Introduction to the tours
Below are set itineraries bringing together highlights of Tuscany and knowledge of the region’s food and wine. All our tours are private and run 7 days per week rain or shine.
Each of the itineraries include:
- Your personal guide fluent in English
- Wine tasting
- Entry fees to historic sites and museums
- Three course lunch and wine
- Pick up and drop off between hotel and destination
- Transport in spacious, air-conditioned vehicle
- Small, intimate groups, maximum 6 people. (Private, larger groups can be arranged.)
- All tours are 225€ per person (Private sedan for two: 500€)
Departure from Florence, Siena and all points in between.
Tour 1: Gourmet Food & Chianti Wine
The first stop for the day is a visit to a local wine maker on his spectacular estate, where we tour the cellars and sample a variety of wine and olive oil. We continue our wine tour deep in the Chianti Classico with a special visit to a historical villa and its surrounding vineyards. Here we’ll taste and discuss the complexities of the wines produced on the estate. A short drive away is San Gimignano, the medieval city of towers. We indulge in a three course lunch with wine served in 500 year old osteria which specializes in traditional Tuscan food. After lunch we tour the city and climb the main tower to admire its breathtaking views of the rolling Chianti hills.
Tour 2: Siena
Spend the morning in this intriguing medieval city visiting the most important historical sites. Take aperitivo Tuscan style in one of the most stunning piazzas in Italy, the impressive Piazza Del Campo where the famous Palio horserace takes place every year. Aperitivo is followed by a three course lunch accompanied by Sienese-Chianti wine. After lunch we head directly for the Chianti Classico. We spend the afternoon “under a Tuscan sun”, surrounded by vineyards, tasting wine and soaking up the atmosphere.
Tour 3: Tuscan Medieval Castles
Take a personal inside tour of an enchanting medieval castle overlooking one of the most unspoiled valleys of Chianti.
From the towers to the cellars experience the layers of a thousand years’ history of rivalry, peace, art-patronage and farming.
Discover how the heritage has passed down through the ages to the families that continue wine and olive oil production on the estate and sample their products in the magnificent buildings and gardens.
The full-day tour includes the visit to the castle, wine and olive oil tasting and a traditional Tuscan lunch in a nearby farmhouse. An afternoon stroll in a medieval walled village with spectacular views over the Chianti countryside will end the tour.
Tour 4: Cooking Class & Wine Tasting
This is a fun packed day with a bit of everything. We start the day with a visit to a local winery. Whilst sampling produce particular to the area, your guide will give a brief history of Chianti wine production. A short drive away we arrive at the private home where we will learn to make fresh pasta. Lunch will be served with all that we have prepared plus other Tuscan specialities and of course wine. We spend the afternoon eating, drinking and chatting. Return home with full bellies, happy hearts and great memories.
Tour 5: Bolgheri & the Maremma: The Super Tuscans
Your day experiencing Super Tuscans in the amazing Bolgheri wine region. You’ll reach Bolgheri via a long, cypress-lined road called the Via Bolgherese. The town is small and charming with an eleventh century castle of the Gherardesca family, where poet Giosue’¨ Carducci lived as a child. After visiting Bolgheri, you will drive among endless vineyards to an exquisite winery where you’ll sample some spectacular wines. You will be introduced to Super Tuscans, wine-making in general and the latest trends in viticulture. A delicious lunch awaits you in the medieval hill hamlet of Castagneto Carducci where you will sample the delicious local cuisine. In the afternoon you will visit another winery or possibly an olive press where you can discover how extra-virgin olive oil is made and taste this liquid gold straight out of the press. If you would rather put your toes in the Mediterranean Sea, you can be accompanied for a walk through the fragrant coastal pine groves down to the beach before heading back to your hotel.
This tour makes an excellent shore excursion from the port of Livorno.
