When Tom and I were last in Florence, it was our 2nd anniversary of the weekend that we met each other (and ultimately fell in love… I KNOW RIGHT?!) so I wanted to surprise him with a little something while we were there. I contacted the guys at 500 Touring Club after I had seen a few of my favourite Florence bloggers write about a tour they did around Tuscany… in vintage Fiat 500s! I knew Tom would really like that and it was something different– we had already done a Vespa tour during our last visit so I really wanted to change it up. I organized for Tom and I to ride along on their last tour of the season (lucky we got it!)
To get to the meeting point for the tour, which is just on the outskirts of Florence, we hopped in a cab. Florence’s taxis are pretty expensive so it cost us about 17 euros to get there, but it’s super easy to take a bus to the meeting point, which drops you right there.
It stopped raining just as we arrived to the meeting point, and the three Fiat 500s were already lined up, waiting for us, and bringing a bit of color to a somewhat-dreary day.
As soon as Beppe, our tour guide, greeted us, I requested the blue one– it was just too cute!
Beppe gave us a little intro before we got going. He told us a bit of history about the Fiat 500 (called Cinque-cento in Italy, which means 500) and how back in its heyday that every Italian family had one.
Compared to cars these days, these guys were practically tin cans! It’s easy to dent them and the engine was just 16 horsepower. I don’t know what that means but Tom said it’s not much more power than a go-kart!
Our 500 was called Roberto and was born in 1970, and after our fun little intro, Beppe did some practice driving with Tom. I wanted Tom to be able to do all the driving, but I also can’t drive manual… if you can’t either, it’s best to leave the driving to someone who can.
Soon enough… we were off through the hills of Tuscany!
The cars are sooooo teeny but they were so fun to drive around in! Tom was loving driving it and I was snapping away and couldn’t stop laughing at how low to the ground we were!
After a bit of driving, we stopped off at a viewpoint, and even with the cloudy weather, I was quickly reminded why I love autumn in Tuscany so much.
The colors are so vibrant, the roads are quieter, and the temperature is still quite warm and comfortable. Love, love, love…
It helps when your tour guide is not only a great guide but a fantastic photographer! Thanks for this one Beppe 🙂
Before we got going again, I had a little photo shoot with Roberto.
And then we were off again for more windy roads and views of the colorful Tuscan countryside. So Instagram-worthy…
Before we knew it, our drive was complete and we parked up at Villa Le Piazzole for a light lunch and wine tasting. It was quite a lovely setting for the second half of our tour…
There was just 5 of us but we had PLENTY of food! Classic Tuscan crostini, Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino slices, tomato bruschetta, and some sliced meats. Just enough for a little wine tasting but nothing too heavy.
The wines we tasted were fantastic and are produced right on property of the villa– we had actually driven right past the vineyard right before we parked up for lunch. The villa only produces about 10,000 bottles of wine and olive oil each year and they don’t export outside of Italy, so Tom and I picked up a few bottles of the ones we loved the best for some Christmas gifts!
We went on 500 Touring Club’s Wine-tasting Tour but there are a few other options depending on what you’re looking to do. There’s even an option for private hire… how romantic 😉
Have you ever toured Tuscany?
500 Touring Club offered us this tour for free but all opinions, just like the piccies, are my own!
This tour is fantastic! We did something similar in Paris and my husband loved it. Thanks for sharing….I am now adding this to our Florence list 🙂
Great to hear it Jamie! Thanks for reading.