Tuscany is bigger than most people expect. The region takes in the art of Florence, medieval towns such as Siena and Lucca, the vineyards of Chianti, the cypress trees of the Val d’Orcia and a long coastline with sandy beaches. At least eight places in Tuscany are on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
That’s why it matters so much where you stay. The hill towns have no railway station, the historic centres are closed to cars, and the drive from the coast to the Val d’Orcia takes several hours. If you want to see museums, you’ll need a different base than if you want to lie by a pool among the vines. Here are my recommendations for seven good areas in Tuscany, with hotels in several price ranges.
Contents
The Best Areas in Tuscany
- Florence - best city for first-time visitors
- Siena - best base for southern Tuscany
- Lucca - best town for families and cyclists
- Chianti - best area for wine lovers
- Val d’Orcia - best area for landscapes and peace and quiet
- San Gimignano - best hill town for couples
- Versilia - best choice for a beach holiday
Below, I’ll take you through the areas one at a time, with the pros, the cons and three places to stay, each in its own price range. The prices are the ones I found for two people on a weekend in June, and they’re higher in July and August.
1. Florence - best city for first-time visitors 🎨
- 📍 Location: The regional capital, in the middle of northern Tuscany. Everything important is in the historic centre.
- 🚆 Transport: Direct trains run to Pisa, Lucca, Siena and Arezzo from Santa Maria Novella, the main station. In the city, you walk.
- ✈️ Time from the airport: Florence Airport is around 5 kilometres from the centre, and the T2 tram gets you there in around 20 minutes. From Pisa Airport, the train via Pisa Centrale takes just over an hour.
- 💰 Price range: €€ to €€€. Good hotels in the centre were around €135 to €310 per night, and the five-star hotels started at around €535.
- 👮 Safety: Safe. Watch out for pickpockets at the sights and at the station.
Florence is the obvious choice the first time you visit Tuscany. The historic centre has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1982, and the cathedral with Brunelleschi’s dome, the Uffizi with Botticelli’s paintings and the Ponte Vecchio are all within walking distance of each other. You could easily fill several days with the sights alone, and I’ve gathered the best of them in my guide to the best things to do in Florence.
The city is also the region’s transport hub. The train to Pisa takes between 50 minutes and 1 hour 20 minutes, the train to Lucca around 1 hour 20 minutes, and the express bus to Siena takes 1 hour 15 minutes. That means you can see a large part of Tuscany on day trips without hiring a car.
The downside is the car. The centre is a limited traffic zone, the ZTL, which is active from 7.30am to 8pm Monday to Friday and until 4pm on Saturdays, and cameras read every number plate. If you’re staying at a hotel inside the zone, you’ll have to give your number plate to reception when you arrive, and parking cost €26 to €45 per night at the hotels I looked at. On top of that comes a tourist tax of €3.50 to €8 per person per night.
Florence isn’t the place for a pool holiday either. None of the central hotels I found has an outdoor pool, and the city is very hot in summer. My advice is two or three nights here and the rest of your holiday in the countryside. If you’re unsure about the neighbourhood, read my guide to where to stay in Florence.
Places to Stay in Florence
Golden Tower Hotel & Spa - best luxury hotel in the centre
Golden Tower Hotel & Spa is a five-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.4, on Piazza Strozzi around 400 metres from the cathedral. The hotel has a spa with a sauna, a hot tub and a Turkish bath, and the breakfast buffet is included in the price. You can drive right up to the door, and the hotel parks your car for €45 per night. The price was around €550 per night. Some guests find that the rooms can get a little too warm, and the spa costs extra.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “Everything! The history of the hotel, the decor, the cleanliness, the staff, the breakfast, the service and the spa.”
See photos and book Golden Tower Hotel & Spa here.
Hotel Pendini - best mid-range hotel on Piazza della Repubblica
Hotel Pendini is a three-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.2 from more than 1,600 reviews, on Piazza della Repubblica a few minutes’ walk from the cathedral. The breakfast buffet is included, there’s a lift and air conditioning, and pets are welcome. The price was around €305 per night. The breakfast room is small, so you may have to wait for a table, and parking costs €26 a day.
