Tuscan Wine Tours©

Make an excursion to Colle Val d'Elsa!

And visit our restaurant...

Colle Val d'Elsa is a medieval city to the South of Florence (North of Siena) famous for its production of crystal. It also has a very old history which is visible in the architecture and medieval build up of the city. The upper medieval city definitely deserves a visit and can be walked in about 45 minutes. The town is very quaint even though it offers several crystal outlets, an Etruscan museums and more... 
And then, of course, there's our restaurant "Officina della Cucina Popolare" renowned for its local cuisine where you will be able to taste some of the most traditional dishes at a very reasonable cost. It is possible to savor organic wines from rare producers from small farms around Tuscany and Italy.
The restaurant is open lunch and dinner every day except of Tuesdays. It is also possible to organize cooking lessons for small groups of max 4 people.

Tour of Colle Val d'Elsa from Rebecca Christophersen on Vimeo. 

Every Sunday and Monday
We meet in Colle Val d'Elsa in Piazza Arnolfo (at the Obelisk) at 11.20 am (just across from the bus-stop) and you will be taken on a walking tour of the town. It will be a walking tour through the historic Colle, from the middle ages to recent history, including the Crystal industry.

 An hour later lunch will be served with tasty dishes of marvelous Tuscan food. With lunch you will try a couple of different Tuscan wines that Rebecca shall explain to you.

Tour, lunch, wines and hosting at the modest price of 30 Euro per person.

In the afternoon, whenever you please, you can take the bus back to Florence or Siena.

By bus
It's an easy bus ride from both Florence or Siena (around an hour from Florence and around half an hour from Siena). If one is staying in Florence one should take the SITA / TRAIN bus from the bus-station (right next to the SMN train station) tagged "Siena diretta" and if in Siena the opposite, so "Firenze diretta". Purchase a two way ticket which will cost you a total of about 10 Euro.

By car
Take the superstrada Firenze-Siena (from the North exit at Certosa if you are on the A1 - from the South exit Bettolle on the A1 and head for Siena). One you are on the Firenze-Siena supertrada, take the Colle Val d'Elsa North exit and head for the historical center "Colle Alta". Park at any of the two parking lots adjacent to the historical part. Total driving time from Florence: 45 minutes, from Siena 25 minutes.

Hire a driver & make a wine tour out of it!
Through most hotels you can hire a driver for a half or whole day. You could take the opportunity to see other towns on the same day, such as San Gimignano, Siena and Monteriggioni.
It would also be possible to organize a sort of wine/food tour that I can set up for you. You could visit an olive oil mill, a top Chianti Classico winery and then have lunch at our restaurant. You would have to willing to make an early start.
If you prefer to take it easy, it would be possible to do olive oil mill, lunch in our restaurant, and winery visit in the afternoon - or just one of the two. In other words, you can decide what you would like to do during your day.