Love for a countryside holiday at Tuscany

[christhan_chen]

Hi,

My husband and I are planning to visit Italy in mid-October. This trip is going to be an eventful one for us as its our first Europe trip and it will be our first year wedding anniversary too. So we are really looking forward to this trip. We have limited days so would appreciate if you can give us some advice how can we better plan this Tuscany trip.

I love the landscape of Tuscany and would really like to stay in a countryside B&B (hopefully with a beautiful hilly view). We plan to rent a car so that we can visit the nearby towns/ villages. From the forums, it seems that Chianti, Pisa, Siena and Florence are the must visit places. On top of that, i do hope to visit Riomaggiore which is listed as one of the most beautiful places in Italy. From Google map, it seems to be within a driving distance (2.5 hrs) from Tuscany. Would you suggest that?

We have 6 nights to cover Florence and Tuscany. Could you please give us your advice how should we plan our 6 days itinerary and where would you suggest us to stay as a base? My initial thought is to stay 4 nights in Tuscany and 2 nights in Florence (we will not need a car to explore the town). Would this be a good idea?

It will be great if you can recommend us which mid-range B&B places that has a beautiful countryside view and has nearby vineyards that we can visit or horse riding activities?
Would the weather be chilly in the month of October? Would a B&B with heating be necessary? I come from Asia so weather is hot throughout the whole year.
What kinda Tuscany landscape can we expect?

If we end our trip in Florence before flying off, how can we get to the Florence airport? I will be staying near the SMN train station. OR would you suggest us to end our trip at Tuscany so that we can drive to the airport to return the car instead?

Thank you in advance for your advice.

 

[Lourdes]

The 6 days divided between Tuscany and Florence sounds great!
Generally, heating is not yet necessary in October even in the countryside. Most B&Bs and farmhouses do have them, we ourselves often turn on heating in November.

I would suggest you stay in the San Gimignano area or in Chianti closer to Florence.
Take a look at these places I'm suggesting:
http://www.tuscanyaccommodation.com/villa-il-poggiale.html
http://www.tuscanyaccommodation.com/casolare-di-libbiano.html
http://www.tuscanyaccommodation.com/apartment-la-roccaia.html
http://www.tuscanyaccommodation.com/palazzo-malaspina.html

You can do day trips to all of the places you've mentioned (Riomaggiore and the CT are doable in a day but plan for it to be a long day!)

I would return the car when you arrive in Florence so that you don't have to worry about parking - you really don't need it to explore the town at all, Florence is very walkable.
You can return it either at the airport then catch a taxi into the center or return the car in the Borgo Ognissanti area - just make sure, as many are within the ZTL area, that they report the license plate to the authorities so that you are not fined for having returned the car at that location.
If you rent with Hertz, the advantage is the central location is not within the ZTL but the tram is right in front so you can catch that to SMN train station.
Not sure you already have accommodation in Florence (since you mention staying near SMN train station); if not, take a look at http://www.florenceaccommodation.com/ for places to stay at in Florence.

From the SMN train station, you can take a bus shuttle to the airport. The bus stop is within the SITA bus station located around the corner on Via Santa Caterina da Siena. Read this: http://www.visitflorence.com/getting-to-florence/by-air.html The info on the shuttle is at the end of the article.