Exploring Hill Towns from Siena. Rent a car or public transportation?

Unfortunately there is not a train stop in the heart of Siena; its about a mile outside of town. They may have buses that go to it, however. A car is nice for the freedom it gives to visit hilltowns on your schedule, not the train schedule. We have used trains in the past, and what you do is take the train to the station at the base of the hilltown and then local transit to the top. It consumes a good amount of time, however; the buses and trains don't seem to be synchronized so you may wait 20-30 minutes for the next bus up, and then you need to take a bus back down that arrives at the station before the train. Figure on visiting 1 or 2 hilltowns a day by train. With a car you park in a lot near the top on on the road outside the gate, stay as long as you want, and then drive to your next destination when you're ready. My suggestion, then, is to rent a car. I would also suggest bringing an inexpensive GPS to help driving around, although it is possible just by maps and signs (the roads are actually pretty well marked).

A car would give you much greater reach and flexibility, although a number of hill towns around Siena (San Gimignano, Montepulciano, Pienza, Arezzo) could also be reached by bus as daytrips.

Bus schedules:

www.trainspa.it

www.lfi.it

Car for sure. Unlimited possibilities for visiting

You will really need a car to do the type of touring that you are speaking of. Look on AutoEurope, they use several companies, and that gives you much more flexibility. I would think of renting in Siena, and working south to Montepulciano. You can drop off in Chiusi, and train to rome quickly from there. Don't forget about the small unknown hilltowns. They are the real hidden gems. We enjoyed getting up early every morning, putting the map in our pack, and just driving until we saw a new town. We found some incredible towns, food, and people that way. Whatever you decide, remember, this is your trip. Use all the advice, as exactly that, and go with what you want to do. Enjoy, Ciao! Jeff

Some hilltowns would be very possible by bus from Siena but watch the return schedules if you do use them. I was able to see Pienza and Montepulciano in one day, but it was a long day. A car would certainly afford you the flexibility to go where you want and when but you have to worry about parking when you get there and then back again in Siena. For us, a car was the only way to go.

Ian,

You seem to have spent a lot of time in Tuscany. When's the last time you were there and for how long?

Thanks to everyone for the very helpful advice.

Based on your responses I have decided to rent a car for touring the hill towns. I checked autoeurope and europebycar and have a couple options so I am once again in need of some guidance. It seems that I can pick up a car in Florence and drop it off in Rome four days later for about the same price (or cheaper) as picking it up in Siena and dropping off in Chiusi. This would save time and money (not sure about the former) since we would'nt have to take public transportation. Is this accurate or am I missing something?

Thanks again.

I used public bus from Siena for Pienza, M'pulciano, San G., it was easy, clean and what I would do again. For Cortona, Civita di Bag. etc I rented a car but I continued on to Orvieto and Assisi.

Seems reasonable. If you are renting from Florence, do so from the AIRPORT as the rental agencies in town are smack in the middle of the historic city center and the limited traffic zone (ZTL) where driving is by permit only. You can easily rack up hundreds of Euros worth of fines for driving into or through the zone from one section to another. You won't get a fine(s) in the mail until a year or more after your return home. Buy your own GPS with European maps installed and learn how to use it before you leave. A GPS is indispensible. Be sure to make a note of the hours of operation for your rental agency. Many are not open on Sundays and those that are have abbreviated hours. Most airport and train station locations should be open at least half the day on Sunday and have longer hours the rest of the week.