Vespa Tour in Tuscany from Castellina in Chianti | La Vacanza Travel

Vespa Tour in Tuscany from Castellina in Chianti

Duration: 5 hours
Destination: Italy, Toscana, Siena
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  • 5 hours
  • Siena
  • E-Voucher
  • Lowest Price
  • Not-Cancellable

Overview

While we take care of each and every detail, leave chaos behind you, enjoy the best of Tuscany’s landscapes from your stylish vespa, perfect not just to skip traffic but to have a feeling of what being Italian really means.
We will stop as many times as we like during the day, discovering the Chianti area that features medieval villages, marvelous views and some of the best producers of wine in the world.
Let us open the door of one of the best wineries of the area and introduce you to the secret of this millenary production. It’s only at the end of our ride that we will stop and visit an organic farm as well as the cellar, relaxing on the terrace overviewing rolling hills covered by vines. Lunch will be served, typical Tuscan meal, traditional fresh ingredients, paired with a specific wine selection.
A symbol, a lifestyle, a unique memory.
Experience with scooter or Motorbike requested

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Radda in Chianti, Radda in Chianti, Tuscany

The area around the capital has been inhabited since 2000 BC, as evidenced by the archaeological area of ​​Poggio la Croce where the remains of an ancient village emerged and where, during the excavations carried out in the last decade, they were brought to light many exhibits. Later, even if very few traces have emerged, the presence of an Etruscan village can be assumed. By the fall of the Western Roman Empire, in the 5th century, small agglomerations of a rural nature had already formed in the area, which still exist today; these villages were Castelvecchi, Monterinaldi, Volpaia and Radda itself.

Between the 9th and 10th centuries the area of ​​Radda saw the birth of the feudal society which involved the building of the villages. The first certain document in which Radda is mentioned is a diploma from 1002 in which Emperor Otto III confirmed the donation made by Countess Willa in favor of Badia Fiorentina. The locality Radda appears in many documents of the Badia Fiorentina until the XII century. Ramda judicaria fiorentina et fesulana is reported in a document of the Badia a Coltibuono of 1041.

On 25 May 1191 the emperor Henry VI granted the castle of Radda and its court in fiefdom to the Counts Guidi, the same fiefdom was again confirmed by the emperor Frederick II, even if already in the thirteenth century the territory of Radda was dependent on Florence . The castle was sacked by the Sienese in a raid in 1230 while in 1268 it was occupied, together with other localities in the Chianti region, by French troops led by Carlo I d'Angiò. A new occupation and a new heavy looting Radda suffered it during the second Aragonese invasion in 1478.

Administratively Radda was the capital of the Chianti League, comprising the territories of Radda, Gaiole and Castellina. From the end of the thirteenth century it became the seat of a podestà appointed by the Florentines and in the municipal statute of 1415 Radda was confirmed as the capital of the League. Among the podestàs of Radda is Francesco Ferrucci.

In the seventeenth century, after the conflicts had ended, the castles were transformed into stately villas in which the owners dedicated themselves to the production of wine. Radda in Chianti was visited in 1773 by the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo who found it far from everything. As a consequence of the visit, the roads were improved but the territory of Radda was always poor and isolated. The affection for the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty remained strong for a long time, however, considering the fact that at the plebiscite of 1860 for the annexation of Tuscany to Sardinia, Radda voted against (281 yes out of 581 voters, out of 879 entitled [4 ]).

This situation reached its climax in the 1950s when the depopulation of the countryside, a phenomenon common to many areas of Chianti, reached its peak. In the seventies the rediscovery of these places began and slowly all the castles, villas and individual farmhouses were restored and farmhouses and farms were planted there.

Duration: 45 minutes

Stop At: Panzano in Chianti, Panzano in Chianti, Greve in Chianti, Tuscany

The area of ​​Panzano was already inhabited in Etruscan times as evidenced by the discovery of a stele dating back to the VI - V century BC. at the parish church of San Leolino, stele then dispersed. Even in Roman times the area was densely inhabited, from that period there are numerous traces in the toponyms including Panzano himself. At the beginning of the 10th century the parish church of San Leolino in Flacciano was mentioned, which later became Panzano.

