How to spend a week in the Hill Towns?

We just spent a fabulous 6 months living in Perugia, with a car, enjoying the hill towns of Tuscany and Umbria. What a treat you have set up for yourself!! Is the week for Florence and the hill towns, or just for the hill towns? For my money, you should stay somewhere central. Perugia was fabulous, but Cortona would be too. That way you could hit southern Tuscany with ease as well as Umbria. For instance, from Perugia we drove to Siena for breakfast (60 min drive), wandered around, had lunch, then drove to Montepulciano for dinner before returning home to Perugia. Assisi was a short 20 minutes away, so we did that three times. Montefalco was a beautiful drive for lunch, as was Montelcino. I'd plan on one, max two places per day. Less is more. Just sitting in a small square having a cappuccino and cornetto is one of the best experiences of Italy. Spend an hour, have two cups, and watch life go by. Cheers,
David

I agree with David to not plan more than two hill towns per day. If it is a larger town like Siena I would allow a full day. As for staying IN Florence, be sure you read about the ZTL's. It is not generally advisable to stay in Florence with a car.

Better to stay someplace just outside Florence, or at least outside the ZTLs. How about a nice agriturismo? (And you can see a lot in one week.)

Oh, if you're looking to stay in Florence with a car, you might like to stay where we did, several times: St. Elisbeta convent. Fantastic place to stay. Great rooms, very clean. Awesome breakfast, and free off-street parking. It's outside the ZTL, and very accessible, particularly as you head south to Tuscany. Perfect, we thought. Cheers!
David