San Gimignano
ATTRACTION Keywords:
Cultural Experience,
Good Views / Viewpoint,
Walking/Hiking,
Town / City
San Gimignano Reviews
We've found 37 San Gimignano reviews from Viator.com travelers and members: what they loved, what they liked and what they think could be improved. It's all here to help you make the most of your next trip.
Review by Louise A, USA, August 2011
Doing what: Tuscany in One Day Sightseeing Tour
It was a great experience to get outside of Florence and see other towns in Tuscany. I especially liked Siena and San Gimignano. There was a good lunch stop and some free time in each town as well as history with a tour guide. Our guide, Barbara, multi-lingual, knowledgeable and patient w/all of us. A good trip!
Review by Janeen T, April 2011
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
This was the very best. The bus ride gave you a good glimpse of the countryside as the guide told you about the region's history (in 5 different languages I might add). She packed it all in then so the return ride could be peaceful and quiet, much appreciated after a great day out in Siena and San Gimignano. Don't miss these 2 towns and don't go without Viator. They made all aspects of the tour easy, from meeting the group in Florence to guiding us through the towns and identifying easy meeting points for when it was time to reconvene.
Review by Christopher B, April 2011
Doing what: Tuscany in One Day Sightseeing Tour
My wife and I took this tour on our visit to Italy for our 10 year anniversary. This was one of the highlights of our overall trip. Seeing the beautiful towns of Sienna, San Gimignano, and Pisa were captivating, and our lunch at the Tuscan farm was incredible! For everything we saw, did, and tasted, there was no way we could have found a better deal, or managed to do all of these things on our own, in one day! I know, because I had planned the intinerary for the rest of our trip, and tried organizing our own trip through Tuscanny. The logistics of trying to travel through the countryside in a foreign country, try to find all of these places, as well as parking, (because many Tuscan towns don't allow cars), and learn all of the history would have been daunting. This tour takes the stress out of it all. They have good connections with the locals to help you really get the feel of the area. They also have insights as to the best places to go, and views to see, that really capture the heart of Tuscanny. From all the research I did before our trip, this tour was even more affordable than it would have cost my wife and I, if we would have done everything on our own. Just the entry tickets to the buildings we visited, and the lunch, where we got to have so many wines, justified the price of everything we did. Our tour guide Becky, spoke excellent English, as she was actually from England, but because she married an Italian and lives in Florence now, she was a wealth of local information. Definitely a must do tour for anyone who wants to experience the flavor of Tuscanny!
Review by Jennifer D, USA, June 2010
Doing what: Tuscany in One Day Sightseeing Tour
We really LOVED Best of Tuscany Tour and it definitely ranks as one a highlights during our Italy trip! Our guide was Tannis, and she was very sweet and very knowledgeable about Tuscany! I thought it was great that she filled us in on some history of Florence as well, a major plus! We loved seeing Siena and learning about the Palio and all the different districts with a local guide. San Gimignano was beautiful and we enjoyed some gelato from the 1 Gelaterria in the world, delicious. Pisa was great as well but our favorite stop was definitely the winery - wow what a picturesque place with rolling hills and the town of San Gimignano as the back drop. The food was AMAZING and the wine was so smooth and plentiful - we even bought two bottles to bring back with us! This tour was run very efficiently and we would not change anything about it AND you really get your moneys worth. If we tried to organize this in our own with car rental, etc, there is no way we would be able to see and enjoy everything, plus the big lunch and all the wine they serve. We are so grateful for this amazing tour!. A few side notes 1 - Get to the bus meeting place earlier than 815am if you want a decent seat, we got stuck in the last row. 2 - If you wish to order some of the wine once you get back to the US you can do so through www.parkaveliquor.com. 3 This tour company now offers a Cinque Terre Day Trip which we did and was GREAT! 4 - BOOK THIS TUSCANY TRIP, you will not regret it!!!
Review by Lee B, USA, May 2010
Doing what: Tuscany in One Day Sightseeing Tour
Possibly the best tour we've ever done. The price was amazing for a 11 hour tour with lunchwine tasting included. The guide was from England and had lived in Tuscany several years. She was very energetic and informative. It gave you the flavor of Tuscany in one day. Siena and San Gimignano were beautiful old walled towns. You could see San Gimignano from the Winery Farm where we had wine and lunch. Piza is a must see and the drive had wonderful scenery. There was time to shop in each location after the guided portion. If you only have a day to see the area around Florence this is a must!
Review by Marion C, Canada, June 2008
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
There were 3 of us in the group and we loved everything about this trip. Siena and San Gimignano are totally worth seeing as they are quite different from both Florence and Venice other cities/towns on our venue. Our tour guide in Siena was amazing.
Review by Anonymous, November 2007
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
The tour guides are very informative and passionate about the towns. Siena is beautiful, and so is San Gimignano. These two places should not be missed by people travelling to Florence.
