Tuscany/San Giomagni or Sienna Tours

[nancy anne]

We are going to Livorno (Florence/Pisa) next year on Brilliance of the Seas. We are interested in finding our own driver to tour Tuscany, San Giomagni or Sienna. My DH is not a museum kind of guy so we'd like to skip Florence. Does anyone have any recommendations for a driver? There seems to be a ton of drivers for Rome or Naples but haven't seen any for the Tuscany Region----Thanks:D

[dbh62ark]

We used Papillon at http://www.papillonservice.com/Sangimignano-volterra-siena.htm to tour Siena, Monterrigioni (sp?), and San Gimignano from the port of Livorno. San Gimignano is one of my favorite places! Papillon is a great tour company that gave us a wonderful tour, and we highly recommend.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[corkpopr]

have used them twice and going again in december. country tours.com. it might be country-tours.com. we went to many wineries and an olive oil manufacturing facility. had lunch at one winery (6 of us) and grandma cooked and we ate with the family. Wild boar salami! you want antonio of alexandra

[nancy anne]

Thanks for recommendations. I'm going to look into both of them!---Nancy:)

[Stelladoro]

In early Sept/06, our group of 6 had booked a tour of Pisa/Lucca with Papillontours. Of the 5 Private tours on our Med cruise, this was our least favourite one. This was primarily due to a communication problem with our driver. All the other drivers also acted as "guides", ie. they were able to provide us with some history and detail regarding points of interest and carry on a very friendly conversation, while driving us to various places. Our communication with this particular driver was very strained, as our command of Italian was poor and her command of English was not much better. Hopefully, you will have better luck. Enjoy your cruise!

[grandegal]

We used Marco Miniati at Tuscany Tours. He can be reached at info@tuscanytours.net. He treated us very well, and made arrangements for us to have lunch at the restaurant that we mentioned when we made reservations. Very polite, nice car, and really listened to what we wanted to do. He took us to Sienna, San Gimignana, and to an overlook to take great pictures of Florence. Highly recommended.

[dbh62ark]

In early Sept/06, our group of 6 had booked a tour of Pisa/Lucca with Papillontours. Of the 5 Private tours on our Med cruise, this was our least favourite one. This was primarily due to a communication problem with our driver. All the other drivers also acted as "guides", ie. they were able to provide us with some history and detail regarding points of interest and carry on a very friendly conversation, while driving us to various places. Our communication with this particular driver was very strained, as our command of Italian was poor and her command of English was not much better. Hopefully, you will have better luck. Enjoy your cruise!

Yes, we discussed this in another thread on these boards recently. Papillon is quite a bit lower in price if you use a driver and not a guide. Some passengers are booking a driver but expecting a guide, so it's not a good fit, and passengers should know what they want prior to making a booking. We had a driver that was also a guide with Papillon so of course felt like we received more than what we paid for. On the other hand, other passengers hired a driver but expected a guide, so they felt they got less than what they paid for. If I were going to Florence from Livorno, I would want a guide. But since we're going to the villages of Cinque Terre next year, we want just a driver in that area for a lower cost because we don't need a guide to provide historical info, etc. We also used a driver to go from Port Vendres to Carcassonne recently who was not fluent in English and were pleased with his services, so it just depends on what you want and need as well as your budget. There's a big difference between a driver and a guide, and many of the DRIVERS in Europe do not speak fluent English. We've also taken many ground trips in Europe and found that the situation with the DRIVERS not speaking fluent English is fairly universal in all of the European countries.

 

Donna

[MVPinBoynton]

nancy anne,

We also used Marco Miniati. We were very pleased with the tour. The tour you want to do is quite an awesome day. You will experience so much of the beauty of Italy by traveling in Tuscany. We just loved Sienna and San G. You can see pictures of Marco and our experiences on his tour in our review on our website www.thepreismans.com .

[gratefulguy]

No surprise, many of the drivers in the U.S. don't speak fluent English!!

[Queenk2]

We are also looking for a guide for the Livorno port. We have contacted Papillon, but as stated they are just transportation. I have no problem with that, but they are NOT quick to respond. I have contacted Guido S. but he is VERY expensive! HELP! Are they any gems out there?

Karen

[dbh62ark]

Karen, have you looked on Papillon's web site? Because there are options with a driver only and with a guide and driver, so I don't understand your post. My comment was that you can save some $$ using a driver instead of a guide with Papillon if you don’t feel you need a guide, but Papillon definitely offers both options. But if you do a search on the boards, you'll see a number of guides recommended out of Livorno.

