PlasticTraveler

Mrs Plastic and I will be driving around wine country in Tuscany in mid-late Sep and are trying to decide where we should stay on our last open night. I am curious if anyone has stayed in a Villa type setting or a Hilltop Town and what the pros/cons might be to doing either?

My first instinct is that it would be easier to drive/park in a villa type setting, but I am worried that at night there might be very little in the way of things to do like what you might find rubbing elbows staying in hilltop type town (of course sometimes that can be a plus as well).

We have toured Tuscany once before and hit places like Montulpuciano, Montalcino, Pienze, Sienna and Volpaia. We are staying on Cortona for one night on the way back to Florence FWIW, so we will get some hilltop type experiences on that stay. We are looking see a few new places and one place on the list would be Volterra since Rick Steves says it is his favorite hill top town...we could stay there(more West)? Or we could make a stop there on the way to some other location that might be better situated to tour a few choice vineyards Any suggestions or life experiences would be great. thank you for your help.

Jean

Is this the night before a flight or just the night before going to Florence? Is this the night after you will have been in Cortona? And where will you have been before Cortona?

Have you spent any time in Chianti? We enjoyed this area a lot (esp. Castellina and Radda), but we also like Volterra. Volterra has much to see, but there are more wineries in Chianti.

If touring a winery or two is a priority, you need to do some research about which ones in the general area accept visitors, and then make reservations. This may dictate where you spend the night.

IMO, as long as you pick an in-town property that you are allowed to drive up to (even if only to check in/out), I don't think it's any more difficult than staying outside of a town. But I prefer to stay in town for the ability to walk to multiple dining options (and drink wine) and the opportunity to interact with some locals. The very few times we've stayed in a villa or agriturismo, we've felt a bit isolated with most contact being with other tourists. Not a bad thing, just not what we're looking for.

kybourbon

Volterra or nearby San Gimignano.

stevewith

Depends on where you are going in Tuscany, and when. If it would interest you to stay on a farm or at a winery, you can eat dinner and drink all the wine you want and talk to the family of Tuscans who operate it, if you speak the same language. You don't have to go to a resort. It can be a unique experience to visit Italian farming country and wine country and actually stay on a farm (agriturismo). Most of the towns in the guidebooks are filled with tourist shops, so being a farm where you share a meal made of the products grown on the farm, or drink the wine produced from that soil can be a deeper experience of the region. Often the property has been in the family for generations, or has been rescued by young people, who are very proud of all the work they have done to bring it to life.

This farm near San Gimignano produces wine and olive oil, and serves dinner.

http://www.agriturismoniccolai.it/

But there are lots like this, everywhere in Tuscany.

In late Sept, there are not a lot of Italians walking around hilltowns after dinner with whom to rub elbows. In the towns in the guidebooks, you'll find plenty of tourists strolling around, looking for conversation.

PlasticTraveler

Thanks for the great replies! To answer some of the questions posed....

This is the night BEFORE we head to Cortona, and so obv NOT a night before a flight.

I have ruled out agriturismos. I like them very much but not for this one night stay. I absolutely would stay on a winery (kind of agriturismo, after all right?) and have considered Volpaia becasue I love both their wines and oil and they have a some great food choices in town, BUT I kind of that it is not enough South to hit the other brunello areas I would probably be interested in.

Jean said this and it kind of sums up my attitudes exactly:

"IMO, as long as you pick an in-town property that you are allowed to drive up to (even if only to check in/out), I don't think it's any more difficult than staying outside of a town. But I prefer to stay in town for the ability to walk to multiple dining options (and drink wine) and the opportunity to interact with some locals. The very few times we've stayed in a villa or agriturismo, we've felt a bit isolated with most contact being with other tourists. Not a bad thing, just not what we're looking for."

I kind of would like to stay in Volterra, but it is not really in the best location for tours unless I strike out due south first thing in the am and work my way back to it Then on the way to cortona day I could hit a few more Westerly locals.

