I'll be leaving from Volterra and driving south. Does anyone have an opinion on just driving through the Brunello-Nobile wine region on the way to Orvieto and spending 2 nights or staying the night in Montelcino and then heading south to Orvieto, spending less time there and staying one night.
Both these hill top towns are very small. One night in each would be wonderful, and enough time to enjoy by day, and to enjoy the quiet of the town when the day trippers leave for the nights.
1 night in each will also allow you more time to really explore every nook and cranny of these delightful towns!
You can easily see each town in a full day.
I haven't been to Montelcino but my husband and I did spend two nights in Orvieto and we are really happy that we did. We ate memorable meals there with great wines. We enjoyed visiting the cathedral, (and the gelato shop next door), the underground tour to see the Etruscan remains, and taking very pleasant walks around the town. We stayed at Hotel Corso
Hotel Corso
I agree with Ellen and Montalcino is wonderful!