Livorono Shore Excursions?

[kkettle70]

Hi Everyone,

 

My husband and I will be going on the Carnival Freedom this summer from June 30th - July 12th. We made our final payment last week!!! Carnival offers a shore excursion to both San Gimignano and Siena while in Livorono. However, we are wondering if we also have time to visit a winery. I don't believe that Carnival offers a tour that does all three. Does anyone know how we could incorporate all three stops into our day in Livorono?

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

[Hlitner]

This is ambitious but it can be done. There would be two ways. You could arrange for a private car/guide on-line and specify where you want to go, and I am sure they could arrange for you to visit one of the many small wineries along the S222 road that runs through the heart of Chianti. The other possiblity is to rent a car and do it on your own (we drive this area quite often) but I do not think this a great idea for someone not familiar with the region or driving in Italy. The problem is that Siena is a pretty long drive from Livorno (it has taken us as long as 1 1/2 hours because of traffic near Florence) and you will need sufficient time to see Siena and San G...both of which require significant walking. You cannot park in the heart of either of these towns (Siena is a pretty large city and San G a much smaller village) so its necessary to do a lot of walking (particularly in Siena) to see these places. Also keep in mind that walking in Siena does involve some steep grades as you go towards the main square (Piazzon del Campo). Would I try to do this all in a day? Probably not. But, we did once rent a car in Livorno and drive to Siena in the morning, San G in the afternoon, and actually had a little time to make a quick stop in Pisa on the way back to Livorno. It was a crazy day, and we did know these places, but it was fun. With a decent car and driver it might be an interesting day...you would not have any time to be bored.

 

Hank