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If you’re looking to get out of the city there are countless Tuscan day trips from Florence into the countryside. From rolling hills lined with vineyards, fields of sunflowers, and quant little villages on hilltops and in valleys, you’ll feel like you’re in a postcard come to life.
While there are endless places to discover in Tuscany when you don’t have endless amounts of time, you’ll want to know which destinations are worth leaving the Tuscan capital for. These are my top picks for day trips from Florence, Italy.
One of my favorite Tuscan day trips to take from Florence is to head towards the border of the Tuscan and Umbrian regions to Cortona.
Cortona is a beautiful walled hilltop town with a medieval city center. The city is rich in Etruscan archaeological sites and is the city of sunflowers— which you will see everywhere. Since it’s a city perched on top of a hill, it has incredible views of the surrounding Tuscan countryside.
If you feel like you’ve heard of this tiny city before, it’s most likely because the film Under the Tuscan was filmed there. The movie is based on a true story— and Francesca still lives in her villa just outside of Cortona.
If you have the chance you should catch a show or opera at the Signorelli Theatre, which is a 19th-century theater that is absolutely breathtaking.
From Florence, you can either drive or take a train.
If you take the train you’ll go from Florence to Camucia Cortona. Which is the station at the bottom of the Hill that Cortona is situated on.
From there you’ll take the public bus or grab a taxi up the hill to reach the city center of Cortona. The whole trip takes about 1 and a half hours. Otherwise, you can rent a car and drive yourself there. With a car, you’ll be able to enjoy the views of Tuscany at a slower pace.
There are many tours available that will take you from Florence to Cortona, most include a stop in another town so you can kill two birds with one stone.
Best Tours from Florence to Cortona:
Wine tours are a fan favorite for anyone heading to Tuscany— and Chianti is the holy grail of the wine country in Italy. You might recognize the iconic rooster that is on the Chianti Classico wines that have strict rules to be allowed to bear its symbol. Namely, the grapes need to be grown in the region and the wine needs to be at least 80% Sangiovese grapes.
Taking a day trip to Chianti from Tuscany typically includes a wine tasting, but the region is also rich in quant little Tuscan towns that are great for exploring. They’re all situated between winding roads and olive groves that boast views that are so beautiful you’ll think it can’t possibly be real.
My favorite towns to visit in Chianti are Greve, Gaiole, Radda, and Castellone. If I had to pick only one it would be Radda— it’s very small but the views surrounding the city are incredible. However, if you’re into checking out flea markets, the Saturday Market in Radda shouldn’t be missed.
The best way to do Chianti is by car, so make sure to have a designated driver or book a tour that includes a driver. Many of the little towns are close enough together that you can hit a couple in a day.
Lucca is one of the best-kept secrets in Tuscany often overlooked by Siena or the rolling hills of Chianti. In my opinion, it’s one of the best day trips from Florence to take.
It’s one of the easiest towns to get to from Florence, it’s just over an hour on the train from Florence’s Santa Maria Novella Station.
The city is completely enclosed by its Renaissance-era walls which they’ve transformed from a place to look out and protect the city into a green space that you can walk or bike around.
The center of the city is picturesque with cobblestoned streets and a beautiful oval piazza, Piazza dell Anfiteatro, which was once a Roman amphitheater, which is why it has an oval shape. That’s not the city’s only claim to its Roman history, it also has one of the best examples of a Roman aqueduct in the Tuscan region.
The Best Tours from Florence to Lucca
The easiest way to get from Florence to Lucca is by Train. The fast train will get you there in just under an hour and a half. You can also drive to Lucca, or kill two birds with one stone by going to Pisa first and then train to Lucca from there.
Pisa is one of the must-see cities in Italy because of its iconic leaning tower. While most people just stop in Pisa to snap a picture of the tower and head out, there is more to discover in the city.
However, since it’s close to Lucca (30 minutes by train) I usually do suggest popping into Pisa for an hour or so and then jetting over to Lucca— but I might be biased because Lucca stole my heart the first time I visited.
However, you’ll have no problem keeping busy in Pisa for the day. The city is built along the Arno River (the same river Florence is on) with two roads going down either side that are beautiful to walk along. There are countless churches, museums, and even a Keith Haring Mural for those who are craving some contemporary art after seeing so many Renaissance and Medieval works.
The easiest way to get from Florence to Pisa is by far to take the train. It’s just over an hour on the fast train and just under an hour and a half on the slow train.
There are also numerous coach companies giving rides to Pisa, just be sure that you book one to the city center and not the airport. Other than that you can rent a car and drive to Pisa to enjoy the views and travel on your own schedule.