One guest says on Booking.com: “A lovely, quiet and friendly hotel in a perfect location.”
See photos and book Hotel Pendini here.
Hotel Dali - best budget hotel close to the cathedral
Hotel Dali is a one-star hotel with a guest rating of 8.8 from more than 2,300 reviews, on Via dell’Oriuolo a five-minute walk from the cathedral. The rooms have air conditioning, there’s a lift, and according to Booking.com, parking is included in the price, which is rare in the centre. The price was just under €135 per night. The hotel doesn’t serve breakfast, and several guests mention that the walls are thin.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “The hotel has a fantastic location, a five-minute walk from the cathedral and the centre.”
See photos and book Hotel Dali here.
2. Siena - best base for southern Tuscany 🏰
- 📍 Location: In the middle of Tuscany, around 50 kilometres south of Florence as the crow flies, with Chianti to the north and the Val d’Orcia to the south.
- 🚌 Transport: The 131R express bus from Florence takes 1 hour 15 minutes. The railway station is around 2 kilometres from the centre.
- ✈️ Time from the airport: Pisa and Florence are the nearest airports. The train from Pisa Centrale takes around an hour and a half, and with a hire car from Florence, you should allow a good hour’s drive.
- 💰 Price range: € to €€€. B&Bs and hotels with up to four stars were around €80 to €200 per night, and the five-star hotels started at €575.
- 👮 Safety: Safe, in the evening too. The city is hilly, with steep cobbled streets.
Siena is Florence’s old rival and one of Italy’s best-preserved medieval cities. The historic centre was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995, and the city has kept the Gothic character it gained between the 12th and 15th centuries. Everything revolves around the shell-shaped Piazza del Campo with the town hall and the Torre del Mangia tower, and a few minutes away is the cathedral in black and white marble.
Twice a year, the square is covered with earth and turned into a racetrack. The Palio horse race is run on 2 July and 16 August, and on those days the city is packed, so book very early if you want to stay here.
Siena is a good base if you’ve hired a car. Pienza in the Val d’Orcia is just under 40 kilometres to the south-east as the crow flies, San Gimignano just under 30 kilometres to the north-west, and Chianti begins just north of the city. You can stay in a real city with restaurants in the evening and drive out into the countryside by day.
With a car, choose your hotel carefully. The centre inside the walls is closed to normal traffic, and of the hotels I looked at inside the walls, one charged €45 per night to park your car, while the other had no parking at all. The hotels on the edge of town outside the limited traffic zone have free parking instead. If you’re coming without a car, the bus from Florence is faster than the train.
Places to Stay in Siena
Grand Hotel Continental Siena - Starhotels Collezione - best luxury hotel inside the walls
Grand Hotel Continental is a five-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.1, in an old palace on Banchi di Sopra, the main street, around 250 metres from Piazza del Campo. The hotel has a gourmet restaurant, a bar, a lift and air conditioning. The price was around €580 per night. Breakfast isn’t included and costs €30 per person, and parking costs €45 per night, so the total bill gets high.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “A lovely hotel in the heart of Siena.”
See photos and book Grand Hotel Continental Siena - Starhotels Collezione here.
Hotel Athena - best hotel if you have a hire car
Hotel Athena is a four-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.0 from more than 3,000 reviews, on the edge of the centre and, according to Booking.com, outside the limited traffic zone. Parking is free, breakfast is included, and the terrace has views over the city and the valley. It’s around 800 metres to Piazza del Campo. The price was around €190 per night. Some guests find the decor a little old-fashioned.
One guest says on Booking.com: “Hotel Athena is an excellent choice in Siena, combining comfort, location and atmosphere.”
See photos and book Hotel Athena here.
B&B Le Lupe - best budget choice
B&B Le Lupe has a guest rating of 8.3 from more than 1,200 reviews and is on Via Garibaldi just outside the limited traffic zone, with free street parking nearby. It’s around 800 metres to Piazza del Campo, and there’s a terrace and a shared kitchen. The price was around €80 per night. Breakfast costs €5 per person, there’s no lift, and some guests find that the air conditioning doesn’t cool enough.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “Great value for money.”