Anyone know of any good tours that they loved? I love Chiantis and Brunellos and Mrs Plastic loves whites so we are covered anywhere! Thanks so much for the helpful comments.

stevewith

How about staying in Chiusi?

It is a town with very few tourists but a remarkable Etruscan history -- certainly one to rival Volterra. You are extremely well positioned there to enjoy both the white wine production of Orvieto (40 minutes down the road) or you are not to distant from the production of important reds, with Montepulciano 30 minutes away, Montalcino is an hour away, and the southern tier of the Chianti region is an hour away.

The restaurant Zaira in Chiusi is a destination for wine lovers because of its extraordinary cellar, which not only has hundreds of bottles of special distinction, but also because the cellar itself was in use during the Etruscan era, and the restaurant owners are happy to show it to you.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...i_Tuscany.html

There are a couple of b&bs and small hotels in the town.

But again, I caution you: This is a true Tuscan town, barely tweaked for tourism. You will not find many people out and about after dinner unless they are tourists, and most tourists don't head for Chiusi. (If you do, the Etruscan museum is one of the best in Italy, with English language labels. Be sure to go to the basement. And the other sights, underground and above ground, also reward attention).

stevewith

http://www.seeyouintuscany.com/tusca...si/chiusi.html

Don't know if your dates would coincide, but Chiusi has its grape & wine festival near the end of September

http://www.festadelluvaedelvino.com/

Jean

What towns do you want to explore? And how much time are you willing to spend in the car each day? That info will help you decide where to stay.

If Volterra is a priority, Chiusi would be a bit too far for me. Over 2 hours each way.

Consider the area around Castellina and Radda. Still over an hour to Volterra and Montalcino (if you care to re-visit) and not too far from Lucca if that town is on your list.

stevewith

I was not suggesting Chiusi as a "base" for going to Volterra. I was suggesting it as a substitute for Volterra.

But I clicked on Plastic Traveler's name and, unless the itinerary is changed, he/she is coming from Pisa or Lucca, having been first in le Cinque Terre.

The wine country worth visiting in that itinerary is around Bolgheri, if you would like to experience a different part of Tuscany. Castellina and Radda would be too touristy for me, and since both towns are so close to Volpaia, I don't see it ticking the box of experiencing something new. Other people have fond memories of Lucca, but I recall it as rather dull.

If you have one night between leaving Pisa or Lucca and getting to Cortona, you could drive to Volterra for lunch, and then drop down to Bolgheri for a night at a winery or town if you prefer. On the way to Cortona the following day, you could stop by the Abbey of San Galgano and lunch in the neighborhood.

If you didn't want to go to the coast, consider visiting Volterra and then spending the night in Certaldo before heading on to Cortona.

stevewith

http://www.discovertuscany.com/the-e.../bolgheri.html

http://www.tuscany-excellence.com/de...0#.UZyLmRwbfXc

http://winefriend.org/tuscan-maremma/bolgheri/

http://www.cellartours.com/italy/win...-bolgheri.html

PlasticTraveler

Stevewith, we have nixed the pipe dream of squeezeing in Cinque Terre before Pisa/Lucca. I like these suggestions:

"If you have one night between leaving Pisa or Lucca and getting to Cortona, you could drive to Volterra for lunch, and then drop down to Bolgheri for a night at a winery or town if you prefer. On the way to Cortona the following day, you could stop by the Abbey of San Galgano and lunch in the neighborhood.

If you didn't want to go to the coast, consider visiting Volterra and then spending the night in Certaldo before heading on to Cortona."

You have pretty much hit the nail on the head, I am trying to fill in one day/night that includes a nice winery and maybe a hilltop town before finding a place to settle in. I will investigate all the information that you have so generously provided. I also saved your original Chiusi info too.

To be honest, I also found Radda a bit touristy. In fact, I would probably also just keep Volpaia as a wonderful serendipitous memory if I did not still have a raging love affair with their 2004 Coltassala!