Looking for recommendations on Tuscany hill villages

[oceanswimmer]

Hi, my two sisters and I are going to be in Livorno in Sept on a cruise ship and we cannot seem to make up our minds what villages to see and I was hoping people who have been there could tell us which were their favorite places and why they liked it. The choices seem to be Siena, Florence, Lucca, Pisa, Volterra, San Gimignano. Our roll call is not very active so we may end up taking a private excursion so cost is a factor. I'm thinking we would go to two villages with possibly a wine stop along the way. Any ideas or suggestions?

[CruiserBruce]

Talk to Rome in Limo. They did a great Chianti tour/tasting/food pairing including Siena tour. Highly recommend!!

[Hlitner]

You have tossed out a lot of places, but there are some huge differences. Both Florence and Siena are cities....not villages! Siena is also a bit far...when trying to fit it into a port day. San Gimignano is a special kind of village which we highly recommend for at least a 2 hour stop (enough time to walk through the walled town). We also enjoy visiting Volterra (not normally a huge port destination). Lucca certainly has its charm...and the walls are quite amazing. When it comes to Pisa, we do not particularly like that city...although the Field of Miracles (and Tower) are certainly worthy of a quick visit. But you might want to consider that Florence is an amazing city (on many levels) and should generally be considered an all day destination for first time visitors.

 

If one were to really have their heart set on doing more then one place then we would recommend Florence and San Gimignano. But when it comes to this part of Italy...our best recommendation is to return for at least a 1 week visit :).

 

Hank

[woody14h]

We have always used Tuscany Taste Tours. Owner is Maurizio Mancini. We have been to all your choices with his group and have had the best time. We are again booking for our TA cruise in April. His website is worthwhile checking out.

http://tuscanytastetour.com/Ecommerce_Default.aspx. Awesome area, wanted to spend a month there.

[oceanswimmer]

Thanks everyone! I'll check out those tours. Do you think doing Volterra and San Gimignano would be a good combo? I've been to Pisa and thought the field of Miracles was beautiful but my two sisters have not though I don't think I would want to spend a lot of time there. I am concerned about the crowds in Florence -- I went to Florence on a shore excursion 5 years ago and we spent all our time in line for the Uffizi which in hindsight was a mistake. The museum was literally mobbed so you could hardly walk and, because we had spend so much time there, we never did see the other sights of Florence. I am quite conflicted over what to do -- it's so hard to get a feel for a place reading guide books,etc. I think the best advice comes from people here on cruise critic who have actually been there.

[woody14h]

Thanks everyone! I'll check out those tours. Do you think doing Volterra and San Gimignano would be a good combo? I've been to Pisa and thought the field of Miracles was beautiful but my two sisters have not though I don't think I would want to spend a lot of time there. I am concerned about the crowds in Florence -- I went to Florence on a shore excursion 5 years ago and we spent all our time in line for the Uffizi which in hindsight was a mistake. The museum was literally mobbed so you could hardly walk and, because we had spend so much time there, we never did see the other sights of Florence. I am quite conflicted over what to do -- it's so hard to get a feel for a place reading guide books,etc. I think the best advice comes from people here on cruise critic who have actually been there.

 

We did Monteriggioni, Siena and San Gimignano on one tour plus a fantastic wine luncheon. Florence is very crowded and needs at least 2-3 days to do it justice.

[Hlitner]

Thanks everyone! I'll check out those tours. Do you think doing Volterra and San Gimignano would be a good combo? I've been to Pisa and thought the field of Miracles was beautiful but my two sisters have not though I don't think I would want to spend a lot of time there. I am concerned about the crowds in Florence -- I went to Florence on a shore excursion 5 years ago and we spent all our time in line for the Uffizi which in hindsight was a mistake. The museum was literally mobbed so you could hardly walk and, because we had spend so much time there, we never did see the other sights of Florence. I am quite conflicted over what to do -- it's so hard to get a feel for a place reading guide books,etc. I think the best advice comes from people here on cruise critic who have actually been there.

 

Yep, that is a decent combination of smaller, very walkable, cities. When we are in the area with a rental car we will also sometimes make a short stop at Colle val d'elsa....which is very close to San Gimignano.

 

Hank