In the XII century the first testimony of the name Panzano is had which is mentioned in the plebe Sancti Leolini sitam in Panzano while in the tenth of the XIII century the church of Santa Maria placed in the castle is also mentioned. The castle of Panzano certainly had already developed before the XII century and was among the possessions of the Firidolfi family.

Of the historical events of the castle not many traces remain. In the mid-thirteenth century when the Florentine countryside was organized in Panzano leagues it was included in the Lega della Val di Greve. After the Battle of Montaperti in 1260 the castle was sacked and two towers were destroyed by the victorious Ghibelline troops. During the war that opposed Florence with the Visconti of Milan Panzano, in 1397, was occupied and sacked again by Alberico da Barbiano's troops.

In 1478, the Sienese troops and their allies, the troops of the King of Naples Ferdinand II of Aragon invaded Chianti for the second time. On that occasion the castle of Panzano was one of the most important bulwarks in defense of the republic of Florence so as to become the seat of the Commissioner of the Republic. After the fall of the Republic of Siena in 1555, Panzano will no longer be involved in warfare until 1944.

Duration: 20 minutes

Pass By: Castellina In Chianti, Castellina In Chianti, Tuscany

The mound of Montecalvario, an Etruscan tomb located near the town and dated 7th-6th century BC. and the Necropoli del Poggino, located near Fonterutoli, attest to the presence of the Etruscans in the area. According to the excavation campaigns carried out from the eighties in the Castellina area, the presence of a large town was certain; inhabited center which was to be located in Salinvolpe, a few hundred meters from today's Castellina.

There are more testimonies from the medieval era. The first certain documents date back to the 11th century when the area was a fief of the nobles of the Castello del Trebbio, a family related to the Counts Guidi. In the twelfth century Castellina came under the influence of Florence and in 1193 an agreement was signed between the lords of Trebbio and Florence in which the Florentines were allowed to militarily preside over the castles of Trebbio and Castiglione (now Castellina). After the Lodo di Poggibonsi of 1203, an act in which the Chianti borders between Florence and Siena were sanctioned, Castellina found itself to be one of the most important Florentine outposts since it was located on the most direct road that put the two rival cities in communication.

In the 14th century Castellina became one of the cornerstones of the Lega del Chianti, so much so that it was the head of one of the third parties in which it was divided. The Terziere di Castellina administered the part of the Chianti that slopes down towards the Valdelsa. In 1397 it was sacked and completely burnt by the troops of the Duke of Milan Gian Galeazzo Visconti commanded by Alberico da Barbiano. In 1400 it was decided to fortify Castellina, and in the list of reformations preserved in the State Archives of Florence it is written
«On site qui dicitur la Castellina fiat fortilitia»

The works, however, had to proceed slowly so that in 1430 the workers of the Opera del Duomo were commissioned to fortify Castellina together with Staggia Senese and Rèncine; Filippo Brunelleschi was sent to establish the type of necessary interventions and to estimate the costs. In 1452 the walls of Castellina suffered the assault of the Aragonese troops but resisted. Very differently things went in 1478 during the second Aragonese invasion of Chianti when Castellina was conquered by the Sienese and Neapolitan troops. On that occasion the defense of Castellina was personally directed by Giuliano da Sangallo while Francesco di Giorgio Martini was in command of the besiegers. The Sienese occupation lasted until 1483 when it was resumed by the Florentines.

In 1774 with the administrative reform of the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo, Castellina became the seat of the Community from which the current municipality will derive.

