Where to start Chiantigiana drive from Montepulciano?
 

Hi There!

I will be staying in Montepulciano and I want to experience the Chiantigiana drive from the north most end. What town should we aim to start the drive at? Looking at a map it looks like Vacciano maybe? I am not sure. What do you think?

We are thinking to drive down the scenic road to Greve-> Panzano-> Lunch at Forestera Villa Cerna outside of Castelina-> Radda -> Gaiole and then back to Montepulciano. Does that make sense?

Thanks in advance!

I don't know that you have to go as far north as Vacciano. Most guides seem to mark Strada in Chianti as the beginning. Since you have to drive north from Montepulciano, I think that would be a good place to start. The drive you describe makes perfect sense to me.

Be aware that at mid day there won't be any signs of life in most of these towns. Things close for the afternoon.

I wouldn't start as far north as Strada. I'd start in Greve (north on E35 to SP16). Then to Panzano, Radda and/or Castellina, and Gaiole. Then directly south to SS73 and back to Montepulciano. That's about 4.5 hours of driving not counting for stops.

I probably wouldn't stop in Panzano. Just enjoy the scenery as you pass by. And don't feel too bad if you run out of time for a stop at Gaiole.

http://www.turismo.intoscana.it/allt...ntigiana-road/

Thank You.

Jean, why wouldn't you stop in Panzano? From what I read it seems to be the most charming of all the towns.

You have 4.5 hours of driving and presumably an hour+ for lunch, so IMO you need to be selective in your stops, esp. if you want to spend any time in Greve, Radda and/or Castellina. All of the mentioned towns have their charms, and it's hard to compare them. But I'd rather spend what time I had in the other 2-3.

We've only been to Panzano once, and it was in mid-October. We parked the car at the bottom of the town and walked to the top where the church is. We saw 4 tourists also walking up/down, 2 locals (one in a bar where we stopped for espressi) and one very friendly dog that followed us around. The photo at the link below is taken from the church, and the bar we went into is the first door on the left. This is pretty much what we experienced... empty streets, although the guy in the bar was very friendly (and lonely, I think).

http://girlinflorence.com/wp-content...6/dscn2406.jpg