Review by Cathy M, March 2013
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
We took this tour in March, with CAF Tours in Florence. The logistics were fairly good, with meeting place easier to find than I expected. The bus was comfortable for the ride. The tour was in English, though the guide on the bus had limited fluency and a very heavy accent; I had to concentrate very hard to understand her. The guide in Sienna was much better, more fluent and very knowledgeable (a Sienna native). I enjoyed the tour of Sienna very much. It covered the highlights (cathedral or Duomo and the Campo), then we had a little free time to walk around and eat lunch. It was market day the day we were there and I would have liked a few minutes to see the market but we did not have time. San Gimignano is very impressive, wonderful architecture and great views (with lots of shops). We did not have a guide in San Gimignano but the CAF guide told us a little about the town on the bus as we were driving there. We took this tour because we were staying in Florence and wanted to see more of Tuscany without driving, and it served that purpose.
Review by misslou_97, September 2012
Doing what: Tuscany in One Day Sightseeing Tour
We really enjoyed our day with Sandra our guide. She was interesting and fun. The only thing we would change would be to tour with a less larger group of people. My husband is very tall and he was not too comfortable in the seat because his knees were stock to the seat in front. We loved to see Sienna with the local guide. Then the visit of the farm and lunch were really good but we would have like to go in the vineyard and see the vines and olive trees from upclose. We did not have time. We did not even have time to go in the shop to buy products. We had time to eat and that was about it. So you have to eat fast if you want to have some time to you. The lunch was really good and everything we expected. They even had bottles of wine on the table for the tasting during all the meal. Then we went to San Gimignano. Wow! We really enjoyed this medieval town. We then arrived in Pisa and we took pictures of the tour and church and walked around for an hour. That was quick but enough to visit the Field of Miracles. Thank you to Fabio, our driver who drove us safely to our destinations. Thank you Walkabout Florence who was the tour operator in Florence.
Review by pdxaurelian, USA, June 2012
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
Challenging, but totally worth it. Oh my! They are not kidding about the "slightly strenuous" part -- LOTS of walking and LOTS of inclines! I have some knee problems, so it was a stretch for me and would have been impossible without my walking stick -- please shed all ego and make sure you have everything you need to be able to get around comfortably. But it was totally worth it -- Siena is a magnificent counterpoint to Florence. Our guide was fantastic: a native Senese with great sophistication and encyclopedic knowledge. Having a guide adds so much richness to the travel experience. And the lunch! Delightful Tuscan food, and a great chance to talk with other travelers -- highly recommended. That said, I have to say that poor San Gimignano's charms were lost on me, since the town is entirely vertical, and I was BEAT. Also, I missed having a guide, and felt lost on my own (especially since I was afraid to go off the beaten path in case it added more verticality to my journey!) For the fully able-bodied, I'm sure it would be fine, but if you are compromised at all in your abilities, plan on finding a lovely cafe near the bottom of the hill and having some gelato!
Review by Anonymous, May 2010
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
I have always wanted to visit Siena so this was a convenient way of making a trip there from Florence given the short amount of time I had to explore some of the Tuscan sights. The tour of Siena was very good and the guide was knowledgeable if difficult to hear at times. You really needed to stand right in front of her to hear well. San Gimignano was also a beautiful town where I would have preferred to have a little more guidance regarding significant sites or perhaps a little more time to explore them myself. Overall I had a great day. The sun was shining, the scenery was glorious and the towns themselves were enchanting. Well worth it if you don't wish to make the journey independently.
Review by Anonymous, May 2010
Doing what: Tuscany in One Day Sightseeing Tour
Our guide Tannis did a great job. She was pleasant and informative without being intrusive. Despite the rainy weather, we enjoyed the day. However, it is alot to fit into one day. Although I enjoyed our time in Pisa, I think I would have enjoyed spending more time in San Gimignano and Sienna rather than fitting it all into one day. Pisa is an easy and affordable train bus ride from Florence and easy to do without a guide. More time in the hill towns would have made this worthwhile trip even better.
Review by Beverly S, June 2009
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
A really nice change from the large cities of Rome and Florence. San Gimignano was so charming, allowing a look back to the past. I would highly recommend both towns as a welcome break from the busy cities.
Review by Daniel K, USA, July 2007
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
Overall, it was a really great experience. I was in Florence for three nights, and I wanted a day to be able to get out and get a taste of Tuscany. The trip left me and my wife wanting to come back and experience much more of the Tuscan scenery and towns. The only drawback to the tour was that when we got to San Gimignano, we were only allowed just a hair over an hour of free time to roam the town. Even though it was a small town, we wished we had a bit more time to see the scenery, take in the town, and browse the shops. Even if the tour were extended just a half hour in San Gimignano, it would be worth it to not feel as rushed through that beautiful city.
Review by Anonymous, July 2007
Doing what: Siena and San Gimignano Day Trip from Florence
This is a great day trip from Florence. After visiting Siena, we felt it was more a city to be visited for the day, rather than staying over night. There was not too much to do, so the tour guide was able to hit all the major highlights in just a few hours. In addition, the tour guide gave us so much information about the people and traditions of the city that we would never have learned had we visited the city ourselves. The lunch they recommended and made a reservation for was excellent and very authentic, I would highly recommended it. After Siena, the bus visited San Gimignano. This is a fantastic little town, and a great place to buy local Italian goods cheaply. This was one of our favorite towns in Italy and we would have preferred to have a little bit more time alloted there.
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