See photos and book B&B Le Lupe here.
3. Lucca - best town for families and cyclists 🚲
- 📍 Location: In north-western Tuscany, just over 15 kilometres from Pisa and around 20 kilometres from the coast at Viareggio.
- 🚆 Transport: The railway station is just outside the city walls. Trains run to Pisa, Viareggio and Florence, and the journey from Florence takes around 1 hour 20 minutes.
- ✈️ Time from the airport: Pisa Airport is the nearest, and by car you should allow around half an hour. Without a car, take the PisaMover shuttle train to Pisa Centrale and a train on from there.
- 💰 Price range: € to €€. The hotels inside the walls were around €120 to €315 per night.
- 👮 Safety: Very safe. The centre is largely car-free, and the town is flat.
Lucca sits behind intact Renaissance city walls. The walls are 4.2 kilometres long, were built from the middle of the 16th century to the middle of the 17th century and are today a wide, raised promenade lined with trees, where locals walk, run and meet. Inside the walls is one of Tuscany’s most charming towns.
The oval Piazza dell’Anfiteatro is built on top of a Roman amphitheatre, and from the Torre Guinigi tower, which has oak trees growing on top, you look out over the rooftops. Lucca is called the city of a hundred churches, and you’ll come across a new church facade in every other street.
The town suits families and anyone who can’t be bothered with hills. The centre is flat and almost car-free, and one of the hotels I recommend lends out free bikes. By train, you can reach the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the beach at Viareggio and Florence, so Lucca works well without a car and is an obvious choice when you fly into Pisa.
You won’t get views of vineyards or a pool in the garden, and Siena and the Val d’Orcia are a long way off. All the hotels inside the walls are in the limited traffic zone and charge €20 to €25 a day for parking. Check the calendar too: during the Lucca Comics & Games fair around 1 November and the summer concerts of the Lucca Summer Festival, the town is full.
Places to Stay in Lucca
Hotel Palazzo Alexander - best classic hotel inside the walls
Hotel Palazzo Alexander is a four-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.1, in an old palace on Via Santa Giustina inside the walls. I didn’t find any five-star hotels inside the walls, so this is the top choice in the centre. Breakfast is included, and there’s a lift, a bar and air conditioning. The price was around €315 per night. Parking costs €25 a day and has to be booked, and a few guests find the streets right around the hotel a little shabby.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “A very friendly hotel with excellent service, and everyone is so helpful.”
See photos and book Hotel Palazzo Alexander here.
Albergo San Martino - best mid-range hotel close to the cathedral
Albergo San Martino is a three-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.3 from more than 1,000 reviews, in a quiet side street inside the walls just over 500 metres from the railway station. The rooms have air conditioning, and the hotel has a small bar. The price was around €175 per night. Breakfast costs €20 extra, parking €20 a day, and there’s no lift.
One guest says on Booking.com: “Fantastic location inside the walls. Very close to restaurants, cafés and bars.”
See photos and book Albergo San Martino here.
Hotel Diana - best budget hotel with free bikes
Hotel Diana is a two-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.0 from more than 1,000 reviews, inside the walls around 600 metres from the railway station. Guests can borrow bikes for free, and the rooms have air conditioning. The price was around €120 per night. Breakfast costs €13 per person, there’s no lift, and you check in at the sister hotel, Albergo San Martino, around the corner.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “We had a lovely room with a comfortable bed, and the bathroom was very spacious.”
See photos and book Hotel Diana here.
4. Chianti - best area for wine lovers 🍷
- 📍 Location: The hills between Florence and Siena, with the villages of Greve, Panzano, Radda, Castellina and Gaiole.
- 🚗 Transport: You’ll need a car. There are no trains, but buses run from Florence to Greve.
- ✈️ Time from the airport: From Florence Airport, allow around 45 minutes’ drive to Greve and an hour to Radda and Castellina.