Stop At: Podere La Piaggia, Localita Piaggia, 50, 53011 Castellina in Chianti SI, Italy

After your tour in the previous village, you will reach this organic farm where you will have a typical tuscan lunch with their products

Duration: 1 hour

Inclusions
  • Lunch
  • Wine tasting
  • Use of helmet
  • Tour Guide
  • Entry/Admission - Podere La Piaggia

Exclusions
    • Not wheelchair accessible
    • We require experience with scooters or motorbikes
    • Minimum age for driving is 18 years
    • A driving license is requested
    • Please note that a briefing with Vespas will be lead by members of our staff and they will evaluate client skills and will decide if renting or not the Vespas, their decision will be unquestionable. The tour will start with a different vehicle up to our availability
    • No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
    • Most travelers can participate
    • This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
    • This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
    • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
    Departure Point

    Tuscany Private Tour, Via, Viale IV Novembre, 35, 53011 Castellina in Chianti SI, Italy


    Departure Time

    10:00 AM


    Return Details

    Returns to original departure point

    Voucher info

    You can present either a paper or an electronic voucher for this activity.

    Duration

    5 hours


    User's Reviews

    Shaheen A

    09 Sep, 2022

    My wife booked this tour in advance via TripAdvisor. We never been on a Vespa, but wanted the full Italian experience while vacationing in Tuscany. The initial booking page didn’t disclose (and still doesn’t) that experience is mandatory. The only mandatory requirement was a driver’s license, which we both have. We assumed the tour would provide first timers with a basic lesson based off the reviews on the TripAdvisor page. Long story short, we showed up to our tour and the owner told our guide that there has been too many recent accidents and injuries. He asked if we had any Vespa experience, and we both said no. He allowed me to “test drive” the Vespa in a parking lot and said I was not experienced enough and could not do the tour. “No experience, no ride” was his exact words. I agreed with him entirely and definitely didn’t want to put myself or my wife at risk of injury. We mutually agreed to cancelled the tour and I requested a refund. They tried to offer us an alternative option within their tour offering, but it wasn’t the experience we were looking for so we declined their offer. He told us to take the refund request up with TripAdvisor and that he wasn’t going to refund us our money because he saved us from hurting ourselves by not doing the tour. We went back in forth, but his logic was ultimately we were in the wrong for booking the tour in the first place. The owner recently updated his TripAdvisor page, but that doesn’t help us as we had an existing booking that they approved us for. If this was noted upfront, we would’ve never booked this tour in the first place. We’re currently in conversations with TripAdvisor to get our refund request resolved before we dispute this charge with my credit card company.

    Tony_N

    08 Jul, 2022

    This is a “Must Do”. So much fun! Our guide, Tommasso was fabulous. I wasn’t sure what to expect but this tour was a highlight of our Italy vacation. We drove Vespas to a couple ancient castle villages then Tommasso gave us personal tours on foot. He was passionate and knowledgeable about their history. All was very interesting. The lunch we were treated to at the end was a special treat. I highly recommend this tour.

    391patc

    18 Oct, 2021

    Description says it all. This was a great experience, although I'd recommend caution for anyone who'd be nervous riding a Vespa. The one's we used were 150 cc (which are decently large/heavy) and the traffic is fairly fast. We had both had moped experience before this so it was a great experience, and they do give you a warmup/training session in the parking lot before you go and they ensure you know how to operate the scooter.

    Susan E

    15 Jun, 2019

    Four of us did a private Vespa tour with Daniella two weeks ago, and it was just fantastic. You get a tutorial beforehand, and they will not allow you to ride alone if they're no comfortable that you'll be safe. We rode on the curvy, hilly roads of Tuscany, and there was quite a bit of traffic because it was a Saturday, but it was fine. We just loved it. You don't have to be an experienced driver to do this and have an amazing time! I highly recommend it and would do it again, for sure!

    David_D

    20 Mar, 2019

    Such a fun time. Martina and Stefani were the perfect guides. They took us through some beautiful countryside and we visited a couple of small towns that offered great history and fabulous views. I would recommend them to anyone looking for a fun day.

    User's Picture Gallery

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    Getting around on Vespas like the locals.

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    Great way to see tuscany

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