Livorno: Tour of the Chianti Region

[Snackdaddy]

Greetings,

We have cruised to Livorno and have experienced the “must see” attractions in Florence and Pisa. We plan to visit Livorno next summer and are looking for a change of pace. We are considering Benvenuto’s tour of the Chianti Region. Has anyone toured the Chianti region with Benvenuto? If not with Benvenuto, have you toured the Chianti region? Any experiences you have had of the region will be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks,

Snackdaddy

[maui mimi]

Recently returned from our 12 day cruise around Italy. In Livorno, we used a private company called Prestige Rent. Our driver was Massimo. We toured Tuscany and the Chianti region in particular. We went to a few of the out of the way villages. Very personable man and seemed to genuinely care about our experience with him. The highlight of the day was when he took us to a town just outside Greve for lunch. Couldn't have picked a better spot. Lovely scenery, great food and exceptional service. Their website is www.prestigerent.com. Tell Saverio that the Murdocks recommended them. Have fun...we did!:D

[Hlitner]

We have spent many happy weeks just driving around Tuscany (including the Chianti region) and its a beautiful place with lots of vineyards, rolling hills, and small villages. The famous back road is the S222 which runs from Florence down to Siena. With a decent guide (we tend to do our own driving) you should get a good sampling of the region. Make sure you visit San Gimignano and perhaps Volterra and there are many other interesting towns in the area that can easily fill a day (or a week). If you are interested in the wines of the region (mostly red wines made from the Sangiovese grape) ask your guide to take you to one or two wineries for some tasting.

 

Hank

[Sheik]

Visit Cinque Terre, highly recommended!!!

[usavvy2]

In summary - yes we used Guido from Benvenuto in 2005. It was great - one of the highlights of our cruise.

 

Details follow for those so inclined to read on........

We arrived in Livorno at 7 a.m. and met the other two couples for our private tour with Benvenuto dockside at 7:30 a.m. Rather than return to Florence – a fabulous place which I absolutely adored last year - I booked a private tour so we could see the Leaning Tower of Pisa and some of Tuscany. Two other couples joined us for a day in the Italian countryside! We left Livorno about 7:30 in the morning and arrived in Pisa by 8am. It was wonderful to be in Pisa before the crowds! It seemed like there were only the 7 of us and a few locals around the tower. We couldn’t believe what our eyes saw - 180 feet in height, the tower leans precariously more than 14 feet out of line.

 

We spent about half an hour in Pisa and were fortunate to look at the tower with the moon still in the morning sky behind the tower. Then we were off to the hill towns of Italy! Our next stop was San Gimignano, the medieval city of beautiful towers. Tucked away in the Tuscan hills, a short, scenic drive from Pisa, we found it well worth the trip to the stony village of San Gimignano – the very picture of a medieval Italian village.

 

After spending a wonderful morning in San Gimignano, we traveled through the Tuscan hillsides to the beautiful Chianti region - a large, well-known wine-producing area in Tuscany to Casa Emma. The region is characterized by rolling hills, rich farmland, heavily wooded slopes, isolated villas, and numerous vineyards! As we drove the winding (and slow) roads in Chianti, we noticed the many cars parked along the sides. Our driver told us the occupants were probably mushroom hunting (for truffles). Casa Emma is a small winery making Chianti Classico.

 

The vineyard’s owner was most gracious in telling us about the winery and hosting a wine tasting for the six of us. We started with the Classico then sampled Riserva wines then finally tasted a new blend. We cleansed our palates between tastings with Italian bread and Gold medal winning extra virgin olive oil which the vineyard also produces. We purchased a bottle of wine and a bottle of olive oil and were off to our next destination – Siena.

 

We entered Siena from Porta Romana - the northeastern boundary of the city walls – which has the largest and most impressive gates in town. It was built around 1330 on three ridges. We meandered through the streets until we came upon a local deli which was recommended by our driver. Siena, built on a series of hills, is quite hilly and its medieval streets are very uneven so good walking shoes are a must! We walked past the Piazza del Duomo (Catedrale di Santa Maria) and its campanile (bell tower) made of striped marble. The buildings are most interesting and beautiful!

 

On the drive back to the ship from Siena, we passed through the tiny village of San Casciano dei Bagni with a little over 2,000 inhabitants, including those living on farms in the outskirts. Our driver, Guido (Benvenuto Tours) was from this charming village. We arrived back in port about 5:30 p.m. and the ship set sail at 7 p.m. for Civitavecchia.

 

We could not have asked for a better day in Tuscany. No crowds in Pisa, gorgeous scenery driving to the hill towns, great wine, fun companionship, and historic villages! And, no driving! One of the highlights of our cruise!

 

email me if you'd like to see my pix posted on Kodakgallery.com. My email is ON THE RIM AT HOT MAIL DOT COM (all one word).

[dbh62ark]

We used Papillon (http://papillonservice.com/Sangimignano-volterra-siena.htm) to go to Monteriggioni, Siena, and San Gimignano a couple of years ago. We used them again this month to go to the Cinque Terre. There are so many options out of Livorno, but these are good “problems” to have. Lucca is also easy to do by train from Livorno. Monteriggioni was great and is a land that time forgot; some of my best photos came from that village (sold some to a national publication). In Siena, we saw the main square, ate at a wonderful restaurant recommended by our guide, went to the civic museum and the cathedral (the cathedral is a must-see). We also walked around Siena and the lovely streets in San Gimignano (my favorite). Our guide drove us on the scenic roads in the Chianti region too, so it was a wonderful day.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[Snackdaddy]

Dear All,

 

Thank you very much for your reviews, highlights, comments and suggestions. They will no doubt prove helpful in our planning.

 

Thanks again and be well.