- 💰 Price range: € to €€€. Simple hotels and agriturismi with a pool were around €80 to €215 per night, and the best ones €255 to €400.
- 👮 Safety: Safe. The roads are narrow and winding, so drive carefully and don’t leave valuables in the car.
Chianti is the string of green hills between Florence and Siena, and it’s the picture of Tuscany most people have in their heads: vineyards, olive groves, stone houses and cypress trees. This is where Chianti Classico is made from the Sangiovese grape, and the bottles with the black rooster on the neck come from a defined area of just under 72,000 hectares around Greve, Radda, Castellina and Gaiole.
The easiest way to see the area is to follow the Chiantigiana (SR 222), a road that winds for 69 kilometres from Florence to Siena. Along the way, you pass through Greve with its triangular Piazza Matteotti, Panzano with the well-known butcher Dario Cecchini, and Castellina with its covered medieval street, Via delle Volte.
See hotels and agriturismi in Chianti here.
In Chianti, you don’t stay in a city hotel but at an agriturismo, a wine estate or a country hotel with a pool and a view. The pools are usually open from May to September or October. The grapes are harvested from September to October, and in September Greve holds the Expo Chianti Classico wine fair, so it’s a good month to come.
You’ll need a car. The villages have no railway station, and several of the best places are a few kilometres from the nearest restaurant. If you want to be able to walk out to dinner in the evening, stay in Greve itself or in Radda. Also check whether the room has air conditioning, because several otherwise good places don’t. Radda and Castellina are closest to Siena, and Greve is closest to Florence.
Places to Stay in Chianti
Corte Di Valle - best agriturismo with a pool and restaurant
Corte Di Valle has a guest rating of 9.9 from more than 700 reviews, which is unusually high, and is in the countryside around 5 kilometres north of Greve. It has an outdoor pool with a view, open from May to October, its own restaurant, free parking and air conditioning, and breakfast is included. The price was around €380 per night. It’s in a remote spot, so you won’t get anywhere without a car.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “Beautiful surroundings and a fantastic host.”
See photos and book Corte Di Valle here.
Hotel Colle Etrusco Salivolpi - best mid-range hotel near Castellina
Hotel Colle Etrusco Salivolpi is a three-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.2, around a kilometre from the centre of Castellina in Chianti. The hotel has an outdoor pool in season, a home-made breakfast that’s included in the price, free parking and a charging point for electric cars. The rooms have air conditioning. The price was around €160 per night. Some guests mention that you can hear noise between the rooms.
One guest says on Booking.com: “The location and the atmosphere were perfect.”
See photos and book Hotel Colle Etrusco Salivolpi here.
Antico Pastificio - best budget choice in the middle of Greve
Antico Pastificio has a guest rating of 8.8 and is right by Piazza Matteotti in Greve. You can choose between rooms and apartments, and there’s an outdoor pool in season, a garden, a playground and free parking. It’s one of the few places with a pool where you can walk to the restaurants. The price was around €135 per night. Only some of the rooms have air conditioning, so check before you book. The walls are thin, too.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “Lovely location close to restaurants and shops.”
See photos and book Antico Pastificio here.
5. Val d’Orcia - best area for landscapes and peace and quiet 🌄
- 📍 Location: In southern Tuscany, south of Siena, around the towns of Pienza, San Quirico d’Orcia and Montalcino, with Montepulciano as a neighbour to the east.
- 🚗 Transport: You’ll need a car. No trains run to the hill towns.
- ✈️ Time from the airport: The area is a long way from both airports. Allow just under two hours’ drive from Florence Airport and longer from Pisa.
- 💰 Price range: € to €€€. B&Bs and simple agriturismi were around €85 to €255 per night, and the luxury country hotels started at €395.
- 👮 Safety: Very safe. The hill towns have steep streets and cramped car parks.
The Val d’Orcia is the Tuscany of the postcards: gentle hills, fields of grain, lonely farmhouses and cypress trees in straight rows along the gravel roads. The whole valley was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2004 as an agricultural landscape that has kept its Renaissance appearance. Here, your holiday is all about driving from hill town to hill town, eating well and taking in the view.
