Florence to San Gimignano and Volterra

What sort of weather can I expect?

Meteorological records for the area, taken over a period of more than 10 years, are represented in the Weather Chart provided
with each itinerary. 

What sort of walking can I expect?

The fitness level of this trip is Grade 3 - 3+.

This is an 8-day trip, with walks offered on 6 days. The length of walks vary from 2.5 hours to a maximum 9 hours.
Hours of walking, which may vary from individual to individual, means hours of actual walking and does not include stops for lunch, sightseeing, rests or siestas. On certain days the paths cross more rugged terrain – please make sure that your foot­wear provides sufficient ankle support.

The hiking is in forested limestone hills. There are some reasonably tough ascents. The paths are farm and forest paths, strade bianche (small gravel roads) and some surfaced roads in and around towns. There are no vertiginous patches.

What if I don’t want to walk?

You don’t have to! You can either get a lift with the Tour Manager to the lunch location or the next hotel, or we can suggest options
to allow you to walk for part of the day. If the itinerary does not involve a hotel change on a given day, you can simply stay in the town and explore, and join (or not join) the group for lunch. The Tour Leader will discuss the next day’s options with the group every
evening.

How do I get to the start of the route?

TRAVEL TO ITALY

The destination airports for this trip are Pisa and Florence airports. There will be set meeting times for transfers to the first hotel; and a set time for the return transfers at the end of the trip. Please check with the Reservations Team before making independent arrangements. You are of course welcome to meet the group at the first hotel. Please indicate your intention during the booking procedure.

If you plan to travel independently:

TRAVEL TO THE FIRST HOTEL

From Pisa Airport: 

Take the high-speed Pisa Mover train which runs every day from 6am to midnight at 5/8-minute intervals and costs €5. Train tickets can be bought at the far right hand end of the arrivals hall as you come out of baggage reclaim into the hall. You should be able to buy a combined People Mover and train ticket to avoid queuing for a train ticket at Pisa Centrale.

Alternatively you can take a taxi from the airport to Pisa Centrale station.

From Pisa Centrale take the train (usually destined for Florence) that stops at Empoli.  At Empoli change onto a train to Siena (journey time 2 hours; price approx. €11). Tickets for the whole journey can be bought at the biglietteria counter/ information desk, which is located at the right hand end of the arrivals hall as you come out of baggage reclaim into the hall or the ticket machine at the start of the platforms. You must validate your ticket before boarding by stamping it in the green and white platform machines. 

Train timetables: www.trenitalia.com 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please remember to validate any train ticket you purchase in Italy before you board the train by stamping it in the green and white or yellow machines at the entrance to the platform; your ticket is not valid for travel unless you do this and you can be fined if you fail to do so.

From Florence Airport:

Just outside the terminal to the left you will find the T2 Vespucci tram with regular services to the Piazza dell'Unità Italiana station, which is adjacent to the Santa Maria Novella train station in the heart of Florence. The T2 service operates from approximately 5am to midnight every day, every 4-5 minutes.
Journey time 20 minutes. Cost €1.50 for a single ticket. Buy your ticket from the automatic ticket machines on the platform (look for the ‘ATAF’ logo) that accept cash, cards (including contactless cards), Apple Pay and Google Pay. There is also a ticket machine inside the airport in the
baggage claim area.

Stamping your ticket: Once on board, don’t forget to validate your ticket in the little yellow box!.

Note: Unless you are travelling light you must buy a ticket (s) for your luggage! 

Small suitcases or bags of not more than 10 kg (22 lbs), 55x40x20 cm (22x16x8 inches) are allowed free of charge. You must buy and validate an extra ticket for each larger bag (max. 80X45X25 cm, 20 Kg or 31x18x10 inches/44 lbs); limit of two pieces per passenger. Outsize bags are not allowed.

From Santa Maria Novella station, trains run direct to Siena (some via Empoli). Journey time 1.5 hours; price approx. €9.

