My husband and I will be travelling to Italy this fall. We will be arriving at Rome Fiumicino airport at 10am on a Sunday, and renting a car to drive to a rented villa in Radda-in-Chianti. Where can we pick up groceries on the way to our accommodation or within short driving distance from Radda? It seems that everything is closed on Sunday! Any advice would be much appreciated.
Posted by
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
8293 posts
Can you ask the people from whom you rented the villa to lay in a few groceries for your arrival on a Sunday (for a fee of course). Otherwise, eat your lunch on the drive to the villa from the airport, and have your first dinner In Radda.
Posted by
Calgary
2297 posts
I emailed the owners of our vacation rental in tuscany ahead of time and asked them about opening hours of the nearest grocery store. They gave us the name and times and yes, they were open Sunday morning. In fact, that coop had extended Sunday opening hours during the summer (though this wasn't Radda).
Posted by
OP
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
4 posts
Thanks Beatrix. I e-mailed the vacation rental place, and they told me that the Poggibonsi co-op was opened Sunday, but when I checked the local information on their web site, it indicated that this co-op was closed Sundays! So I'm not sure which is correct. Maybe we can drive to Panzano on time and take advantage of the Sunday market (hopefully we can get there in time).
Posted by
Calitri, Avellino, Italy (& US - where I live the majority of the time)
223 posts
Outdoor Markets (in my town anyway) close by 1pm :-( I would suggest picking up some snacks at the airport or at an "auto-gill"/rest stop off the highway - they will be open on a Sunday...and just plan on eating out that first evening or getting a take out pizza!(or pannini or whatever - restaurants and bars will be open - Sunday afternoon is a big day for families eating out)do get a list of restaurants that are open Sundays from the owner or the villa -there will definitely be some, but it's always a shame to drive around to all the recommended places only to find them closed on Sundays!
Posted by
Calgary
2297 posts
Kim,
the coop in Poggibonsi is pretty large, I'm sure your owners are correct in assuming that it's open on Sundays. However, the question remains when it closes and if you'll make it in time there.
The evening we arrived in Chianti (we stayed close to Barberino Val d'Elsa) we went to a nice and quite affordable restaurant recommended by the owners of our rental and then the next morning we headed out early to the coop to buy groceries for breakfast. You'll probably be jetlagged and wake up early anyway.
If you can't stand the thought of leaving the house early without having a coffee first ask the owners if they could provide the supplies for that - and charge you on arrival. We did that on another occasion and when the owners agreed to do this it just confirmed for us in advance that their service and care for their guests would be acceptable ;-)