We will be arriving in Florence the last week of Sept and will be renting a car at the airport. I then want to drive to a centrally located city and use that as a home base for 6 days of touring Tuscany. Can anyone suggest the best city to use as a home base? There are so many I thought that I would start with you all and then go from there. Thanks.
Posted by
Portland, Oregon, USA
320 posts
Robin: If by "city" you mean larger metropolis then you have two choices - Florence or Siena. If you mean village there are numerous great options. One of our favorites is Panzano. It is located exactly between Florence and Siena on the S222 (also called The Chianti Road). Panzano is a quaint village with a market day on Sunday. There is a selection of restaurants and wine bars. Panzano also boasts Italy's most famous butcher - Dario Cecchini. Nearby towns like Radda, Castellina and Greve offer many of the same experiences. Enjoy your research - have fun.
Posted by
Portlandia
3313 posts
Do you need to stay in a city or a town? With a car, an agriturismo might make sense in Tuscany because you don't have to hassle with driving in and out of town just to get on the road.
Posted by
OP
Dallas, texas, USA
31 posts
Sorry, I meant a town or village. We are looking for a farmhouse that has a seperate entrance as we like to be by ourselves. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Posted by
Los Angeles, CA, USA
1003 posts
Personally I would recommend staying somewhere relatively near Siena. When I did the "farmhouse with a car in Tuscany" thing, we stayed outside San Gimignano and while I loved the farmhouse we found, it was a bit remote. i personally found Siena's immediate surroundings more central and if I were to do it again that's where I would look for another agriturismo.
Posted by
Florence
362 posts
Robin there are so many places in Tuscany - I think you do have to specify a bit more. There is the obvious Siena-Florence corridor and the Chianti Classico region, but there is so much more to see and do, from Carrara to Grosseto, Elba to Arezzo - etc. Siena is (sort of) the geographical center, so that is an obvious choice, but depending on whether you want some beach, or more mountains, etc. etc. you may want to move your center more towards the coast, or the NE corner of the region, etc. You could start here for accommodations that may fit your bill: http://www.tuscanyrentdirect.com/home.html
Posted by
Wichita
831 posts
Robin,
This may help http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/tuscany/hs_planning.htm
Posted by
Boston, MA, USA
262 posts
we stayed here http://www.agriturismopoggetto.it/home_ing.htm
Posted by
Boston, MA, USA
262 posts
Hi Robin, I was there in September and stayed at a farmhouse in Castellina, it was truly amazing. The town is great with everything you need from a small grocery store to restaurants that stay open at night for dinners and little shops to visit. I think it is a great little community if you are really looking for the Tuscan experience.
Posted by
Flat Rock, NC
15 posts
We are going with another couple in Sept and will use www.untours.com. They provide farmhouse-type accommodations and include a rental car.