Trip to Italy

A

Andrew

Member
Hi My wife and I will be arriving in Rome Oct9 and staying14 days 7 in Positano and then taking the train from Naples to Florence for a 5 day stay,and 2 days in Rome on the return I need help should we stay the hole time in Florence and do day trips to the wine areas and return every night, or stay in the county side and visit Florence and Siena as day trips.

I love to cook and will try to rent apartment in the location we choose.

We love the markets and cafe, quite life style.

Would love to visit the butcher of Tuscany location in Panzano.

Cheers
Andrew
 
5 days in Tuscany

Dear Andrew,

I think you should split your stay into two while you are in Tuscany. For example you can spend 2 nights in Florence and 5 nights in Chianti. But I have question, in order to provide you with more information: will you rent a car?

I hope to talk to you soon :)
 
Trip to Tuscany

Hi Valentina
Many thanks for the responce, yes I will rent a car when we arrive in Florence from Naples, we are taking the highspeed trane to Florence.

What location do you suggest in Chianti?

I meet somebody today that said we have to visit Cinque Terre for one day, looks great.

looked at a cooking school in Palaia called Tasty Tuscany that also offer BB accomadation but looks west of Florence.

I guess location location, looking to rent apartment or villa still like the quite life.

Cheers

Andrew
 
Florence and the Chianti in 5 days

Dear Andrew,

driving is the best way for visiting Chianti and Tuscany. In fact many beautiful places aren't connected by public transports.

I suggest you stay in Florence surroundings and organize day trips both to Florence and Chianti. Since you have a car is better if you look for an accommodation outside the city center offering parking. Parking in Florence can be really expensive and it's better you park outside the city.

I then suggest you stay in a farmhouse or agriturismo. Farmhouses are farms renting apartments, fully equipped. They are great accommodations, surrounded by the countryside where you can relax and enjoy your vacation in Tuscany. This is a list of farmhouses in Florence, that you can book directly.

I suggest you spend 2 days in Florence, visiting this beautiful city. There are so many things to see and to do, such as the Uffizi Gallery, Ponte Vecchio, the Duomo, Piazzale Michelangelo and much much more. You can also take cooking lessons in Florence. At Le Stanze di Santa Croce, Mariangela organizes one day cooking classes for learning the secrets of Tuscan cuisine.

Regarding Tasty Tuscany I personally don't know it, but I know that Palaia is in the province of Pisa, about 1 hour and 20 minutes driving from Florence. So I don't know if it's worth to stay there during your vacation, especially if you intend to visit Florence, Chianti and Siena.

I then think that one day in Cinque Terre is not enough to appreciate their beauty. It's not impossible, even though really tiring, and the best way to get there is by train. I suggest you read this thread about Cinque Terre and our experience during a weekend in Cinque Terre.

Last but not least Chianti. This part of Tuscany is very beautiful. The Chianti round hills are designed by vineyards and olive groves and when you'll be here their colors will be turning from green into orange and yellow. Almost every place in this area is worth to be visited. I certainly suggest you visit Greve in Chianti, Panzano in Chianti, Castellina in Chianti, Radda in Chianti. All these nice towns are surrounded by beautiful castles and parish churches. I recommend you visit Castello di Brolio near Radda. In Panzano, as you mentioned, there is a famous butcher called Antica Macelleria Cecchini. Try the Mac Dario! ;)
In the whole Chianti you will find plenty of wineries and farms offering wine tastings and wine cellar tours. Have a look at our guide to Chianti and in particular to the section what to do in Chianti, where you will find more info about wine tastings and destinations.

On your way to Rome you can stop in Siena. I recommend you spend a whole day in Siena. When you are there don't miss climbing up Torre del Mangia to admire the panorama! Since you are driving to Siena I think you might find helpful our article about parking in Siena.

Resuming my suggestions this is the itinerary I recommend:
2 days Florence + cooking class
2 days Chianti
1 day Siena
If you then want to add the Cinque Terre you'll have to to cut off a day in Florence or Chianti.

Finally I suggest you read our recommendations for spending 5 days in Tuscany.

I really hope this helps you plan your Tuscany vacation. Don't hesitate to come back with any other question. :)
 
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Farm House

Hi Valentina
I have looked for a farmhouse in the area and find lots with pools and large complexes, as we are arriving in Oct the pool will be a waste and we will have closed our pool in Canada after a long summer HOT...

I like the thought of the farm as our base to travel around, what are your thoughts?

Are there any other website that I could look at, and finding apartments seem unlikely unless we stay in a large city.

Help needed once again.

Many Thanks

Andrew
 
Farmhouse in Chianti

Dear Andrew,

Most of farmhouses have swimming pool as a service for their clients. Pools are generally open from May to September and there are no additional charges because of it. In addition October is considered mid-low season and prices are lower than usual.

As I wrote you before, I think that a farmhouse can be the ideal place for you to stay, since this kind of lodgings offer fully equipped apartments with kitchen. I also think that you can stay in the same place for all 5 days and organize day trips to major destinations.

Some farmhouses in Chianti I like to recommend are:

I hope this answered your question and helps you find your ideal accommodation :)
 
Car rental Florence

Hi Valentina
So we are all set for our trip, we are traveling from Rome to Florence by high speed train and need to rent the car when we arrive, I have read that there are no car rental agence at the station.

What would be the closest location to get the car from?

and the name of the car rental company we will have luggage from our stay in Sorrento.

Cheers

Andrew
 
Car Rentals near Florence Station

Ciao Andrew!

I'm happy to hear that you have already planned your trip :)

Car rental companies are not inside Florence train station but within walking distance.
I created a map of car rentals in Florence. These are the most well-known international companies such as AVIS or HERTZ, both within 5 minutes walking distance!

I have a question: what do you mean with "and the name of the car rental company we will have luggage from our stay in Sorrento."?

I look forward to receiving your response :)
 
Car Rental

Many Thanks Valentina,

Sorry for the way I wrote the question, I had read that the car rental companys where far away from the station and would have to take a taxi.

Once again you have bailed me out with great information, and we will walk to the car hire location.

Here's where we are staying, Fattoria La Loggia Montefiridolfi San Casciano
and in Florence Martin Dago bed and breakfast inn.

I have a question we arrive in Rome on 9 Oct and will be traveling to Sorrento by train, I would like to use the high speed train and read we should pre-book how busy will it be in Oct as we can not confirm our time of arrival due to any delays from air lines.
Most of the travel information we read talks about travel in the summer time, your thoughts please.

Cheers
Andrew
 
Train Tickets for high speed train

Ciao Andrew!

The farmhouse in San Casciano and the B&B in Florence look both nice :)

For high-speed trains, reservation is compulsory. I'm not able to predict how busy your train will be, they are generally busy particularly on the weekends and October 9th is a Saturday.

I completely understand your worries regarding advanced reservation. but I think you can wait and book your tickets when you are either at the airport when you first arrive or at the train station. You can book and buy your tickets up to 30 minutes before the train's departure. You can use the automatic vending machine that are pretty easy to use and in English so that you can save time, instead of waiting in line in front of the ticket offices.

You could also book them online while you are still at home. If you miss the train you booked, you have 30 minutes after its departure to change your reservation and you can do it at the automatic vendor machines. I personally don't recommend this option since you can loose both your reservation and money if your flight is extremely late.
But if you really want to reserve tickets in advance, I suggest you book a train departing at least 2-3 hours after your arrival in Rome so that you have time to land, get your luggage and move to the train station.

I hope this helps and I wish you a nice day :)
 
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