Pienza is the most charming of the towns. Pope Pius II was born here, and from 1459 he had his home town rebuilt as an ideal town following Renaissance principles. From the hanging garden at Palazzo Piccolomini, you look out over the whole valley. The town is known for its pecorino sheep’s cheese. Montalcino to the west makes Brunello wine, and Montepulciano, just outside the valley itself, makes Vino Nobile.
See hotels and agriturismi in the Val d’Orcia here.
The area also has hot springs. In the small town of Bagno Vignoni, the square itself is a large pool of hot water, but bathing in it is no longer allowed, so you’ll have to bathe at the town’s spa hotels instead. If you want to bathe for free in nature, head to Bagni San Filippo, where the warm water runs through small pools in the woods. You mustn’t walk on the white limestone formation or bathe at it.
The downside is the distances. The Val d’Orcia is a long way from both airports, and Florence and Pisa are too far away for a day trip, so the area works best as the second half of a tour or as a holiday in its own right. You’ll need a car, and if you’re staying on a farm outside town, you’ll also have to drive to dinner. The pools at the places I looked at are open from May to September.
Places to Stay in the Val d’Orcia
Il Miraggio in Val d’Orcia Relais & Spa - best luxury hotel with a spa
Il Miraggio in Val d’Orcia Relais & Spa is a five-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.4, just under a kilometre from the centre of San Quirico d’Orcia and around 11 kilometres from Pienza. The hotel has an outdoor pool, open from May to September, a spa, a gym and a restaurant, and both the breakfast buffet and parking are included. The price was around €395 per night. The hotel is on the main road, and some guests mention traffic noise.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “A fantastic place to stay when you want to visit the Val d’Orcia.”
See photos and book Il Miraggio in Val d’Orcia Relais & Spa here.
Agriturismo Marinello - best agriturismo near Pienza
Agriturismo Marinello has a guest rating of 9.5 from more than 600 reviews and is in the countryside, around a 4-kilometre drive south of Pienza. It has a saltwater pool with a view, open from May to September, its own restaurant, air conditioning and free parking. The price was around €200 per night. Breakfast costs extra, and you’ll need a car.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “The place is a little far from town, so it’s best to have a car in the summer heat.”
See photos and book Agriturismo Marinello here.
Il Giardino Segreto - best budget choice in the middle of Pienza
Il Giardino Segreto has a guest rating of 9.4 and is in Pienza’s historic centre. The rooms have air conditioning, breakfast is included, and there’s a small garden with sunloungers. The price was around €95 per night. The parking information on Booking.com is contradictory, so ask before you book, and some guests find the bed uncomfortable and think the breakfast could be better.
One guest says on Booking.com: “Cinzia, the lovely host at Il Giardino Segreto, was very helpful and friendly.”
See photos and book Il Giardino Segreto here.
6. San Gimignano - best hill town for couples 🗼
- 📍 Location: On a hilltop just under 40 kilometres south-west of Florence and just under 30 kilometres north-west of Siena as the crow flies.
- 🚗 Transport: A car is easiest. The town has no railway station, and the bus involves a change in Poggibonsi.
- ✈️ Time from the airport: Allow around an hour’s drive from Florence Airport and a little longer from Pisa.
- 💰 Price range: € to €€. Rooms in town were around €90 to €175 per night, and agriturismi with a pool €135 to €270.
- 👮 Safety: Very safe. The town is car-free inside the walls.
San Gimignano is called the Manhattan of the Middle Ages. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the town’s wealthy families built towers to show off their power, and according to UNESCO, there were once 72 of them. The 14 that remain give the town a skyline you can see from a long way off. The tallest is the 54-metre Torre Grossa, which you can climb.
The town is small, and you can walk from one town gate to the other in a quarter of an hour. In the middle are Piazza della Cisterna with its old well and the cathedral with frescoes from the 14th century. The fields around the town supply the grapes for the white wine Vernaccia di San Gimignano, which is only made here.
See hotels in San Gimignano here.
