Help Needed Help please in determining two weeks in Tuscany/central Italy

[wvdthree]

Hello all,
I feel as though I am getting to the planning/booking of our two week trip in August a bit late in the game so I am hoping to get some great ideas regarding our upcoming trip to Italy. I am fifty eight and I will be traveling with my fifteen year old son who has been with me twice to France and once to Montreal and greatly enjoyed the experience. We have always booked homes/villas for a week at a time in fairly rural areas and made day trips with a rental car to the surrounding area. One important thing I should note as background is that although I have rented cars in France/Italy a half a dozen times,I discovered on a solo trip to the Aveyron region in France last year that I was more anxious on steep,narrow virtually single lane roads that you often find in more remote parts of Italy/France. So, I am trying to locate regions and air bandb’s where I can get around on more driver friendly roads.

I have booked our flight in and out of Florence knowing that we want to spend one of the two weeks in Tuscany. Our time frame is August 10-26th. This is the first time in a long time that we will be traveling in peak season. We have always gone mid-end of September and enjoyed the temp and relative lack of crowds but my son’s school schedule no longer allows us to take him out for two weeks at a time. We are not big museum goers but love exploring towns and local/traditional foods and markets. We are thinking about one week in Tuscany,hopefully no further than three hours from Florence,closer would be great. Maybe base ourselves in a town that is central to a number of others towns no more than an hour or so away for day trips. We are open to staying within a small town if we could find lodging with parking available.Otherwise located just outside of such a town. We enjoy dining out and will do so most evenings. I would like to be able to have a glass of wine or two and not have a harrowing drive to get back to our lodging ;<). So,dining options nearby car or walking distance would be preferable.

I am unsure where to go for week two. Ideally what we are looking for is a location that would offer us some contrast to a stay in Tuscany in both landscape and cuisine. On that Saturday when we depart I would prefer to have to drive no more than three hours and have that location be no more than 3-4 hours from Florence. I think we would like the possiblity of this location being within daytripping distance from the sea for a coastal experience. Maybe this could be done in the previous week in Tuscany? My son loves fast/expensive cars and has expressed a desire to visit the Lamborghini museum a bit north of Bologna. I believe this is the Emilia Romano region. It is located in what has been called Motor Valley as it also has the Ferrari factory and I believe one other I’m not sure of. Unfortunately the Lamborghini factory tour is on vacation during the time we are there so I’m not sure being close to that area would be a priority. One question I do have in particular is about agritourismo’s. I know that they offer meals,I am wondering if you are required to eat there or if on a few days if you could eat elsewhere. However,in that I would think agritourismos are more rural,perhaps that would not be the best choice for us.

Sorry for the lengthy post but I feel like the better I describe our needs/limitations/desires the better chance I have for getting effective responses. We are looking for base town locations as well as recommendations for lodging/restaurants. Thanks so much for taking the time to read my post and thanks in advance for any potential responses. I will of course be searching the site for trip reports/rental reviews and restaurant reviews.

Regards,
Vance

 

[Giulia da Urbino]

Usually agriturismi offer dinners but you are not supposed to eat there every night. Not every agriturismo is in the middle of nowhere and part of Emilia Romagna is quite flat so finding one with easy access should not be difficult.
Quite a few years ago I enjoyed my stay at Agriturismo il Palazzo in Brisighella (very near the centre of the village and Brisighella is very nice)... Too much time have passed to seriously recommend it, just somewhere to start...

 

[Ian Sutton]

Hi Vance
Logistically Emilia-Romagna works very well as an add-on to Florence and you could take the train from Florence to Bologna if you wished. Modena has a Ferrari museum, Imola has a famous motor racing circuit, plus I believe Ducati bikes are based nearby. Speaking to an agriturismo owner he said there is very much a fascination with speed nearby. The food locally is excellent, with Bologna one of the top food grazing cities (some would say it's the best). So as a base idea it really seems a good match.

If worried about the driving, then I'd say choose a cleverly located agriturismo out of town, but on a bus route, or perhaps choose a smaller city such as Modena.

August can be a difficult month for closures, and Bologna especially so. Perhaps the political leaning of the city makes them stick to the traditional 'ferragosto' worker's holiday. You'll also run the risk of it being stinking hot, though Bologna itself has usefully porticoed streets which are a good protection against a blazing sun.

Regards
Ian

 

[caliroan]

I think the walled city of Lucca is lovely. In Tuscany, but a stone's throw from Liguria. There is hourly train service to Florence that takes about 1:15 and costs less than 15 euros. You're not far from Pisa, the beaches at Viareggio/Forte dei Marmi, and all kinds of interesting places in Liguria, including the Cinque Terre by boat. Lucca itself has many treasures and is a joy to explore on foot.

Outside of Lucca, there's many hill towns including my favorita, Barga, that are not particularly challenging to reach by car. This part of Tuscany is different than the region southeast of Florence with those classic towns of Cortona, Montalcino etc. It's all good!

 

[DDTraveler]

We stayed in this airbnb in Panzano in 2016: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/2278199

Close to many small Tuscan towns and to Florence. The apartment is spacious and comfortable and the owner is very nice.

Enjoy your trip!

Dede

 

[Mark]

We stayed in Florence for 4 nights than drove to Montepulciano for 5 nights, it was a great home base to travel to the towns of Montepulciano, Siena, Cortona, Monticchiello, Pienza, Sant'Antimo.
We stayed at Villa Mazzi it is an agriturismo, but meals were not included. it's a short drive to the town. There are stunning views of the town from the patio and living room. If you end up going this route I can recommend some restaurants in Montepulciao and Montalcino

 

[italian excursion]

La Garfagnana area, about an hour north of Lucca is lovely and will offer some relief from the heat in August, as it's very woodsy. Also, Il Casentino which is "eastern" Tuscany, bordering Le Marche and Umbria. Again, more woodsy but valleys where it's flatter and where towns are located. I wrote a trip report about this area which I visited last year, which will give you more information. It's quite different from the rest of Tuscany but within your 3 hour range. Have a great time!

Ciao,
Cheryl
www.italianexcursion.com