Help with Plan.....Livorno to San Gim to Volterra

[ritaly]

My plan is rent a car rom Livorno port 7:30 AM head to San Gimigiano hopefully arriving before tour buses the head to Volterra for remainder of the day. What will our driving times be? Tips on routes (prefer scenic roads), off the beaten track places along the way, lunch suggestions etc appreciated. It will be a Monday so we are prepared for closings in some places, but hopefully things will be more open AM in San G and afternoon in Volterra. Right?

[Hlitner]

We think you are planning a great itinerary (both wonderful towns and the 2 towns are enough for a day and not too much). Driving time will depend on your route...but we would recommend sticking to the more picturesque back roads and avoiding the bypass near Florence (traffic can be awful). Getting to San Gimignano will take you about 1 1/2 hours and then it might take you a few minutes to find a parking space (outside the walled town). Then you will need about 40-50 min for the nice drive to Volterra (where they have a nice indoor pay parking garage). Then you will need at least 1:15 to get back to the port (from Volterra), but of course you would want to allow extra time for this last leg to ensure not missing your ship.

 

We could write a lot about both towns, but they are among our favorite places in Tuscany. What is nice about your plan is that you will have enough time to enjoy lunch somewhere.....and that is the way it should be in Italy !

 

Hank

Edited August 5, 2013 by Hlitner

[ritaly]

Thanks again Hank for your swift and informative reply....timing should provide a perfect port day experience for us. I have visited the towns before and am looking forward to my return...know both parking areas and they will indeed be easy to use. Hoping others might have a suggestions for a countryside stop for lunch....have eaten in Volterra and they do have many excellent choices for a wonderful lunch just looking for something outside town this time.

[euro cruiser]

I haven't eaten here myself, but Ristorante Tre Archi in Castel San Gimignano, on the route between the two towns, has excellent reviews on Trip Advisor.

 

TA: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g1097277-d1215662-Reviews-Ristorante_Tre_Archi-Castel_San_Gimignano_San_Gimignano_Tuscany.html

 

Restaurant web site: http://sitoinlavorazione.seat.it/trearchims/

[First Time 2008]

We did that August 2009, and added Pisa too. Picked up a Hertz car at the dock (pre-reserved, and Hertz had the car there ready for us). Headed straight to Pisa, parking near the Duomo was surprisingly easy and free. Had bought tickets to climb the leaning tower, picked up the tickets, did the climb. Walked around Pisa some more, did some geocaching even. Headed to San Gimi, beautiful drive. Walked around, did some shopping (great olive oil). Then Volterra, for more walking around the town, lovely alleyways. And back to the ship, dropped off car right by the gangway. It worked really well.

 

Oh, yes, we skipped lunch and survived on gelato. We often do that it Italy. I can think of worse ways to survive.

[Hlitner]

I think we need to clarify an issue about driving into Pisa or Florence. Both of these cities have areas which are called ZTLs (Zono Traffico Limitato) which translated means Limited Traffic Zones. These areas are marked with small signs (some would say too small) and enforced with cameras. If you happen to venture into a ZTL without the proper permit you will be fined (between 50 and 80 Euros). If you are lucky an nailed by a cop you can pay the fine on the spot. Otherwise, they will bill your rental car company who will then add their own "processing fee" and you will find your credit card charged for about 100 Euros (this can happen months after you return home). So my advice is that if you plan on driving into Pisa or Florence, you should Google ("ZTL Italy") and pull up a map of the ZTLs in those cities. Study those maps and figure out a route that avoids those areas. Unfortunately, in Pisa, the ZTL includes much of the residential area near the Leaning Tower. However, it is possible to drive to the Leaning Tower (and the nearby pay parking lots) without going through the ZTL...but you must be careful.

 

We have our own ZTL theory (supported by many Europeans). When Italy first started this practice it was limited to a few busy areas in major cities like Rome and Florence....and it made a lot of sense. But we think the Italian government quickly realized that ZTLs generated a lot of revenue for very little work. They then started expanding their ZTLs into smaller towns (like Pisa) and now its become a minor pain for those of us who do a lot of driving in Italy.

 

Hank

Edited August 14, 2013 by Hlitner

[sailawaybellaluna]

First, I'll start by thanking you Hank for the advice you've given on several boards about Sifracar!

 

I've been debating for months about what to do with my family when we're in Livorno (Me, husband, 6 year old and 10 month old).

 

I emailed Sifracar this morning and heard back within the hour, confirming a car! And the price was very reasonable in my opinion, at least for having an automatic, and directly at the ship!

 

Anyhow, our plan is very similar to that above, as our goal is to visit San Gimignano and Volterra. Is it best to visit San Gimignano first? Would you recommend more time in one versus the other for any specific reasons? We've been to Tuscany a few times before, so we don't really have anything major we want to see. Just scenery, off the beaten road type of restaurants or wineries, Italian life really...So any recommendations would be appreciated. Otherwise we're happy to just tumble into whatever interesting places we find...

 

I've reserved a GPS, but after researching on Google Maps, it shows us driving east through Pontedera and then south to San Gimignano. Then west to Volterra and north back through Ponsacco, before the final trek west to the port of Livorno. Does this seem like the most efficient route?

 

Thanks for any suggestions!

[Hlitner]

Just an update about Sifracar. We were recently (April) in Livorno on a Sunday and scheduled a car with that agency. I walked off the ship shortly after docking and the Sifracar rep was near the gangplank with our car parked about 50 feet from the ship. We completed the usual paperwork in less than 10 min and he handed me the keys. When we returned to the port we simply dropped the car within a few feet of the ship. Hard to beat the service and convenience.....which is worth the extra dollars.

 

As always, we strongly recommend you either have your own GPS or rent one from Sifracar. Make sure you save the ship location on the GPS (Sifracar does that on the ones they rent) as it can be a bit complicated finding the right port entrance and working your way through the port to the ship.

 

As an extra note, we use our own Garmin Nuvi GPS and, as usual, it took us the slower way when we left and returned to the port (which we ignored on the return). Our GPS seems to like torturing me by having me drive through congested cities which is not a big problem on a Sunday.

 

Based on our most recent experience we continue to give a strong recommendation to renting from Sifracar.

 

Hank

[sailawaybellaluna]

Thanks for that update, Hank!

 

Great idea to save the ships' location in the GPS. I hadn't thought of that...I'm excited for how convenient it will be!