I will be in Tuscany in October and would like to visit some wineries. Can it be done without a car?? I would prefer to use public transportation. I have also read here that you can hire drivers in certain towns. Has anyone ever done that?

We hired a driver based in Siena for daytrips and wine tastings from our hotel in Radda. I can highly recommend him-- he's knowledgeable, reasonably priced and great company! His name is: Luca Garapa, and he can be reached at: Hillsandroads.com

Hi C,

Is it wine tasting you are after or do you want to visit a winery?

If the former, check this in Siena
http://www.assoenoteche.it/siena/home.htm

If you will be in Florence, you might be interested in the evening tour at www.accidentaltourist.com

I can't imagine doing Tuscany without a car. I am a great believer in public transit but Tuscany, Provence, Ireland I rent cars.

Larry J

I can understand Larry J's point of view, but there's something to be said for going to wine tastings without having to worry about the drive back to your hotel.

We are staying in Florence (Sept, 17-13) and have hired Luca Garapa (mentioned above--several other Fodor's posters have recommended him) for the Sept. the 19th, taking a day trip to Siena and visiting a winery in Radda in Chianti. He seems very flexible with itineraries, is very reasonably priced and I would think he would suggest destinations if you aren't familiar with the various wineries. I would definitely send him an email.

I fear anyone in our group driving a car in Europe period, let alone after enjoying fabulous wine for hours!! What is the point of going to a winery if not to sample their products!! ;o)

Not sure how easy it would be to get to varous wineries by public trans. (it would take some reseach of bus schedules and what not), so I would go the driver route.

Happy tasting!

obviously my dates made no sense, duh, we are staying until the 23rd, not the 13. (proofreading not my strong point, sorry)

To finish the thread, I ended up renting a car for the four days in Tuscany. It was definitely the right decision. We had so much freedom to go where we pleased that I am now firmly on the side of renting a car to tour the hill towns. The only challenging thing about it was picking up the car in Rome at Termini station, and dropping it off in downtown Firenze. Now that was an experience.