We are looking to spend approximately 3 weeks in Tuscany in the spring. likely April. The start of planning would be fly into Florence, stay ~3 nights and then that's as far as I have gotten lol. We want to spend 3-5 nights in Lucca but no set plans before or after that. Would it be best to train to Lucca from Florence and then rent a car or continue to use the train after that? Other must see spots? Sienna? We would like to visit wineries, see smaller areas, enjoy the Tuscany countryside. I'd prefer not to drive in major areas. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Initial planning for 2026
- Thread starter DaveF
- Start date
Ciao Dave,
April would be a great month to visit, just plan to still dress in layers as the weather can still turn cool in the mornings and there can be showers that lower the temperature. If you fly into Florence, you can most definitely start your time here and then move on to other towns. Are you thinking of spending the 3 weeks in Tuscany or also moving on to see other parts of Italy? And aside from not driving in the cities (always a good idea, where traffic and parking can be a headache), are you open to driving in the countryside? I ask because smaller towns sometimes can only be reached with a car, or at least more easily - think of the gorgeous Chianti countryside as well as the Val d'Orcia, which is the area most often photographed and associated with Tuscany. These areas have small towns and not easily reached either by train or bus so it would be more convenient to drive there.
So what you can do, is plan to arrive in Florence, spend at least 4 days here and then move on to places which you can reach with train or bus: Lucca and Siena would be great options, as well as Pisa and Arezzo. You could see these first, ending with Arezzo and then rent a car then, to focus on going around the countryside and to smaller towns in these areas after you've seen the bigger towns that can be reached easily with train or bus.
You can visit wineries once you have a car - but if you want to drink, another option is to take organized tasting tours where the tour company organized the transportation to wineries and that way you don't have to worry about driving at all!
What do you think of these options? let me know what you have decided so far and I'll offer more ideas!
April would be a great month to visit, just plan to still dress in layers as the weather can still turn cool in the mornings and there can be showers that lower the temperature. If you fly into Florence, you can most definitely start your time here and then move on to other towns. Are you thinking of spending the 3 weeks in Tuscany or also moving on to see other parts of Italy? And aside from not driving in the cities (always a good idea, where traffic and parking can be a headache), are you open to driving in the countryside? I ask because smaller towns sometimes can only be reached with a car, or at least more easily - think of the gorgeous Chianti countryside as well as the Val d'Orcia, which is the area most often photographed and associated with Tuscany. These areas have small towns and not easily reached either by train or bus so it would be more convenient to drive there.
So what you can do, is plan to arrive in Florence, spend at least 4 days here and then move on to places which you can reach with train or bus: Lucca and Siena would be great options, as well as Pisa and Arezzo. You could see these first, ending with Arezzo and then rent a car then, to focus on going around the countryside and to smaller towns in these areas after you've seen the bigger towns that can be reached easily with train or bus.
You can visit wineries once you have a car - but if you want to drink, another option is to take organized tasting tours where the tour company organized the transportation to wineries and that way you don't have to worry about driving at all!
What do you think of these options? let me know what you have decided so far and I'll offer more ideas!
Thanks for the response. We will spend the 3 weeks in Tuscany. Fly into Florence, stay 4 nights, train to Lucca where we have booked a stay for a week. We thought about a night in Cinque Terra before Lucca but undecided. Not sure about Pisa. We thought we'd rent a car leaving Lucca and then tour south - Siena, Volterra, San Gimignano, other small towns that would be recommended. In April, when driving to small towns, would I need to book VRBO or Air B&B in advance or is it less busy enough to do it the night before when we better know our plans? With the car, is it better to stay outside the smaller towns in the country and then drive in? So many questions, options, lol. Thanks again.