Where would you suggest staying if my husband and I are renting a car in Florence and plan to go to Tuscan wineries in May? We would like our accommodations to be centrally located to several wineries and we love gourmet food. I would like specific recommendations on accommodations, wineries to visit and restaurants. Thanks so much!
Posted by
Manhattan Beach, Ca, US
15 posts
We just came back from a 2 week trip to Italy and spent 6 days in Tuscany and Umbria. I would recommend Montepulciano as a base and you can drive to other towns such as Siena, Pienza and Montalcino from there. We stayed in a lovely farm house for 3 nights, called the
Agriturismo il Palazzo Dei Diavoli. It is down the hill from the town In a vineyard and olive grove. The owner Teresa is a great resource for restaurants and places to see. If you stay there be sure to look on Trip Advisor for my review with the directions. The GPS won't send you the correct way and it is very easy to get to from town if you know the correct way.
Montepulciano is known for the Vin Noble and Montalcino the Brunnelo. We had several excellent meals in Montepulciano, one at Rubino Rosso and one at a really fun steak house called . Or just buy bread, cheese and pastrami and a bottle of wine and have a picnic!
Posted by
Manhattan Beach, Ca, US
15 posts
Buy salami, not pastrami! And the steak restaurant is called Osteria dell'Aquacheta.
Posted by
Rural Georgia
2199 posts
Stay tuned! I'll try to remember to post an update after our trip. One month from today, we'll be checking in to the Castello di Verrazzano near Greve in Chianti. It's roughly 20 km south of Florence on SR222 (the Chiantigiana), a spectacular road from Florence to Sienna.
It has excellent reviews on Trip Advisor and other sites. The prices are reasonable, it's at a well known winery and it's centrally located to everything we want to see.
Here are some travel times by car from Castello di Verrazzano:
Florence: 1 hour
Sienna: 1 1/2 hours
Montalchino: 1 3/4 hours
Montepulchiano: 1 3/4 hours
Abbazia de Monte Olivet Maggiore: 1 1/2 hours
Pisa: 1 1/2 hours
Lucca: 1 1/2 hours
We will fly into Rome on Sunday and fly home the following Sunday. Except for the last night, we will stay here the entire week, making day trips. Castello di Verrazzano has a popular food and wine pairing that lasts 3 1/2 hours. We will do this our first day, easing into the trip.
I'll post some specific recommendations when we return.