 

Donna

[Queenk2]

We just booked with Guido...he did come down a bit in price and he is taking us to Tuscany. We have been to Florence and Tuscany, but quite awhile ago. He was very knowlegeable and I found Papillon to be quite impersonal. I am sure they would do a fine job, but I prefer dealing with a smaller company. Who knows...I hope we made the right choice. He has been recommended on the boards...thanks for your advice!

karen

[dbh62ark]

We just booked with Guido...he did come down a bit in price and he is taking us to Tuscany.

I'm sure it will be a great day. My favorite is San Gimignano, but there are many great options in Tuscany. :)

 

Donna

[CAPinBoynton]

This is from our "General Tips" on cruising on our website:

 

Tour Guides vs. Tour Drivers

 

For those of you who might be booking private tours in Europe for the first time, a little clarification might help avoid any later confusion. A tour driver and a tour guide are not the same. It is to your advantage when booking a private tour to be sure that you understand the difference and know in advance what you are paying for. A tour guide has a license, usually issued by the state / country. He or she has attended school to learn all about the sites you will see. A guide is permitted to go into the historical sites with you and tell you about the history. In some cases, but not all, the guide does not do the driving, so you also pay for a driver. Naturally, the guide’s services will cost more.

 

A tour driver is not licensed, has not attended "guide" school, and is not permitted inside the site to tell you about the history. Naturally, their services will be more economical. Many drivers are just as well versed in the area history as the guides. The difference of course is that they have to tell you the facts before you go inside. It is also important to know if your driver speaks your language, as some do not or are not fluent.

 

Mike and I have used both, and we have had some excellent results using drivers, as well as guides. There is absolutely nothing wrong with using a driver instead of an official guide. Just know what you are paying for in advance so you won’t expect something different.

 

Although we give you contact information in our reviews, we urge you to visit the websites of each guide / driver and read exactly what they do and do not offer before you book. Do your homework.

[nancy anne]

You said that you are using Guido and that he came down in price. He gave me a quote of 780 Euros for 6-8 people for a Tuscany tour (in Oct 2007). This seems pretty high in comparison to others. I am still waiting on a response from Marco Miniati--doesn't seem to respond very fast to requests---------Nancy

[Seabee]

I just returned from a fantastic day in Tuscany courtesy of Tuscanytours (Marco manetti's group). Our driver was Fapriciio (sp?) and I don't know if he was a guide or just a driver. Whatevere he was he was fantastic! Gave us plenty of information...he took us to the Greve area where we saw no tour busses and only one other group of 6 American tourist who also were using a private driver.

 

I'd highly recommend them. yes he is a little slow to respond but his drivere was right on time waiting for us at the pier.

 

Incidentally, on the ship they said everyone not taking a shipboard excursion would need to buy a shuttle ticket to take you into town. I was confused about whether the private drivers would meet us at the pier or at the shuttle point....we did not buy the shuttle ticket and did not need it...Fapriccio and other private drivers were at the pier. I also saw a lot of taxis at the pier.

[CAPinBoynton]

"DID I TELL YOU I'M A GRAND-PA??:D :D :D :D"

 

Congratulations, Grandpa!

 

Marco is a driver, and the perfect example of what I am talking about. We had Marco, himself, as our driver. He was very knowledgeable and told us everything we needed to know as he was driving.

 

We didn't need a professional guide for what we were doing in Tuscany. In some places you do, and in some places you don't. All I'm saying is for everyone to just be aware of what you are paying for by knowing the difference between a driver and a guide. :)

[Queenk2]

I'm sure it will be a great day. My favorite is San Gimignano, but there are many great options in Tuscany. :)

 

Donna

Hi Donna,

We have been to Lucca ,Pisa, San Gimignano,Montecatini and Seina on previous trips. We also love the area. It has been a few years since we drove through Tuscany and I am looking forward to my return, Guido did say that the best leather prices are in San Gimignano...here's hoping! If we had more than one day, we would have gone off on our own.

karen

[dbh62ark]

Hi Donna,

We have been to Lucca ,Pisa, San Gimignano,Montecatini and Seina on previous trips. We also love the area. It has been a few years since we drove through Tuscany and I am looking forward to my return, Guido did say that the best leather prices are in San Gimignano...here's hoping! If we had more than one day, we would have gone off on our own.

karen

Oh, we saw tons of great leather shops in San Gimignano, so I think you'll be very pleased with the prices and selection. If I recall correctly, one of the best ones was at the top of the hill, and you'll pass all the others on the way back down, so I hope that helps with your shopping strategy. :)

 

Donna