There are also twice-hourly buses Florence-Siena, cost €9, journey time 1 hr 25 mins. Florence bus station “Autostazione Sita” is approx 350m from the main entrance to the train station, across the Piazza della Stazione towards Via della Scala.

Buy your ticket in the bus station ticket office. RAPIDA buses take 1hour 15mins, ORDINARIA buses take 1hr 35mins. For timetables: http://www.tiemmespa.it/ 

Travel by taxi

We can book you a taxi to the first hotel. Taxis carry a maximum of 3-4 passengers, depending on luggage.

A taxi from Florence airport to the first hotel in Siena takes 1.5 hrs and costs from €140 for up to 3 passengers.  A taxi from Pisa airport takes 2 hours and costs from €180. A taxi from Rome airport takes just over two hours and costs from €380. 
Prices may be higher at weekends, Bank Holidays or late at night.

Taxi bookings

Please place your booking with the ATG office at least two weeks before departure. The cost of the taxi will be confirmed to you once the booking is secured. Payment of the taxi fare should be made locally, not to ATG. The driver will have your flight details and will be waiting in Arrivals with a sign showing your name or ATG.

• If you change your flight please notify us  so we can contact the taxi company to reschedule the taxi for you.

• If, on the day of departure, your flight is cancelled or you miss or change it, please immediately contact the ATG emergency number (number is provided in trip documentation) so we can contact the taxi company to reschedule or cancel the taxi for you.

• If your flight is delayed and you have arranged for the taxi to meet you at the destination airport, your taxi driver will wait for you.

• If you are delayed and you have arranged for a taxi to meet you at a non airport location (e.g. train station) it is essential that you contact your Route Manager or call the ATG emergency
line to notify us at the earliest possible moment, so we can contact the taxi company to re-schedule or cancel the taxi for you.

• Please note that failure to advise ATG that you cannot meet the taxi booked for you, may result in the taxi costs being passed back to you.

Important: Taxi prices quoted apply to the local firm used regularly by ATG – and are guaranteed only if you book through the office in advance. If you get a taxi off a taxi rank please ask the driver to confirm the price for the journey before departing.

What should I bring?

Bring whatever clothes and footwear you find most comfortable for everyday wear, and a change or two for the evenings – smart/casual.
Most trips tend to include some quite distinguished hotels and restaurants, for which you may wish to ‘dress up’. For walking we recommend lightweight walking boots with firm ankle support (make sure you wear them in before the trip!), a small daypack for your
lightweight waterproof clothing, camera, fleece etc. An increasing number of people bring telescopic walking poles. For a comprehensive packing list click here:what to bring

What sort of food can I expect?

Tuscan food is simple and uses good local ingredients which complement the excellent robust wines of the region. It is seasonal food usually prepared with homegrown ingredients. Although the Tuscans are called ‘bean eaters’ (mangiafagioli) the main staple of their diet, apart from pasta, is bread which is traditionally unsalted to complement the salted prosciutto, salami and strong sheep’s cheeses.

Whilst it is a traditional cuisine, it is not a poor one, and meat and game feature strongly, preferably cooked on an open fire. The Tuscans are less interested in the presentation of the food than
in the excellence of the ingredients, and even the most elegant restaurants serve rustic terracotta bowls of rich vegetable and bean soups. The Tuscans also have a sweet tooth,
producing a variety of rich spicy cakes full of candied fruit and nuts, and light biscuits.

Breakfast

Most of the hotels we use offer a buffet-style breakfast with a range of both hot and cold choices. 4- and 5-star hotels almost always offer ‘cooked’ breakfast. Occasionally, in more remote areas, or in some 2 or 3-star hotels, breakfast can be a decidedly more ‘contenental’ affair – e.g bread, croissant, juice, coffee. If a breakfast needs ‘topping up’ to meet the needs of those with a
full morning of walking ahead, the Tour Manager will ensure this happens.