The location is an advantage. San Gimignano lies between Florence, Siena and Pisa, so you can reach all three on day trips by car, and Chianti is just to the east. If you stay in town, you’ll also get to see it in the evening and early in the morning, when the coaches full of day-trippers aren’t there.
The downside, once again, is the car. Cameras monitor the town gates around the clock, and you’re not allowed to drive in. The hotels in town have no parking, so you park at one of the public car parks outside the walls for around €15 a day and carry your luggage 300 to 400 metres. For more than a couple of nights, I’d choose an agriturismo with a pool a few kilometres outside town. If you just need a night close to the airport at the start or end of your trip, you can see hotels in Pisa here.
Places to Stay in San Gimignano
Tenuta Sovestro - best wine estate with a pool
Tenuta Sovestro has a guest rating of 9.5 from more than 600 reviews and is a wine estate with accommodation around 2 kilometres east of San Gimignano. It has an outdoor pool, a restaurant, a bar, air conditioning and free parking, and the breakfast buffet is included. I didn’t find any five-star hotels in town, so this is my pick for the best in the area. The price was around €250 per night. The free shuttle to town only runs at limited times, and the walk back in the dark isn’t pleasant.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “The location is fantastic, peaceful and quiet, but only a 25-minute walk from the centre of San Gimignano.”
See photos and book Tenuta Sovestro here.
Leon Bianco - best hotel on Piazza della Cisterna
Leon Bianco is a three-star hotel with a guest rating of 9.1 from more than 1,400 reviews, right on Piazza della Cisterna in the middle of town. The hotel has a lift, a bar, a terrace, a hot tub and a gym. The price was around €145 per night. The breakfast buffet costs €12 per person, there’s only air conditioning from April to September, and you have to park outside the walls around 400 metres away and carry your luggage in.
One guest says on Booking.com: “All in all, a wonderful experience and definitely worth it for the fantastic location and atmosphere.”
See photos and book Leon Bianco here.
Affittacamere Mainardi 16 - best budget choice inside the walls
Affittacamere Mainardi 16 has a guest rating of 9.5 from 700 reviews and is inside the walls around 300 metres from Piazza della Cisterna. These are rooms without breakfast, but with air conditioning and access to a shared kitchen. The price was around €90 per night. The rooms are small, there’s no lift, and parking costs €15 a day at a car park around a seven-minute walk away.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “The location is perfect, right in the historic centre of San Gimignano.”
See photos and book Affittacamere Mainardi 16 here.
7. Versilia - best choice for a beach holiday 🏖️
- 📍 Location: The coast of north-western Tuscany, with Viareggio, Pietrasanta and Forte dei Marmi, and the Apuan Alps in the background.
- 🚆 Transport: Viareggio has a railway station with connections to Lucca and Pisa. You can manage without a car.
- ✈️ Time from the airport: Pisa Airport is around 25 kilometres away, and the journey takes just under half an hour by car.
- 💰 Price range: €€ to €€€. Hotels in Viareggio were around €120 to €280 per night, and the best ones €430 to €535. Forte dei Marmi is more expensive.
- 👮 Safety: Safe. Expect to pay for a sunlounger and a parasol.
If you want a beach in Tuscany, Versilia is the easiest choice. It’s a 20-kilometre stretch of coast with wide sandy beaches, and because Pisa Airport is close by, you can be lying on the beach a couple of hours after landing. Viareggio is the largest town and has a long seafront promenade with Art Nouveau buildings. The town got its first bathing establishment in 1828 and has held a carnival since 1873.
You need to know how the beach clubs work. Almost the entire beach is divided up into private bathing establishments, where you rent sunloungers and a parasol one day at a time. The hotels usually have an agreement with a club, but it’s rarely included in the price. At the hotels I looked at, it cost from €15 to €60 a day.
See hotels in Viareggio and Versilia here.
Versilia is easy to combine with the cities. From Viareggio, trains run to Lucca and Pisa, so you can spend a morning at the Leaning Tower and be back for a swim. Pietrasanta, a little inland, is a small art town with sculptures in the streets, and Forte dei Marmi to the north is the coast’s upmarket resort, with higher prices.
