Want to avoid a car rental for Tuscany...need help.

I can think of 3 good options that might work for you. All are great hill towns, not too big and not too small. The more challenging option is Volterra. You can get there and then to Rome using train/bus combination, but it's a slight detour. Montepulciano is another good choice - connected to Chiusi train station by approx hourly bus service. Third option is Orvieto. Although it's technically in Umbria, it's right on the Florence-Rome regional train line. If any of those 3 towns appeal to you, I can post more information about the towns and transportation. Note that if Sunday is one of your travel days, then Orvieto would be the best of the 3 options.

A few yrs back I also was interested in seeing Tuscany from Florence. I took the bus from Florence (scenic&low cost)to Siena. My lodging was in Siena since good bus connections are avail from there. Saw Pienza, San Gimignano & Montepulciano all on public bus from Siena. It was easy , efficient and low cost. Important to get schedules in advance from Siena bus station. Our last Montepulciano bus back to Siena was around 5:30 pm , so make note of schedules carefully. My favorites are Montepulciano, San Gimi. and Siena.
And with a car we saw Cortona, Orvieto,& Assisi. My favorites were still all my bus. Hope this helps. Also realize that Pisa can all be enjoyed in 1 hr.

Thanks for the feedback, Frank. I had actually been looking at Volterra. I am going to check out those other two also. JS, thank you too. I think Sienna is a little more populated than I want although I have heard that it is very nice. I am going to take a look at Frank's two other suggestions and will let you both know if I need any further help. Again, thank you.

Okay, we have pretty much settled on Volterre for one night and Montepulciano for the next. We will be coming from Pisa to Volterre then from Volterre to Montepulciano the next.

I need public transportation info from Pisa to Volterre

and then Volterre to Montepulciano (how long will this take?)

and then Montepulciano to Rome.

Thanks!

We are making a last minute trip to Italy in early September. We will be in Milan at the end of our trip for the Formula 1 race; we are thinking of visiting Florence/Tuscany beforehand. We would prefer to not rent a car - would those who have replied to Jamie's question recommend staying in Siena and visiting Florence from there?

Most of the hilltowns in Tuscany/Umbria are accessible by train; you take the train to the foot of the hill, then a local bus line to the top. We've done this in Cortona & Perugia. Perugia is larger and has a nice piazza and many restuarants.

It will help if you keep in mind that, in general, the bus system in Tuscany has very limited service on Sundays and Italian holidays.

From Pisa, take the train to Pontederra and then bus #500 to Volterra. See schedule at www.cpt.pisa.it/orare/extra/linea500.htm. For Volterra to Montepulciano, I think the easiest route would be bus #500 back to Pontederra, train to Chiusi and bus to Montepulciano. From Montepulciano, it's bus back to Chiusi and train to Rome. These are the simplest routings. There's another Volterra to Montepulciano route that might be a bit faster, but it's slightly trickier. If you're interested, I could provide that information.

Frank, thanks again for your response. I would be interested in that other route too, between Volterra and Montepulciano. Do you have an idea of the time involved getting from Volterra to Montepulciano?

Jamie:

My favorite is Panzano. Panzano is a little hill town located exactly between Florence and Siena on the S222 - the Chianti Road. It is on the SITA bus route. The little village has several great restaurants, wine bars, wineries etc. There is a market day on Sunday. Panzano is also the home of Italy's most famous butcher (Dario Cecchini) - Dario also has a great restaurant there. Have fun.

There's no direct route, so I'd estimate 5-6 hours travel time from Volterra to Montepulciano via Pontedera. The alternate route is bus from Volterra to Siena (change in Colle Val d'Elsa) and then either bus directly to Montepulciano, train to Montepulciano - station not in town, so bus or taxi from there (confirm best option with your hotel), or train to Chiusi and bus to Montepulciano. In Siena, you might need to transfer by bus from Piazza Gramsci to the train station. This alternate route is more direct and could save time depending on bus/train schedules, but you can see that it's somewhat more complicated.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Lucca as an option. It's very close to Pisa, and it has the things you are looking for. It's bigger than a typical Tuscan hill town, so it might not be exactly what you're looking for, but you'll find some great restaurants, plenty of pleasant walking, and biking on the walls was one of the highlights of my Tuscan trip this past May.