My family of 4 (includes young adult and teenager) will be staying in Florence for 3 nights in August. I would like to tour Florence one day and tour the towns south of Florence for two days. We have a van. I know we can't see everything in this short time (and can't extend the trip) but should be able to see 2-3 towns and maybe some wineries each day. Please prove your thoughts as to which towns should not be missed. Also, if you know of any wineries that provide an interesting tour and tasting that would be appreciated too.

I'm waiting to hear about this too! Can't wait till July!

Here are a couple of choices-

Option 1- You could head south from Florence on the SR222, experiencing the beautiful drive and towns of Chianti. You have a nice choice of stops- Greve, Panzano, Castellina. After Castellina, turn east and you have the choice of more beautiful countryside and towns- Radda, Gaiole, and lovely Volpaia. You will see many wineries along the way. You cannot visit all of these places in one day. Perhaps you can consult a guidebook to decide which towns appeal to you the most.

Option 2- Drive to Volterra, visit the town and then visit San Gimignano in the late afternoon/evening on your way back.

Just wanted to warn you to learn which areas of Florence you can drive in and which ones you cant - do a search here and you will see that alot of people get tickets in the mail months after they return home.

I'm about to head to Florence in a few days and just booked the "Best of Tuscany Tour."

http://www.walkaboutpass.com/nqconte...ytour_homepage

A friend went on it a few weeks ago and said it was the highlight of her 10 day trip and involved a lot of wine and food! You'll get to see Sienna, which is about an hour from Florence and Pisa. I'm only going to be in Florence 2 days and thought this tour would cram in the most possible in one day! Enjoy you're trip!

I vote for zoecat's Option 2. San G and Volterra are more interesting, overall and historically, as towns than the numerous other Tuscan wine towns mentioned.

Another vote for Volterra & San Giamiganano.

Also, a must eat place in San Giamigano

Bruschetteria Wine Bar *****
Antica Taverna
Vicolo Mainardi 10
:

Any comments regarding Montepuliciano, Montalcino and Cortona?

<<Any comments regarding Montepuliciano, Montalcino and Cortona?>>

All beautiful towns and well worth a visit. They are a bit further away from Florence than the other suggestions, so you will need to start very early and expect a long day. With the long drive, choose two to visit. Cortona is perhaps not close enough to the other two to include. Pienza, located between Montepulciano and Montalcino, is also a lovely town to visit. The drive between Montalcino and Montepulciano and past Pienza is surrounded by spectacular beauty.

mrt,
This may help http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/tuscany/hs_planning.htm

In Jamikins reply I noticed a reference to driving in Florence. We are considering a driving tour of Italy, beginning in Milan and 3 weeks later, ending in Milan. Is driving to places such as Florence, Rome and the Amalfi Coast a bad idea?

It's ok to drive, but you need to understand you aren't allowed to drive into the center of most cities (Rome, Florence, Pisa, etc.). There are traffic cameras that snap a photo of your license plate if you enter the ZTL. You get a ticket (expensive) in the mail (they have a year to get it to you).

http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/drivin...s_speeding.htm

Florence ticket info:
>>>>Of the 859,959 traffic violations that issued by traffic police in 2008, 457,613 were issued to motorists who entered the limited traffic zones without the required permit; 250,415 were given to drivers who parked in no-parking zones; 22,904 were issued for speeding; and 7,700 were given for having run a red light.<<<

hey ky - that slowtrav site was wonderful! Thanks for including it.

In order of preference;

Montepulciano
Montalcino
Cortona

If you have to leave one off for logistics, it would be Cortona.

Thank you for your input. Any other thoughts are welcomed.

jmclmc, you need to understand that the Centro Storico (historic center) of most cities was established before automobiles, and sometimes even before carriages, were introduced. The streets are narrow, winding sometimes, and often confusing. Names change from one stretch to another. Street signs are posted on buildings, usually on the second story, so are hard to spot. I have not used GPS, but even so it can be very easy to get lost, and then your chances of landing in a ZTL (zona di traffico limitato) go way up. Also, traffic is pretty crazy and congested.

Outside the cities, driving is not so difficult.