by Katherine
Since we are both huge wine lovers now, I wanted to take a tour of Tuscany, see the little hill towns, and go to a handful of wineries to try the local wine. Any organized tour seemed super expensive and only took you to one or two wineries. I did some research and found that the best thing to do was hire a Private Driver, someone who could drive you where ever you wanted to go, but didn't have the credentials to give you an actual tour of anything (in Italy, you need an official license to give customers an actual tour on top of the license you need to drive them around, both cost $$$).
After all of my research, I had my heart set on Alessandro Cammilli, a private driver with stellar reviews and what seemed to be cheaper rates! Luckily he still had one day available while we were in Florence/Tuscany, so I eagerly booked him up. His rates really depend on how many people there are in your group. We paid €300 total, which was cheaper than most, if not all, organized tours, and we ended up going to a bunch of wineries (where we most certainly needed a driver by the end of the day - could not have driven ourselves!) and stopped at 5 or 6 hill towns. Really, you can't find a better deal out there!
After all of my research, I had my heart set on Alessandro Cammilli, a private driver with stellar reviews and what seemed to be cheaper rates! Luckily he still had one day available while we were in Florence/Tuscany, so I eagerly booked him up. His rates really depend on how many people there are in your group. We paid €300 total, which was cheaper than most, if not all, organized tours, and we ended up going to a bunch of wineries (where we most certainly needed a driver by the end of the day - could not have driven ourselves!) and stopped at 5 or 6 hill towns. Really, you can't find a better deal out there!
Montefioralle
After our first couple of wineries, we stopped in the very small village of Montefioralle, very close to our next stop of Greve In Chianti. We wondered literally the whole village in probably 10 minutes. Our driver just dropped us off and waited, like he did with all of the other towns. Even though he's just a driver, he's full of knowledge - you don't even need an official tour guide when you have Alessandro! He told us to keep an eye out for the home of Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian explorer from the 1400s-1500s.
After our first couple of wineries, we stopped in the very small village of Montefioralle, very close to our next stop of Greve In Chianti. We wondered literally the whole village in probably 10 minutes. Our driver just dropped us off and waited, like he did with all of the other towns. Even though he's just a driver, he's full of knowledge - you don't even need an official tour guide when you have Alessandro! He told us to keep an eye out for the home of Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian explorer from the 1400s-1500s.
Greve In Chianti
Next we stopped in the town of Greve In Chianti, perhaps the most well known of the hill towns of the Chianti region. Here, there is basically a large piazza in the center of town. Shops and restaurants line the square. We walked around and stopped in a few shops in probably 20 minutes. My biggest draw of Greve was a wine shop, Le Cantine di Greve in Chianti, where you get a prepaid card and then use it to try over 140 wines, most of which are local. We ended up not going here, because we went to a mini version down the street where we tried some food too, but more on that in another post.
Next we stopped in the town of Greve In Chianti, perhaps the most well known of the hill towns of the Chianti region. Here, there is basically a large piazza in the center of town. Shops and restaurants line the square. We walked around and stopped in a few shops in probably 20 minutes. My biggest draw of Greve was a wine shop, Le Cantine di Greve in Chianti, where you get a prepaid card and then use it to try over 140 wines, most of which are local. We ended up not going here, because we went to a mini version down the street where we tried some food too, but more on that in another post.
Panzano In Chianti
In the next town, Panzano In Chianti, we ate lunch at Mac Dario and looked at the amazing views.
In the next town, Panzano In Chianti, we ate lunch at Mac Dario and looked at the amazing views.
Radda In Chianti
Radda is one of the typical hill towns of Tuscany. We wandered through the town in less than 10 minutes.
Radda is one of the typical hill towns of Tuscany. We wandered through the town in less than 10 minutes.
Castellina In Chianti
The next town, Castellina In Chianti, was definitely my favorite of the hill towns. It's most notable feature is an underground passage that was used in the town's defense back in medieval times. Now it is lined with shops and art galleries. Wandering the passage just felt really cool, and the town in general was the most picturesque of any of the hill towns.
The next town, Castellina In Chianti, was definitely my favorite of the hill towns. It's most notable feature is an underground passage that was used in the town's defense back in medieval times. Now it is lined with shops and art galleries. Wandering the passage just felt really cool, and the town in general was the most picturesque of any of the hill towns.
Our driver even drove us to a castle I had wanted to visit, Castello di Staggia Senese, a ruinous castle (one of my favorite things!), but by the time we got there it was closed. The guy at the castle let us step inside for a quick picture op and then we headed out. After a wonderful day in Chianti, I didn't have any regrets about not getting to the castle sooner. Really do take Alessandro's advice on where to go! It was an amazing day!
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