We are returning to Italy and will be visiting Tuscany for the first time. We are wondering if anyone has rented a car with driver while there. We think it would allow us to really see the area.
Has anyone done this and what were your experiences?
Safe Travels
Jeff
I'm not sure how this would save you any time over driving yourself. Tuscany is very easy to navigate and doing it on your own gives more freedom to come and go as you please.
Donna
I agree with Donna. There is really no reason for a driver. It is just like driving in the U.S., but the towns have more interesting names:).
Ah, but you see we did that exact thing. We did have a car and did some driving ourselves....Tuscany is smaller than one thinks and getting from place to place is easier. Planning what each day's schedule contains is a little more difficult than I had expected. But, wine tastings were an issue. Either one of us was the designated driver (which makes the whole thing a lot less fun) or we had a not sober driver (which given the challenges of unfamiliar roads and a little bit aggressive Italian drivers seemed stupid).
So we got a driver for an 8 hour day. I can recommend Andrea Natali whom we did use May, 2014. We thought he was terrific. His English is good. He and I corresponded via email. He was willing to work with me a little on his fee and a lot on where to go and what to see. I explained what we wanted (Brunello and small wineries) and he made some suggestions. It worked out great. He is charming, loves Tuscany and knows a great deal. It was kind of terrific to be driving along and ask "wow, what's that" pointing off into the distance and actually get an answer. His selection of small wineries, tiny villages and beautiful vistas were spot on. During the day, as he got to know us a little better, he added in several quick history based stops (like a Roman thermal bath). He picked us up at the agriturismo we stayed at about 8:30 and dropped us off there about 5:30. While not cheap, it was a great value for dollar, allowed us to drink and NOT drive and remains one of the top 5 things out of our 14 trips to Europe!
Here is his website
http://www.tuscanyexperiencetours.com
I hope he works out for you
I've never gone to a wine tasting where I got drunk. You have a sip or two of different wines but you don't drink so much in such a little amount of time that it effects you. If you drinking that much then you're doing something wrong. Also, the wine tastings I've been to have been at wineries and usually include a tour along with a long presentation so getting drunk is not really an option. The OP doesn't mention a wine tasting so not sure this is an issue at all.
Planning out what to see during the day shouldn't be an issue either. A good map help to see which cities are closest to each other. There really is no need to hire a driver for this type of trip. It's so easy to drive in Tuscany. It's not like driving in a city like Rome where driving is crazy. It's country roads that take you through beautiful little towns and valleys.
You'll have a wonderful time just driving and stopping into any cities that you come across.
Donna
Jeff,
I think you are absolutely right, having a driver will allow you to see more. I noticed one responder thought you might be concerned about time......seeing is not necessarily a time thing. It is the ability to ride along as a passenger and keep your eyes on the lovely countryside, instead of the road, signs, and other traffic.
Kate, I commend you for having a driver, especially if you wanted to enjoy wine tastings......and even though one of the responders questioned your ability to get "drunk" from a wine tasting, it is sad that some people do not understand that different people have different alcohol tolerance levels. ANYTIME, and I repeat ANYTIME, someone thinks it might be wise to have someone else drive, whether it be after just one glass of wine or three glasses, it is a GOOD idea. I sometimes get personally lightheaded even after 1/2 of a glass of wine. Different people react different ways, so it is always bad to assume anyone else will react the same way we do.
My husband and I hired a private driver in Ireland, and it absolutely made our trip!! Not only the comfort of having someone who was familiar with the roads and could tell us what we were looking at, but like Kate, we could point to something and ask what it was. He also served as sort of a tour guide, he shared info and stories about what it was like living in the country, and he surprised/delighted us with special stops along the way, after he quickly determined our preferences.
We also hired drivers for Southern Spain and Morocco..........we will likely hire drivers for any future independent travel. It is just more enjoyable for us.
So many people (including us) often take group tours for the ease of travel. Hiring a driver is a wonderful way to have that same safety net, comfort, relaxation, yet also have the flexibility to do what you want, stay as long as you want, and have a local "friend" in the vehicle doing the driving, handling the tolls, buying the fuel, providing the car, and figuring out where to park.
I'm glad Kate posted the info about the driver, and I will stick it in a file and save it in case we get back to Tuscany someday.
......and, again, not everyone is the same, but for my household, driving an unfamiliar vehicle in an unfamiliar country, with a different primary language only raises the likelihood of what is known as the 'rent-a-car fight.' (Now I will expect a flood of posts telling me we need couples' therapy....thank you, but we are happily married for multiple decades and we have visited all 7 continents with enjoyable travels that work for us. ) Why have the stress? Vacations are supposed to be enjoyable and relaxing....take away those potential triggers. Hire the driver if it will mean a more enjoyable, informative trip.
Jeff did not ask if it was difficult to drive, he asked if anyone had rented a car with a driver....let's focus on answering his question.
