along the Ligurian coast (in places like le Cinque Terre). People often have to wait for someone to leave the parking area before they can pull in.

I don't know how bad traffic gets going into Venice, but it is more like a 3.5 hour drive from Tuscany -- and then you are stuck in the middle of super-crowded Venice in August for just a few hours before you have to turn around and drive back. It would almost make more sense to park the car and take the train -- but even that would give a pretty exhausting, crowded taste of Venice.

Here is a website you can use to search for agriturismi with horseback riding, swimming pools and restaurants in Tuscany. Use the advance search feature to get that filter.

http://en.agriturismo.it/tuscany/ind...a=1&maneggio=1

Some of the properties include user reviews, and you can check on Tripadvisor if you see an agriturismo you like.

Also, since your interests are moving north in Italy, consider an open-jawed flight, into Rome, out of Pisa (close to Florence) or Venice or Milan. Or vice versa, flying out of Rome.

A car is preferable for Tuscany, especially if you're going to rent a villa or stay in an agriturismo. But cars are not good for cities, like Florence and Venice. You must find a place to park, then get yourself into the city. This isn't too difficult in Venice but it does cost. In the historic center of Florence auto access is strictly limited and monitored by traffic cameras. (Check the many posts from people getting tickets months later.)

Venice and Florence are very crowded with tourists in August; the Italians have all left for the beach. You might be better off just hanging around in Tuscany (get a place wiht a pool) and saving Florence/Venice/the Ligurian coast for another trip.

If you must do Venice, and I reccomend it, then flyminto Rome and then fly home from Venice.
Pick up your car after leaving Rome like Chiusi. ( Take a train from Rome to Chuisi and avoid the traffic snarls)
You can also do a one way car rental to Venice. Since Venice is car free to begin with you don't need yor car there.

A lot of people complain about the early morning flights if they leave from Venice. Better to put it at the top of the trip, train to Firenze, see Firenze, rent the villa, drop the car off in Chiusi or Orvieto, go to Rome.

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