Where to stay in Tuscany?
 

We are honeymooning and looking for a great villa type place to stay in Tuscany for a few days in eary May. Any suggestions?

Beautiful town - San Gimignano.

It's funny. The first time that my wife and I went to SanG it was on a day trip from Florence. I saw the crowds in SanG, hated it. Couldn't wait to get out. Somehow my wife convinced me to give SanG a second try. We based ourselves out of the town for a week, staying in a 15th century building overlooking the town well. Loved it Loved it Loved it !!!!!!!!!!! It was so peaceful before 9:00 am (before the tour busses came in) and after 4:00 (when the crowds left). Great restaurants, wonderful winding lanes to walk thru, beautiful views of the countryside from the walls surrounding the town. I absolutely suggest San Gimignano.

I found that the Tuscan landscape around San G to be the most beautiful. Climb the tallest tower of the city and watch the blood red sunset. The crowds will disappear in the evening, when the buses take them away...stroll a quiet town when they leave.

Not sure of your definition of a "great" villa, but I spent a week in Montepulciano and rented an apartment. It was great! I loved having a place to live for a week and enjoyed my many day trips via car. Montepulciano has a lot of nice small restaurants to enjoy in the evenings.

For information on my trip, go to my journals at http://www.luvtotravel.homestead.com/home.html and click on the 2004 Tuscany journal. I hope it will give you some ideas.

Best wishes on your marriage!

Monica ((F))

I second San G! We stayed for 4 days and absolutely fell in love with it. You'll find that a lot of people on these boards who didn't care for San G just visited it for a day. If you stay overnight within the walls, it's an entirely different experience. It's so small and cozy and is the very definition of a Tuscan hill town within walls. We stayed at L'Antico Pozzo.

Out of all of our trips to Italy, San G stands out as the best overall experience.

Thank you for all your wonderful responses. We enjoy a little more action, is there some where we can have a nice dinner and drinks?

There are plenty of great restaurants in San G. It's a real town, with real people. You won't find any night clubs or loud music, just great tasting dinners in all price ranges.

Stay in SIENA (Tuscany) and do a few day trips to the Cianti region, san Gimignano, etc. It is a university town so there is more action as far as restaurants, shopping, bars. The Piazza is one of the very best in Italy.We rented a farmhouse villa just outside the north wall of Siena in Oct. for 6 nights. Our day trips were to Luca, Pisa, Gave, Cianti region (wine tasting), SanG. I would also spend a few days in Florence. Don't forget to see the statue of DAVID.

Another vote for Siena. While San G. is very lovely, it's a nice daytrip from Siena. IMO Siena has so much more to offer.

I'm a little confused by what a "real town with real people" means. There are plenty of real people there - that's for sure, but every time I've visited (4 times) it was 90% or greater tourists - not locals. I think the OP should be aware that San G is perhaps the most "touristy" small town in Tuscany. You won't be observing "typical Italian small village life" there.

I would vote for Siena if you want some more "action", and perhaps the prettiest square (actually more of a cresent) in Italy.

Stu Dudley