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Bonus hours: Siena, Lucca, Coast, or other?

Posted by (Tennessee) on

Hi all,

We'll spend 2 nights in Levanto as our jumping off point to see the Cinque Terre & Riviera. From there, we drive to Siena for one evening before landing at our agriturismo in Montepulciano. We considered eliminating the single night in Siena and adding a third night in Levanto as many of you recommended limiting one-nighters, but Rick's insistence on spending at least one evening in Siena has convinced us to stay the course with our current plan, not to mention gaining a few bonus hours in Siena. Logistical note: we will have a rental car this whole time and will be keeping it until we arrive in Florence.

So my question is:

We have about a 3 hour drive from Levanto to Siena. There are so many amazing places to see between the two and I'm struggling to decide the most worthwhile use of the non-driving hours of that travel day. Here are the ideas I'm considering:

  1. More time on the coast- either a few more hours in the CT, Levanto, or driving to Porto Venere/Lerici/Tellaro and spending a few hours there.

  2. Stop in Lucca along the way. It is literally right along our way. We had Lucca on the itinerary until very recently, when I started to feel we were packing too much in. It pains me to skip it, but that said, we'd only have a few hours (maybe 4-5?), so perhaps it would be more efficient to go with option 3;

  3. Go straight to Siena and spend more time there. Our favorite way to see a city is just to wander about and get a feel for it, so we aren't trying to cram in all of the major museums and sights in the time we already have planned. We just want to enjoy being there! I can see this as being the best option for getting more quality time in one place versus more fleeting time in another, but again the idea of missing out on a few more hours on the coast or Lucca is tough!

Thanks so much for sharing you wisdom!!

Melissa

Posted by
5298 posts

I think Lucca is a gem, but then... So is Siena!

Since you have limited time, I’d suggest getting to Siena so you’ll have more time there, instead of rushing through Lucca, because you want to get to Siena.

As much as I loved Lucca, I’d suggest saving it for your next trip when you can spend a few nights there, in order to enjoy the atmosphere in a more relaxed way.

Have a wonderful trip!

Posted by
1175 posts
  1. Make a 2 hour stop in Lucca for lunch or coffee and bike the walls. At least you get a taste.
  2. If you are at an agriturismo (how long?) you could always go into Siena from there. You don't need to stay there one night when Montepulciano is so close. I assume you plan to drive around to villages while you are at the agriturismo.
  3. There are SO many great villages. Do not feel like you are missing one when there are dozens. You will love every town you visit !

Don't overthink it. See how you feel as you pass Lucca !

Posted by
8670 posts

I'm a less is more traveler and think Siena is one of the most wonderful places I have been. You want time in the Cathedral, to climb the Torre Mangia, to wander in the central contradi-- I'd give more time to Siena.

Posted by
13 posts

thanks, all! I have a follow up question! I'm once again rethinking the one-nighter in Siena. As much as i want to maximize our time there, I was telling a friend about the trip and realized we are staying in 6 different hotels over 10 nights. YIKES. The Siena 1-night stay is the best option to change, because the others are logistically necessary (post-rental car return in Florence & night before flight in Milan). So my dilemma is that it feels like not staying the night in Siena almost cuts our time there in half.

I think what we'd do is:

Leave Levanto early AM:
Arrive in Siena around 11am
Spend 8 hours or so wandering around Siena, and eat dinner there most likely (we'll sadly have to go light on wine in that case), or if we feel like it, leave Siena earlier, and make it to Montepulciano in time for dinner, but likely without a reservation.
Around 8pm depart Siena
Around 9pm arrive at the Agriturismo

This means we wouldn't have that following morning in Siena, nor the evening hours (although I know us - we'll be passed out by 10pm or so anyway).

Pros: less time checking in and out of the hotels in Siena and less one-nighters/less frantic feel in our trip. Cons: less time in Siena and having to leave our luggage in a car in a car park all day. Under this plan we'd have 3 nights at the Agriturismo (directly outside of Montepulciano), so i suppose if we had fallen madly in love with Siena on that day trip, we could go back on one of those days. I know I'm overthinking this terribly, but I just want us to have the best trip possible! 10 days is not enough time so i want to maximize every minute with good pre-planning!

what do you all think? Please share your wisdom and experience!

Posted by
1078 posts

I would spend the night in Siena. It is a beautiful town. The Cathedral is beautiful. If you limit your time there I think you will regret your decision.

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