Help with one week in Tuscany

I agree with you, I love waking up in a city rather than doing a daytrip.

I like your plan. You really don't need a car.

In Lucca, I stayed at Piccolo Hotel Puccini, the back rooms look out on the statue of Puccini in the little piazza, which is full of restaurants.

Haven't stayed in Siena or Firenze in the last couple of years, but in Firenze I liked both Hotel Paris and Hotel Bigallo (planning on going back to this one).

Sounds like a great trip to me! Siena (the car has 2 "n"s) is wonderful in the evening so I vote for staying over. Lucca also, which has a very different (non-touristy) feel to it, is a great place to be part of the lifestyle.

Have you considered renting apartments? Over the years I find myself doing that more and more. I enjoy the daily trip to the market and fixing lunch or dinner with the fresh produce. That works for me very well in Florence and Siena. I head out for dinner in the cooler evening.

Hotels? I'm not much into recommending hotels except for Venice and Sorrento. For all your destinations I think you want to be right in the thick of things. Why spend your time finding a taxi or riding a bus? Or walking to where you want to be? Rent a room in the Cinque Terre in one of the smaller towns. It's like stepping back in time! Lucca inside the walls is much different (and more interesting) than outside the walls. The medieval area of Siena can be quite a hike from many hotels. Look on the map to see how close your hotel is to the Campo or the Duomo (the areas you probably want to be closest too).

Whatever, enjoy your trip! A few less tourists and a bit cooler weather will certainly help!

Last September we spent 20 days in northern Italy/Tuscany. We spent 3 nights in Florence and 2 in Siena (did not go to Lucca). If we had to do it again, we would have spent 2 in Florence and 3 in Siena. We loved Siena. Florence is great if you like the museums, art, etc., but it sounds like you are more low key. We had some of our best meals in Siena. We loved Antica Osteria da Divo. Siena in the evening is pretty hard to beat, very relaxing and beautiful with all of the day trippers gone.

I would suggest taking a bus from Florence to Siena - the bus is actually quicker and i believed cheaper. The bus station in Florence is right next to the train station and the buses leave pretty regularly and drops you off at the top of the hill in Siena, which is a plus (the train station is at the bottom).

If you love wine, there are lots of tour groups that could take you to Montalcino where you can enjoy some amazing Brunellos. Its not far from Siena. We had a car, so I cant recommend a specific tour company, but there are many. Or you could even hire a private driver.

Overall, sounds like a great plan.

My only comment is that a string of short stays can be tiring. If this middle week is between two longer (4-5N) stays, it's fine. But if all your time is 2-3N stays, that's a lot of moving around.

Robert, I am now considering renting apartments, and have so far mostly looked at VRBO. Do you have any experience with them or with another site you would suggest. I seem to be nervous about doing this for some reason.

Thanks

Vrbo and Homeaway are one and the same. And both are easy to use.

Use the search bar above to look at numerous postings from the crew here on lodging in each of these locations. And browse through Rick's suggestions in his books. Use Tripadvisor.com and booking.com for further photos and rankings, as well as maps.

We use apartments because sometimes we want to make our own coffee in the morning, but we do love B&B's so we can have breakfast served to us ! Like Hotel Scaletto in Florence - delightful rooftop for your morning cappuccino....

Thanks so much for all your help.