The coast is the wrong choice if it’s hill towns and vineyards you want to see. It’s a long way to Siena and even further to the Val d’Orcia. Outside the summer season, quite a few restaurants and beach clubs are closed. If you’d like a wilder coast with a nature park and fewer hotels, the Maremma around Castiglione della Pescaia is further south, but it’s also the area furthest from the airports.
Places to Stay in Versilia
Palace Hotel - best hotel with a roof terrace in Viareggio
Palace Hotel is a four-star hotel with a guest rating of 8.9 from more than 2,000 reviews, around 200 metres from the beach in Viareggio. The hotel has air conditioning, a roof terrace with a view and a restaurant serving regional dishes, and breakfast is included. The price was around €535 per night. The beach club costs €30 to €50 a day on top, the hotel has no car park, and one guest thinks it needs renovating.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “Beautiful hotel by the beach. Fantastic roof terrace and view.”
See photos and book Palace Hotel here.
Hotel President - best mid-range hotel on the promenade
Hotel President is a four-star hotel with a guest rating of 8.7, on Viale Carducci close to the beach and a ten-minute walk from the railway station. The breakfast buffet, with more than 80 different items, is included, some rooms have a sea view, and the restaurant is open from May to September. The price was around €255 per night. The beach club costs €15 to €35 a day, the hotel has no parking, and it can be hard to find a space on the street.
One guest says on Booking.com: “The breakfast was lovely, with a big choice.”
See photos and book Hotel President here.
Hotel Lisà - best budget hotel in Viareggio
Hotel Lisà is a two-star hotel with a guest rating of 8.5, in the northern part of Viareggio just under a kilometre from the beach. Breakfast is included, there’s a garden, a terrace and air conditioning, and parking costs only €5 a day. The price was around €120 per night. The hotel has no restaurant, and you should expect to pay for access to a beach club.
One guest writes on Booking.com: “Very friendly staff, good breakfast and a cosy room.”
See photos and book Hotel Lisà here.
Where should you avoid staying in Tuscany?
Don’t stay inside the walls of a hill town or in the centre of Florence if you’re arriving in a hire car and want to park at the door. The historic centres are limited traffic zones with cameras, and parking costs from €15 a day in San Gimignano to €45 at the expensive hotels in Florence and Siena. Choose a hotel just outside the walls with its own parking instead.
Don’t stay on a remote farm either if you don’t have a car, or if you want to go into a town every day. No trains run to Chianti or the Val d’Orcia, and at several places, guests mention that you need a car. On the other hand, Florence is a poor choice for your whole holiday if you’re dreaming of a pool and vineyards, and the coast is wrong if it’s the hill towns you want to see. In July and August, I wouldn’t book a place without air conditioning or a pool.
My recommendation is to split your holiday in two if you have a week or more. Spend two or three nights in Florence without a car, then pick up the hire car and stay the rest of the time in Chianti, near Siena or in the Val d’Orcia. If you’d rather avoid the car altogether, combine Florence with Lucca and a few days in Viareggio. If you’re travelling as a larger group, it’s also worth looking at holiday homes.
A few practical things to finish with. The UK government’s travel advice for Italy warns that thefts from parked cars are common and advises against leaving luggage in your car, even out of sight in the boot. Most towns charge a tourist tax per person per night on top of the hotel price. The best months are May, June, September and October. In August, Italians go on holiday themselves around the Ferragosto public holiday on 15 August, and then the coast is packed and prices are at their highest.
Pisa is the region’s largest airport. Between Florence, Pisa, Lucca and Viareggio, the train is the easiest way to get around. You can see how to get on from the airport in Pisa or Florence in my guide to getting from Florence and Pisa airports to the centre of Florence. If you’re travelling on around the country, I’ve also written about where to stay in Cinque Terre and where to stay in Rome.
Travel ressources & websites I use all the time 👇
• Booking.com has the best offers on hotels and unique places to stay
• GetYourGuide is the best place to book tours & activities with free cancellation
• Welcome Pickups is the best & safest place to pre-book airport transfers
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