ATG Picnic lunches

ATG picnic lunches in Europe are renowned! ‘Happening upon’ an ATG picnic in an idyllic location punctuates each day’s walk. Picnics are colourful, varied and nutritious. Buffet-style, there is a choice of meats, cheeses, salads and fruits. Many salads are ‘exclusive’ to ATG and some of these original recipes are in the ATG ‘Table of Moveable Feasts’.

After being greeted with mineral water, followed by wine and an abundant lunch of local organic produce and specialities, there’s usually time for a siesta! Where there is a particularly spectacular and remote picnic spot we may occasionally carry
packed lunches. Outside Europe the location of lunches may vary, from picnics to meals in restaurants or private houses.

Dinner

Dinner is usually at about 8.00pm. We tend to eat in the best and most interesting restaurants available, which serve traditional local dishes as well as regional classics and excellent regional wines. To ensure that we enjoy the best that the area has to offer, the Tour Manager, with his/her specialist knowledge and experience, will have worked closely with the chef in advance, selecting the most interesting and characteristic menu possible. This not only ensures that we eat far better than people who ‘come in off the street’, but enables us to enjoy a very wide range of local specialities during the trip, and also to cater imaginatively for those with special dietary needs.

At the start of dinner each evening, it is ATG ‘style’ to
tell you about the menus and wines for that evening. If there’s anything different that you would prefer, you have only to ask.

Wine

During the course of the trip you will be walking through the vineyards of Italy’s most famous wine, Chianti. Chianti occupies a large area of hills to the south and east of Florence. Known
originally in England as ‘Florence Red’, the wine gained renown in the 19^th century, when Barone Ricasoli (Italy’s second Prime Minister) developed the grape composition found in today’s wines. Both Chianti Classico and Chianti Colli Senesi come from small, strictly delineated areas, two of the seven regions within Chianti. Alongside the more ‘serious’ Chianti Riserva are
produced other, less expensive ‘quaffing’ Chianti made to be drunk within a year or so of production – an excellent accompaniment to local dishes. You may also like to try a further
selection of local wines including Vernaccia, a white wine of Tuscany for which San Gimignano is famous, and the delicious local dessert wine Vin Santo.

Walking to eat

One of the greatest pleasures of travelling is enjoying a range of different regional cuisines. Part of the ATG experience is discovering the diversity of local ingredients and culinary traditions of the particular methods of cooking, and styles of restaurant. ATG trips include a wide range of different restaurants, with some of the finest and most famous in the world. Each has been carefully selected. Others are more traditional, providing excellent local cuisine, using recipes that have often become established ‘classics’ of regional cooking.

Which is better? It is thrilling to eat at great restaurants
– each course a revelation of sensation, aroma, texture, taste, colour and decorative design, with a superb selection of wines to match. It is also a delight to find a small restaurant specialising
in authentic local cuisine using fresh, organically grown local produce, and accompanied by the best regional wines. At ATG, whose founder/MD ‘travels to eat’ – food matters!

What if I have a dietary restriction or food allergy?

When you book, let us know about any restrictions. This will give the Tour Manager the opportunity to shop and prepare menus
accordingly prior to your trip. At the start of the trip the Tour Manager will meet with you to discuss in more detail your requirements.

What should I bring to wear in the evenings?

There is no need to dress up for dinner – ‘smart casual’ dress is acceptable in all but the smartest restaurants in Italy.

How much should I budget for items not included?

On escorted trips everything is included (per the published itinerary) apart from travel to/from the destination airport, items of a personal nature, snacks and drinks outside of the set meals.

What if I want to extend my trip?

We are delighted to book extensions for you at either end of your trip. We only book hotels with which we have an established relationship and where we can ensure a high level of service and enjoyment. If you would like an extension booking please indicate this during the booking process and we will contact you with pricing information.

Where can I find general FAQs?

For FAQs relating to the Company and general trip questions, click here