Many Americans take Italy travel tours to Tuscany, but where do you begin to absorb all that this region has to offer?  Tuscany means different things to different people.

Some people associate Tuscany with olives and the many products made with this ancient fruit.  Chief among them is olive oil and there are hundreds of farms, both large and small, that press the nectar from the olive to produce a staple of cuisine; olive oil.

Recognizing the allure of watching ages-old artisan techniques, some groves now open their operations to visitors.

Tuscany also means wine and the famous “wine road” of Chianti is another popular activity for travelers.  Your tour guide will take your intimate group to the many vineyards around Greve, including Casaloste and Villa S. Andrea.  You’ll learn how 21st century technology meets practices hundreds of years old to produce world-class wine.

Fine art is how some people define Tuscany.  There is no greater collection of Renaissance art in the world than what can be found in Florence.  Michelangelo’s “David”, considered by many to be the greatest statue in the world is a must-see, however there are lesser known works hidden throughout this city and your knowledgeable guide will help you discover it.

Perhaps the simple geographical and historical beauty of Tuscany is what you desire most.  In that case, your guide will have many options for you.  Would you like to explore one of the most scenic places in the world?  Then Cinque Terre is for you.  Consisting of five towns, Cinque Terre is navigable by boat, train, car and foot, depending upon your activity goal.

Whatever you seek in Tuscany, your guide will be ready with information, organization and a wealth of English-speaking help to make your Italy travel tours a memorable experience.  Check with Federica Merli at TuscanyWithMe.it to help you design the perfect tour of Northern Italy.

The best Olive Vineyards in Italy are difficult to discern.  It’s like asking an American which are the best wine vineyards; Napa Valley or the Finger Lakes of New York?  However, most Italians will concur there are outstanding olives in the hills of Chianti, in Tuscany.

An experienced tour guide might suggest a novel mini-working vacation at an olive grove in Muricciaglia where you can pick the olives and become involved in the art of making olive oil.

Plan your trip in Mid-November.  This is when olives are harvested.   After the growers place nets beneath the trees, you’ll be instructed to pick every single olive regardless of the size or color.  Small or large, black or green, nothing is left on the tree when it is selected for picking.

The olive industry is vital in Italy and there are many ways to get the olive off the tree.  Some farmers shake the tree to release the fruit.  Other more commercial operations resort to mechanical devices at harvest time.

The weather in Tuscany remains sunny, warm and beautiful for the job.  You’ll spend all morning in the fields picking the olives and then settle into a long, delicious and relaxing lunch featuring local items and some wine before picking a few more olives in the afternoon.

Once the harvest is completed, the olives are taken to an extraction plant, or “frantoio”.  It is here where the olives are extracted from the fruit after they are all washed and weighed.   The plants operate all day and night at harvest time, as trucks bearing the labors of the harvest from all area farms come in.

In the end you’ll be able to sample the oil you helped to create, making for a lifelong memory of your time in Olive Vineyards in Italy.

Planning Tuscany vacations has never been easier.  They say all roads lead to Tuscany and it’s easy to see why.

The comfortable climate, the perfect blend of mountains and seashore, charming architecture, delicious meals and great shopping make this region of Italy near the top of everyone’s “bucket list” of places to go before one departs this earth.

This area, made popular by books and films like “Under the Tuscan Sun”, Tuscany is luring travelers from all over the world.  Getting there is easier now that there is a direct flight from New York to Pisa.  Once in Tuscany, you’ll meet your tour guide or you’ll arrive at your hotel to explore the region on your own.

There is no end to the activities available for your pleasure.  Try rafting along the Albenga River.  Take a bike tour on the Sogna Hamlet, soar above the hills in a two-seat parasail, explore the National Park and its myriad of colors, or go fishing in Casentino.  Everything you enjoy doing in America you can do in a whole new environment in Tuscany.

Why not take a food and wine tour through Chianti?  This wine is synonymous with Tuscany and there are tens of thousands of acres of vineyards producing this historic product for a global market.   A bonus with your tour of the wineries, are the olive vineyards ringing the grape fields.  Cyprus trees spiking skyward tell you you’re not in Kansas anymore.  This is beautiful and historic Tuscany!

If you are near San Giovanni Valdarno, you’ll be able to visit a balsamic vinegar lab where this popular ingredient in salads and cooking reductions is aged in giant vats made of balsa wood.  The best balsamic vinegar in the world originates right here.  Take some home as a memento of the first of many tuscany vacations for you.

Do your planning now and contact TuscanyWithMe.it to plan the vacation of a lifetime.  What ever it is you want, they will arrange for you.  Custom vacations are the specialty of this Italy travel company.

An easy Italy vacation tour is the best way to go if you want maximum exposure to this lovely European country with little of the fuss.  Experienced tour guides leave all the planning and effort to them so you can put up your feet, slurp from a gelato or a glass of Chianti and take photographs to review for the rest of your life.

If you are traveling with a small group, you might want to consider a customized tour.  These are flexible and more spontaneous than the large, well established situations.  Your tour guide can combine stops at wineries with a bike trip if that is your interest.  Customized tours with manageable groups allow for unique opportunities and still provide the hassle-free accommodations of a guided tour whether you’re interested in food and wine or art and architecture.

Of course if you have a large group, or you and your partner may want to join a larger group to meet new friends, there are abundant vacation tour options.  Our sponsor of this website is TuscanyWithMe.it and you may contact them through this website or the main one to start planning your vacation now.

The internet has made everyone a travel agent right from their own home however this option has its risks.  If one element of the tour falls through, the entire trip can be flattened like a house of cards.  Unless you have experience booking foreign travel, you might want to stick with a company that deals with ordinary setbacks every day.  You don’t want your vacation ruined.

There are tours for every interest level and geographical region in Italy.  Do your research and talk to your friends, and then begin your search for a guide for your Italy vacation tour; you’ll find the trip begins as soon as you start planning it.

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