The Best Tours from Florence to Pisa
As an adopted Florentine, I can’t boast too much about how much I adore Siena, but I will say that I simply can never get enough of this town. It’s the second largest city in Tuscany (after Florence) and was built on 3 hills. This gives it a unique landscape that takes you up and down hills throughout the winding cobblestoned roads— plus you’ll stumble across various lookout points throughout the city with incredible views.
Twice a year, in July and August, the city puts on a horse race called Palio di Siena, which has been going since 1839. The city truly comes to life when the 17 different neighborhoods fight to be the champion. If you have the chance to see it, it’s something you shouldn’t miss. It’s hosted in the city’s iconic Piazza del Campo which is gorgeous with or without the horse races going on.
The city’s other claim to fame is having the mummified head of Santa Caterina, who is the Patreon saint of Italy and Europe. If you tend to get a bit queezy you might want to skip going into the Basilica San Domenico in Siena where the head (and her finger) is located.
You can get to Siena on a direct train from Florence in about 1 hour and 30 minutes. However, the drive is beautiful so if you are willing to rent a car for the day I would highly suggest going that route.
When you arrive in the city be sure to do a walking tour to know what you’re looking at because the city has all sorts of nuances and an incredible history.
Tours from Florence to Siena:
If you want to get off the beaten path on your Tuscan day trip from Florence you should head to Monteriggioni. In Italian Monte means mountain, so you can imagine that this town is high up on a hilltop— but that’s not what makes it so special. It’s known for its medieval walls and fortifications that offer incredible views of the surrounding region (think classic Tuscan hills dotted with olive groves and lines of vineyards on sun-kissed hills). The small city has been extremely well preserved, so if you’re a history buff this is a must-see city.
You’ll find that contemporary mixes with the past in Monteriggioni with their public parks having incredible contemporary art sculptures— plus if you’re a wine lover, like anywhere in the region there’s no shortage of incredible wines
There are buses running from Florence to Monteriggioni every day— but it’s not exactly the most comfortable ride up— it’s much better to rent a car, plus then you can combine it with some of the small towns in Chianti.
Known as the “Manhattan” of Tuscany because of its preserved towers, is San Gimignano. The city has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site and is enclosed by 13-century walls. While most of the Tuscan towns had towers once upon a time, most of them have taken them down to either recycle the materials or because they were falling apart.
In San Gimignano, you can climb Climb the Torre Grossa— which has 218 steps. It’s worth each and every step because the view from the top is breathtaking.
My favorite part of visiting San Gimignano is visiting Galleria Gagliardi, which is a contemporary art gallery that does some pretty impressive installations.
There are three ways to get to San Gimignano: Bus, Tour, and Drive. I’ve done it in all three ways, but it just depends on what you want. If you want to have time to explore on your own, you should drive on your own. If you want to hear about the history, signing up for a tour that includes the transport is ideal— and if you want to go the cheapest route take the bus.
Best Tours from Florence to San Gimignano:
The Val d’Orcia is the countryside that the post-card views of Tuscany that surround the hilltop town of Montepulciano. I was blown away by Montepulciano the first time I visited the little village. The city itself is pretty small— but there are tons of little alleyways that lead out to picturesque views of the countryside.
If you decide to spend the day in Montepulciano make sure you sign up for one of the tons of wine tastings — you don’t need to book in advance because there are so many options. Other than that the best way to enjoy the city is to just walk around popping in and out of the shops, stopping for pastries, and enjoying the views.
The only way to see the Val d’Orcia is to drive through it so the best thing to do is to rent a car for the day. You can start with a picturesque drive through the countryside and then head up the hill to the quaint town of Montepulciano.
Tours to Val D’Orcia and Montepulciano from Florence:
If you need some self-care during your Italian holiday, the Tuscan countryside has you covered. Relaxing in hot springs is an ancient wellness practice that we can still benefit from today. Deep in the hills of Tuscany, there are sulfur-rich hot springs that will leave you feeling refreshed and ready to take on another wine tasting.
Saturnia Hot Springs is without a doubt the most iconic natural spa in the Tuscan area. Located in the town of Saturnia, you’ll find tiered pools of steamy water to soak in. You can easily spend half of the day or longer there. Make sure that you’re going to Terme di Saturnia— there’s also a luxury spa called Saturnia in the area.
The only way to get to Saturnia by public transport is by bus. Using the public bus it’ll take around 5 hours and a minimum of 3 changes. Rather than subject yourself to that stress— book a direct tour from Florence or rent a car and drive yourself to the springs so you can spend as much time as you want there.
Tours from Florence to Saturnia Hot Springs:
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