Mercantia – Certaldo, Tuscany.

Le Terme – The Hot Springs of Tuscany

Villa Mangiacane – the Perfect Tuscan Romantic Getaway

Fiat 500 Touring Club – Chianti Wine Tour

Flip Florence took an outing with the 500 Touring club earlier in the Summer, taking all 6 of their classic cinquecento cars into the countryside of Tuscany. There was local Chianti wine with lunch by the poolside of a beautiful villa in the Tuscan countryside and time to chill out before setting off back to Florence. This has to be the best Florence Tour if you are looking for a day trip out of the city.

Fiat 500 Touring Club Blog

They have a selection of tours of Florence, from just a couple of hours to experience the vintage Fiat 500 in its natural habitat to a full day with wine tasting (local Chianti of course!) food and a stop off for photos in Piazzale Michelangelo. Check out their blog for more information on which tours of Florence or Tuscany you can choose from;

Fiat 500 Tours

Castello di Querceto

In the depths of the Chianti region of Tuscany is an agriturismo set in tranquil gardens where the only noise that might disturb you is the calling of the resident peacocks. We stumbled across this beautiful castle on our trip to film at Greve in Chianti and I’m glad we did. As it was a quiet Sunday, there was nobody around but we’ve made a note to go back and test out their wines, two of which were recommended by Decanter magazine!

Castello di Querceto Website

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Greve in Chianti

This video was taken at the beginning of August at Greve in Chianti (known simply as Greve before 1972) in the heart of Tuscany. As the principle town of the Chianti region it is a mecca for wine lovers and visitors on wine tours. It’s a great day trip from Florence, plus you get to see the lovely Tuscan countryside in between! Easily the best (and most stress free) way to see the beautiful countryside of Chianti is with an organised tour;

The town was very quiet, as many smaller Italian towns are on Sunday, so don’t let that fool you! On weekdays, there is a market in the town that has been running almost continuously for hundreds of years. The centre has a triangular piazza with lovely walkways along the two longest sides which house artisans shops, restaurants and bars. There is a monument to Giovanni da Verrazzano (who discovered New York harbour) in the Piazza.

If you’d rather stay in Greve in Chianti, Venere have 5 properties in and around the town.

Our favourite is Villa Le Barone, with an average guest rating of 9.1 (including a perfect 10 for the surroundings!) it has to be on the prospective list for anyone planning a tour of Greve in Chianti or Tuscany.

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Impruneta and the Surrounding Tuscan Countryside

Impruneta is a small town south of Florence. It can be a short day trip (it is quite small) or combined with somewhere else in Chianti. It is close to Greve in Chianti so the two can be combined for a day out so that’s what we did! On sundays Impruneta reminds you of an Italy from years ago; everywhere is closed! Especially in August.

Although popular cities like Florence have embraced the tourist season and now are pretty much open all summer, smaller places will close up and it’s not unusual to arrive in a town in the middle of August and all the restaurants and shops are closed. So, if you are planning a holiday to Tuscany or Chianti in August bear this in mind.

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