Tuscany in March

I would do a deep dive into weather stats before choosing a base. I'd also compile a lot of possibilities and consider being flexible--if you have a car and a list of options, you can change course if you get a week of rain.

I’ve been to Italy several times in March and it can be cold and wet or warm and sunny. The further south you go is generally more mild.

I much prefer Italy's shoulder seasons - as we did for all of April. We stayed 10 days in Rome, 10 days in Cortona and 10 days in Spello, using each as a base for day trips. The idea was to take it slow and easy and it proved to be a great trip. So much so, we're planning another 30 days, perhaps, in March 2023 - may be a little more south. Thinking Puglia.

Having a car gives you some additional flexibility, but we've done fine using public transit. I

Good luck with your planning!

Weather in March is as unpredictable as it gets. Statistically, it is likely to be cool (40s at night, 50s to very low 60s during the day). Early spring has also a high chance of sporadic showers. There is a famous saying in Italy that says: Marzo pazzerello, esce il sole prendi l’ombrello! (Crazy March, the sun is coming out, take the umbrella!). At higher altitudes (over 2500 ft, or 750 m.) it could even snow. So, depending on the weather you get in the year you go, a farm stay could be nice or not at all ideal.

Automobile warning: Between Nov. 15 and April 15 in most roadways of Italy (nearly all in Tuscany), it is mandatory to have snow tires or carry snow chains. If you rent a car, you need to request to also rent chains, unless you plan to buy them yourself as soon as you rent the vehicle and know the type of chains you need. Chains or snow tires don’t come automatically with the rental but you must have them in the car, although it is unlikely you will actually need them at the end of March in the Montepulciano area.

I was in Tuscany and Umbria this year from March 25 to April 3 with a car. The vineyards were row upon row of black stumps, most of the trees were just beginning to leaf, in other words, don't expect too much from the scenery. It was warm enough to sit outside in the afternoon for lunch and later an aperitif when it was sunny, but there were rainy days too. I spent my last 2 nights in Greve in Chianti. At 7 am when I wanted to load the car up and head for Florence to return it, the heavy overnight dew had turned to a thick hard layer of frost that I couldn't scrape off the windshield. After 10-15 minutes of scraping with my driver's license, I managed to clear a peephole in the windshield and clear the outsider rearview mirror and drive up a very narrow unpaved lane to the front of the hotel and leave the car in the sun, which melted the rest away in half an hour or so. I'm sure it snows on a lot of the hill towns even in March.

Driving was difficult and often slower than expected due to major road works - I suspect that happens every spring. Here's a thread about my time there, including some anecdotes from other forum members.

The weather in March will indeed be a roll of the dice, so going later in the month would be prudent.
Another poster here suggested this place near Montepulciano for our own anniversary trip a few years ago: https://www.montorio.com/. We wound up staying there for 5 nights and frankly wished it had been longer. Location is just down the hill from the town so it was a bit of a workout walking up to it, though you can also drive up to parking. It's just down a tree-lined road from the San Biagio church and a couple of very nice restaurants. The apartments are large and comfortable, and the property offers secure parking. We particularly liked the location because it was easy to get on the road in the mornings for explorations further afield. Might add that the views from their terrace were stunning.
Would also add that we found that driving the rural roads thru Tuscany and Umbria was a pleasure, and was in fact the highlight of our trip. There's some homework to be done in advance in order to become familiar with the Italian rules of the road, and in particular how to recognize and avoid the ZTL's that surround the hill towns in the region, but I wouldn't let that discourage you from giving it a try.

"Thinking Puglia" is a good idea! The weather is likely to be warm but not hot, you can sit beside your stone trullo (the trulli are small domed stone buildings that look sort of like igloos) and sip the local wines, the food is great (one of my favorite local cuisines in Italy), the driving is easy, few tourists, hill towns that are quite different from those in Tuscany, generally easy parking just outside of the historic centers of towns, tends to be less expensive than Tuscany, interesting Romanesque church facades, two nice small airports to choose from but also easy to get to by train, nearby Matera to explore, some really nice agriturismi if you prefer that to having your own trullo in the countryside or an apartment in a town, a ceramics town with patterns unlike those in the north, and definitely a "slower, more relaxing pace."

We were in Puglia for the last two weeks of March a few years ago and even though we had previously spent maybe six weeks total in Puglia there was still plenty to see and do and we would love to return. The only cons to Puglia that I can think of is that it would be way too hot (and full of the beach crowds) for me in the summer and it is pretty much lacking in the great paintings you can see in Tuscany and Umbria. Check Google images for the towns of Trani, Lecce, Ostuni, Matera (actually in Basilicata), and Alberobello to see what you think.

Great advice and thanks all for the insights. We may defer until April when the weather looks a little more dependable.