Italy without a car

Hi Kathy. Just returned from Italy and we used trains for the entire 16 days with the exception of Tuscany. We stayed in an Agriturismo in Siena (just 10 min from the walled city) and with our rental car, we day-tripped to other hill towns (Volterra, Montepulciano, Pienza, Orvieto, San Gimignano, Siena & Lucca). It would have been very difficult in my opinion to get around without a car except to Siena & San Gimignano, especially while staying in an agriturismo. We only had the car for 4 days but I'm glad we rented it & drove around on our own. My husband actually enjoyed driving around & we brought our GPS which was a lifesaver. Would you consider renting a car just for the Tuscany portion of your trip? If so, I can recommend a wonderful (and I mean wonderful) agriturismo in Siena that we stayed at. It was an incredible experience & the price was extremely reasonable. Happy travels.

Hmm..interesting idea. Yes, please give me details on the agriturismo you stayed in. Renting a car just for a couple days may be okay. I just didn't want the hassle of a car while in Rome or Venice!
Thanks much,
Kathy

If you stay at an agriturism you will need a car as most of them are out in the country and the cities/villages are far apart. You could easily rent a car for the days in Tuscany and train the rest of the time.

I strongly suggest that you limit the car rental to the days spent in the rural agriturismo. You'll need it to "get around" Tuscany to see the many small towns and hamlets.

DO NOT keep the car for the other parts of your trip.

Hi again Kathy. The name of the agriturismo that we stayed in is Agriturismo Marciano & it's only 10 min from the walled city of Siena. Location was perfect for doing daytrips to other towns in Tuscany but you definitely couldn't stay there without a car. It's a working farmhouse; they grow grapes & olives. The rooms were very comfortable & clean. It is run by a sister and brother & the sister and their hospitality was wonderful. The sister is an outstanding cook. Breakfast was included in the cost (82 euro/night the 2nd week of September). The sister makes dinner several nights/wk for whichever guests are interested. The dinner is not to be missed. We had the pleasure of dining in the agriturismo 2 nights during our stay and those were the 2 best meals of our 16-day trip in Italy. We enjoyed talking and laughing with the other guests & talking about our daytrips, etc. The food & wine kept coming & everything is home-grown & fresh. My husband & I couldn't believe how wonderful our stay was there & wished we could have stayed longer. There are only 6 rooms so you need to book ahead if interested.

I agree with not wanting to drive in Florence or Rome & we used public transportation everywhere except in Tuscany. Happy travels.

you can always also look into hiring a driver to take you from town to town. Not sure how much more expensive it would be, but could save you tons of hassels and stress.