16 days in beautiful Italy!

S

smutchie

New member
Hello!

Firstly, I apologise in advance if I'm re-asking any questions! I've spent so much time looking through this valuable forum and TripAdvisor that I've confused myself.

My partner and I fly into Pisa on September 3rd, for 16 glorious days! Our plan so far, is to spend one night in Pisa then travel up to Cinque Terre the next day for 3 nights. (Specific town still to be decided).
Onwards from there we are a bit stuck...
We would like to spend a day in Lucca, 3 nights in Florence, a fair bit of time around Siena exploring smaller towns and vineyards, and if possible we would like to get up to Venice for a couple of nights.

So, should we do Pisa - Cinque Terre - Florence - Venice - then travel back down and spend the last few nights relaxing in Siena and surrounding areas? We fly out of Pisa on September 19th.

We plan to mainly use the trains, although i'm aware a car may be valuable when exploring the mountain towns.

If i've missed anything please let me know. I really appreciate the help!

EDIT: Forgot to add, we are big wine lovers ;) so having a car to visit vineyards with is just not an option as one of us would have to drive...any suggestions?

Thanks,
Sarah
 
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Woohoo!! 16 whole days sounds great! It gets ME excited when I see people giving themselves more time to explore the beauties spread out across Tuscany and Italy! :D

Since you are flying out of Pisa, then I would suggest you follow your natural inclination to do

Pisa - Cinque Terre - Florence - Venice - Siena

so that you're back in Tuscany and closer to your departure point at the end.

You can do everything by train until the last part - Siena - if you want to explore Chianti and Val d'Orcia (which I highly recommend). It will just make moving around then simpler. You can rent out of Siena, return in Pisa at the airport.
 
Wine on Vacation

Buongiorno,

I totally get why you would want a “no car” option when going wine tasting...what fun is it if only one can do the drinking….besides they are getting very strict about drinking and driving - and that would kill the holiday spirit for sure.

I suggest you read this article with some ideas of how to go about enjoying the wine without having to drive:
http://www.chianti.com/wine-tasting/chianti-wine-tasting-without-a-car.html

Another idea is always to stay on a vineyard….imagine all the wine at your disposal?!
http://www.discovertuscany.com/tuscany-accommodation/vineyards/

Buon Viaggio,
Donna Denise
 
Hi Lourdes / Donna Denise,

Thank you so much for your helpful hints and tips! My partner especially liked the idea of staying on a vineyard! :D

We've had to change our route around...Cinque Terre prices were ridiculous for our first few days...so we are doing that last instead.
So flying into Pisa, head straight for Florence where we have booked an apartment for 3 days. Train to Bologna for one night. Train to Venice the next day for one or two nights (can anyone advise whether we need 1 or 2?). After Venice we will get the train back to Florence and then head for Siena / Chianti region for 6 or 7 days, then travel to Pisa and catch a train to Cinque Terre for 3 nights. And for our last night we have booked a boutique hotel in Pisa. AND BREATHE!

Everything is now booked up except our 6 / 7 days in Chianti region, which we need to research further.

So my next question is about trains. I've been on the trenitalia site. Are we better to get one of the carnet tickets? Or just book each train at a set time...

EDIT (again): We would also like to visit the hot springs, which site would be best to visit whilst we stay in the chianti region?

Thanks again for all your help!
Sarah :)
 
Buongiorno,

Personally I would suggest getting the tickets as you go along...You can get your trip to Florence from Pisa immediately (either Terravision or Autostrada) see this link for more details: https://www.visitflorence.com/getting-to-florence/by-bus.html

If you know exactly when you want to leave you can book ahead, and in doing so you can often find better prices. Otherwise you can book at the last minute - sometimes the prices are a few euros higher, but you have the flexibility of doing something spontaneous without having to worry about your pre-programmed tickets.

Another preference, is just one night in Venice. Get there early in the morning and stay the next day as late as you can before training out. Check out this post for more info on visiting Venice

Buon Viaggio,
Donna Denise
 
When you mention hot springs, are you interested in a modern spa built around the hot springs or being out in the natural outdoors and enjoying those springs? The majority of the outdoor hot springs are in southern Tuscany - Bagno Vignoni, Bagni San Filippo and Saturnia - while the closer ones have been encapsulated by modern spas, the closest being in Montecatini Terme.

Check this category out for more details and locations: http://www.discovertuscany.com/what-to-do-in-tuscany/thermal-baths/
 
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