Tuscany pre-cruise info- Civitavecchia

[OC SeaPA]

We would like to spend a few days in Tuscany & wine region before a cruise leaving Rome (Civitavecchia). Any suggestions? Where to fly into? Take Train? From where to where? Any excursions/tour companies to use? Hotels? We've been to Rome and would like to see some other areas.

[euro cruiser]

Is there a particular type of wine you are interested in? For example, you could focus on Brunello (Montalcino area), Chianti (Chianti area), Tuscan Reds (Maremma), Vernaccia (San Gimignano), Vino Nobile (Montepulciano), etc. There are regional wines produced all over Tuscany (actually, all over Italy) so pretty much anywhere you choose there will be something local.

 

There are some wineries where you can stay on the property, if you are interested.

 

Regarding transportation, Tuscany is not particularly well served by trains. Generally to get around you need a car; if you are willing to drive you can cover a lot more territory.

 

Where to fly in is another issue, it would depend on where you decide to stay. There is a large airport in Pisa and a smaller one in Florence; I've often found it's faster to simply drive from Rome rather than wait for a connecting flight and then still have a drive to make from either of these airports.

[CathyCruises]

Is there a particular type of wine you are interested in? For example, you could focus on Brunello (Montalcino area), Chianti (Chianti area), Tuscan Reds (Maremma), Vernaccia (San Gimignano), Vino Nobile (Montepulciano), etc. There are regional wines produced all over Tuscany (actually, all over Italy) so pretty much anywhere you choose there will be something local.

 

There are some wineries where you can stay on the property, if you are interested.

 

Regarding transportation, Tuscany is not particularly well served by trains. Generally to get around you need a car; if you are willing to drive you can cover a lot more territory.

 

Where to fly in is another issue, it would depend on where you decide to stay. There is a large airport in Pisa and a smaller one in Florence; I've often found it's faster to simply drive from Rome rather than wait for a connecting flight and then still have a drive to make from either of these airports.

 

I miss the Vernaccia!! Got very attached to it during our sojourn in San Gimignano. ;)

[bobalink]

We would like to spend a few days in Tuscany & wine region before a cruise leaving Rome (Civitavecchia). Any suggestions? Where to fly into? Take Train? From where to where? Any excursions/tour companies to use? Hotels? We've been to Rome and would like to see some other areas.

 

Hi fellow Orange Countian!

 

Last summer we spent a week in Tuscany before our cruise. We wanted to stay in a farm house, also called "agriturismo".

I did a lot of research and got great ideas on these boards.

 

We flew from LAX into Rome FCO, then took the train to Chiusi.

Rented a car in Chiusi and drove to Montepulciano, where our farmhouse was.

Montepulciano is a perfect place to call your "home base" to explore the Tuscan hill towns. We visited Montalcino, Cortona, Greve in Chianti, and many other small hill towns, vineyards, etc.

 

We then turned in our car and took the train from Chiusi to Florence. Spent 2 days in Florence at a wonderful B&B.

 

Then we took the train from Florence to Venice. Spent 3 days in Venice before boarding our cruise.

 

Our week in the Tuscan region was AMAZING. We will definitely go back for more visits.

 

I am happy to give more details if you are interested.

 

Enjoy!

[OC SeaPA]

thanks for the info. Sounds Fantastic. My e-mail is carencpa@hotmail.com. Maybe we could get together and share the trip. We leave from Civitavecchia and end in Venice. Any ideas on how to get to Civitavecchia from Tuscany without going back to Rome? Return car to Chiusi and train from there? This is our 2013 cruise, so lots of planning time. 2012 is through the Panama Canaml.

[caviargal]

If you are relying on public transport you will have to take the train.

 

You can drive or hire a car and driver as an alternative.

 

I agree that if you truly want to explore Tuscany, you need to rent a car as trains are not really an option and bus service is limited. We have stayed many times in Florence and hired a private driver to explore the vineyards which works well for us as drinking and driving laws are very strict in Italy. We have used the same driver for years and have set up tastings at many off the beaten track vineyards, which is our preference.

 

We like to fly into Florence Peretola as it is nice, small and a very calm airport compared to FCO. We always have to make a connection since we live in FL so one connection to FCO or one to Florence is the same amount of hassle. We make our decision based on where the connection is and the cost.

