Day trip to Siena and San Gimignano

The reviews I found online seem good, but maybe someone has used this
group? Also, I've seen some posts that indicate the countryside isn't
pretty in December. I find this hard to believe, but is it true?

It's pretty rare to find any tour that gets universal excellent reviews, but at least on TripAdvisor this particular tour gets fairly good reviews. And it saves the hassle of organizing your own bus tickets. As long as you are happy to comply with their timetable and not your own, then this would be the easier option.

As for the December landscape- well what does your own countryside look like in December? The leaves are off the deciduous trees, the fields are bare or stubble. The grapes and leaves are off the vines. It could be grey or rainy. But the topography won't change. The hills, farms and towns will still be there.

Haven't been to San Gimignano, but did take the "normal" bus to Siena (in mid-October) -- it was so crowded people sat on the floor/stood, it was late leaving Florence, it stopped at several small towns on the way; anyway, not what I would call relaxing (other than letting someone else drive). We were happy to get to Siena and explore for several hours and eat late lunch (piazza was pretty busy and touristy, so tried to eat later). With the same bus ride home (except at the less crowded first stop, so no worry about sitting), we were happy to have called it a day with just the one city. From our experience, I would recommend the tour/bus as the more relaxing option, even at 12 hours long.

If you don't have a car, this doesn't sound like a bad idea. (A car is preferable.) It's unclear what their words "Tuscan countryside lunch" means. Is it inside a restaurant? (That's not necessarily bad, but you can't make assumptions about a packaged product.)

You may have some incompletely formed expectations. The Tuscan countryside is usually seen from a car (or bus.) There are visitors who hike or bike, but the main destination is Renaissance art and architecture. That's not in the countryside.

I can't believe that public busses are jammed in December. Have you looked up internet climate data for your month of travel? Google is your friend. I'll note that Siena is good for a full day with nothing else, but not everyone is an "encylopedic tourist!"

Also, I've seen some posts that indicate the countryside isn't pretty in December. I find this hard to believe, but is it true?

I wish I could share some photos with you. We arrived December 13, 2015 and flew home December 21st. We visited everywhere you've mentioned on our trip except Pisa, which we'd visited on an earlier trip.

Tuscany in December is lovely. The days were mostly warm and sunny, with a high in the mid-60s. A few nights there was a light frost, but by mid-afternoon we were in a light sweater or shirtsleeves. The vineyards had been pruned but there was still lots of Fall color.

The tour sounds like a good choice, especially if the lunch is at an agriturismo. The nice thing about the tour is that you can have wine with your lunch and not worry about driving. We did take the bus from Greve to Florence and back and it was pretty straightforward. We were the only non-residents on the bus and they found us to be a novelty. Still you are right, taking the tour would eliminate having to get tickets, etc. and allow you to just sit back and enjoy the trip.

I hope you have a wonderful time with your daughter-in-law. Again, Tuscany in December is charming. There's Christmas decorations and Christmas fairs. It is not nearly as crowded as other times of the year.

I talked with my daughter in law and went ahead and booked the tour this morning. The lunch is at a farm/winery somewhere between Siena and SG, and seeing Pisa will be a nice bonus. As for what the countryside looks like in December, I was surprised by a post I saw (can't remember if it was here or on another site) that described it as black skeletons or something like that, but maybe it's all in one's perspective. Winter in Italy is still Italy!

Am I the only one who starts planning their next trip while still planning the current trip because I'm already thinking about the places I won't have time to see this time, so I'll have to see next time.

Replying to this late, but figured I'll share anyway. I just did a similar tour a few days ago.. may even be from the same company (don't know for sure though). I know a lot of these companies just resell the same tours (like how hotel websites such as booking, hotel, expedia, etc. just resell hotel bookings). But just to share with you our itinerary/experience that we had:

• Met in front of Firenze train station at 7:45 AM. Walked 10 mins to where the bus was.
• Everyone got on the bus and off to Siena. Tour leader spent the whole trip talking, sharing details on Tuscany region, history, and some of Siena.
• Arrived at Siena, got off the bus, and was handed off to a Siena tour guide (he explained the difference between a tour "leader" vs a tour "guide".. and guides are licensed by city, and he's not licensed for Siena).
• Tour guide took us through a whirlwind highlights of Siena in a quick 45 mins, ending with entrance into the Cathedral (our tour leader ran ahead to get us all tickets). It was quick, but I loved our guide.. very knowledgeable and kept sharing random information as we were walking from point to point. Then we had 30 mins of free time, and met back at the central square of Siena. We then all walked back together to the tour bus.
• Drive off to San Gimignano. Tour leader showed us a 20 min video about Siena's horse racing, then spent the rest of the time telling us how Italy is like game of thrones, and now aggressive sporting events is the 'civilized' way Italians have now instead of constantly declaring war on all their neighboring cities.
• Lunch was at an "agritourism" location -- Fattoria Poggio Alloro. Started with a quick 10 min tour of the farm (vineyards, cows), then to an outdoor terrace like seating with great views of the hills, and then food. Seating is in long picnic like tables, so you're mingling with your fellow tour customers and generally having a good social time. I don't actually know the proper names for what we ate, but very simply it was pasta with meat ragu (like a bolognese sauce), cheese/meats, almond biscotti... 2 red wines & 1 white, and a dessert wine.
• After lunch, 8 min bus ride to San Gimignano. Brief history explained on the bus, but San Gimignano was a 1 hr free time. You can walk from 1 end to the other end of the city in 10 mins, so it's not that big. Also a gelato world winner was pointed out to us.. he was good, but I don't know what makes him a world winner :D
• (Side note, the tour leader pointed out the towers of San Gimignano a few times while we were on the bus, so we could take some pics from out the window. Also there was clear & great view of San Gimignano from the farm. I mention this because I thought the pictures of the town from afar to see the towers were better than standing at the base trying to capture them!)
• Back on the bus for a long trip to Pisa. More or less slept off the wine. He woke us up about 10-15 mins out to give us history of Pisa and the leaning tower.
• Bus dropped us off about 15 mins away from leaning tower. Tour leader walked with us to the leaning tour area, where we had about 1 hr of free time to take silly photos. He then walked us back to the bus.
• Everyone basically slept on the bus ride back to Florence.

Alexander, that does sound like the same tour. I'm not usually a big fan of touring because I like to do things at my own pace, but my daughter in law is with me such a short time and wants to get a taste of Tuscany, so I think it will work well since it gets us out into the countryside, yet still leaves time for Florence. I really appreciate your info. It gives me a much better idea of what to expect!

KRS,
Enjoy your trip with your daughter-in-law!

To answer your second question....you are not the only one planning a future trip while on a current trip! I do it all the time!