[euro cruiser]

Any ideas on how to get to Civitavecchia from Tuscany without going back to Rome? Return car to Chiusi and train from there? This is our 2013 cruise, so lots of planning time. 2012 is through the Panama Canaml.

Again, it depends on where in Tuscany you will be. If you want to avoid going back through Rome, I'd arrange to drop the car off in Grosseto and take the train from there to Civitavecchia, unless you are going to be on the very eastern edges of Tuscany (not the best wine area, so I'm not sure why you would be). If you take the train from Chiusi you'll have to go through Rome.

 

There are several trains each day between Grosseto and Civitavecchia. Depending on which one you choose, it will take between 50 - 70 minutes and cost between €6,45 to €19,00 (second class). By comparison, from Chiusi to Civitavecchia takes between 2 3/4 - 3 1/4 hours and costs between €12,80 to €26,50.

[Hlitner]

Much depends on where you want to stay in Tuscany although we personally like the corridor around the S222 road that winds through the Chianti wine district. Its also possible to stay near San Gimignano, Florence or Siena and explore from any of those places. As to how to get to Civitavecchia its quite easy to rent cars with a one-way drop within Italy. You might be able to get a rental with no or very little one-way drop charge. Hertz is closest to the port (about 3 blocks) of all the rental car agencies but the other major companies all have local offices. You can get some great rates (3 day minimum rental) through Kemwel.com for cars from Hertz or Europcar that have a zero deductable. If you drive from FCO towards Tuscany there are some interesting places along the route such as Orvieto ( a bit west of the autostrade).

 

You might want to consider that a 3 day rental should cost you about $150 which is pretty nice when you think of train fares, taxis, etc. Most of the rental car agencies have cars right in FCOs parking garage.

 

 

Hank

[OC SeaPA]

We hope to use miles, so depending upon flights I'm leaning towards Florence. We've never driven in Europe, and Rome scares me for car p/u. I like the idea of car rental & drop off at port. Anywhere with pretty countryside & wineries works- I keep hearing S222- is that anywhere near Florence? Where would you stay for a 3-4 day pre-cruise excursion?

[Hlitner]

We hope to use miles, so depending upon flights I'm leaning towards Florence. We've never driven in Europe, and Rome scares me for car p/u. I like the idea of car rental & drop off at port. Anywhere with pretty countryside & wineries works- I keep hearing S222- is that anywhere near Florence? Where would you stay for a 3-4 day pre-cruise excursion?

 

The S222 (sometimes called the "wine road") is a 2 lane country road that runs between Florence and Siena. The road is to the east of the main autostrade and winds its way through the heart of the Chianti wine district. There are many wineries located along (and near) this route but most of them are rather small. You do have to do a little homework (the internet works) to find the best places to stop for tasting...or you can simply drive around the region looking for signs (sometimes handwritten) that invite you for tastings (sometimes called degustation).

 

We agree that driving in Rome (or Florence) is not a good idea for even those of us very familiar with driving in Italy. But if you pick up a rental car at the FCO airport you do not need to go anywhere near Rome since the airport is located right off the fast A80 road which bypasses Rome. In fact once you leave the airport area you could drive all the way to Florence on major highways without a single trafffic light. You just follow the signs for the A80 (North) and follow it until you get on the A1 (North) which heads right up to Tuscany. When we stay in Florence we usually go to the Hotel David (we love this inn-like hotel) which is outside the ZTL (limited driving zone) and has free parking. In order to explore Tuscany you will need a car (unless you want to spend the big bucks on tours) so it just makes sense to drive the entire way.

[bobalink]

thanks for the info. Sounds Fantastic. My e-mail is carencpa@hotmail.com. Maybe we could get together and share the trip. We leave from Civitavecchia and end in Venice. Any ideas on how to get to Civitavecchia from Tuscany without going back to Rome? Return car to Chiusi and train from there? This is our 2013 cruise, so lots of planning time. 2012 is through the Panama Canaml.

 

I just sent you an email with many details from our Tuscany trip, lodging, train information, car rental, etc.

 

So many folks on CC helped me when I was planning our trip.

 

I hope you find the information I sent you helpful!