Florence/Tuscany/London in April

[Rob]

Looking for recommendations for a trip in April. My husband and I plus 3 other friends are flying into Florence for 2 nights, then we are being joined by more friends and renting a house outside Montaione for 7 nights, then 3 of us are flying to London for 2 nights. I have been to Florence and London several times, but others in the group have not. I have never done the Tuscan villa thing before.

Florence:
We are staying at the Sine Villa Medici. Anyone have lunch/dinner recommendations? I used to go to one of the Garga restaurants back in the 90s, but the son has taken over from the father. Still good? I am told the hotel is a bit out of the center, but it was available with my employee discount and we don't mind walking or taking a taxi.

The first day we will just walk around since we will be arriving at all different times in different states of exhaustion so we want to eat, drink, and observe. The second day, I am going to buy Uffizi tickets for a specific time/beat the line. Should I do a walking tour that includes a few hours in the Uffizi and a couple of other things? I see several companies online that do 2-3 museums in a day or the Uffizi and a street tour or the like. Recommendations? I noticed that there is a shoe museum in the Savoy hotel so we might do that.

Any great gelato or bakeries? Hidden gems?

Montaione:
At least 5 of us drive standard, and we are renting 3 cars because we are 10 with luggage. The Villa is run by a local inn with a chef so we have a cooking lesson/wine event planned, but other than that, any and all recommendations (food, wine, things to do, towns to see) are welcome! I know we will take day trips to Siena, San Gimingnano, and I have been to Pisa, but they have not so my guess is they will want to see the Leaning Tower. I have friends who lived in Vicopisano so I might try to swing through there on the way to Pisa.

London:
We are staying at the Trafalgar St. James so we plan on just walking around the day we arrive to see the outdoor sites and hit some pubs. Our hotel has a roof deck bar so I think we will do that to see the panorama instead of spending time on the London Eye. We plan to go to the Tower for a 1/2 day since my husband hasn't been, and we have time for the British Museum the other 1/2 day and probably the National/Portrait Gallery the last morning because our flight doesn't leave till the evening. I doubt that we will try to see a show because we go to a lot of shows at home. Any restaurants, pubs, shops, hidden gems? I found this in the "Real London" thread from last year: http://www.walks.com/ so I see a Sunday evening pub walk that would fit right in. I got coffee recommendations out of that thread as well, and I saw a recommendation for Fish and Chippery in Covent Garden.

 

[Deleted member 221]

I recommend doing the Uffizi early, as soon as it opens. The beat the line tickets are (I believe) just beat the line for the ticket queue. There is still a queue for the museum. Or at least there was with the tickets I bought. I went first thing in the morning, and there was minimal wait, but by mid-day, the queue to enter was horrendous. I tend to be neither fast nor slow in museums, and the Uffizi took me 3-4 hours to do. Doing a second museum on top of the Uffizi might be sensory overload. L’Accademia, if you haven’t been, is probably the easiest complement. You can walk there, and it’s not overwhelmingly large. The queue is (usually) not horrendous. And the statue of David is probably the most beautiful piece of art I’ve seen in any medium. The Duomo ticket comes with five parts: the church, two towers, the baptistery, and the museum. The museum is weak — you can skip it. And, unless you really want exercise, you can choose between the two towers.

Pisa is entirely ordinary and underwhelming for an Italian city, but I suppose there’s no convincing your friends to skip it.

In London, check out Dishoom, which is the latest rage in Indian food. Your group is large enough that you may be able to get a reservation. If you want to do a more relaxed tea, Charlotte Street Hotel is fun. Chiltern Firehouse is another popular “place to be” at the moment. In terms of tourist attractions, I haven’t been to the Churchill War Rooms, but I keep meaning to go. There’s a James Bond in Motion exhibit at the London Film Museum that several of my houseguests have enjoyed. The Tate Modern has a Modigliani exhibit that my latest houseguest, who left yesterday, said was excellent. I do more tourist stuff outside of the city, but with only two nights, you probably don’t have time.

Ask @Aaron W for coffee recommendations; he has a whole list (and is an excellent houseguest!).

 

[manhn]

I loved the National Portrait Gallery! It was my favourite of the museums. There is a Swedish bakery in that area that looked cute, but I wasn't able to visit as it was closed that day. Name escapes.

 

[Twilight1]

Rules Restaurant in London right near Covent Garden tube stop and very close to your hotel. My family on dad's side is from Yorkshire and I grew up with roast beef and yorkshire pudding every Sunday. I suck at cooking but can make an amazing roast and yorkshire (to give perspective lol) This place is the only place that rivals what I grew up on and can make.

https://rules.co.uk/

 

[AxelAnnie]

Have fun!

 

[Vagabond]

London:

*snip*

Any restaurants, pubs, shops, hidden gems? I found this in the "Real London" thread from last year: http://www.walks.com/ so I see a Sunday evening pub walk that would fit right in. I got coffee recommendations out of that thread as well, and I saw a recommendation for Fish and Chippery in Covent Garden.

My current favorite restaurant in the West End is Lima Floral, 14 Garrick St. (the entrance is from Floral St.). It has a sister restaurant, called simply Lima, at 31 Rathbone Place. I have not been to the one is Rathbone Place.
https://www.limalondongroup.com/floral
https://www.limalondongroup.com/fitzrovia

When I was in London in September, I stayed in Paddington, near Hyde Park, and had a very good dinner at Salt & Honey, 28 Sussex Place. http://www.saltandhoneybistro.com/dinner-menu-page/

For a list of pubs, check out this page: http://www.londontourist.org/nightlife.html (The Lamb & Flag, in Rose St., should be right up your alley). And for more suggestions, visit the other pages on the London Tourist website.

I would also suggest the following:

Shopping (or window shopping):

The Burlington Arcade, just off of Piccadilly: http://www.burlington-arcade.co.uk/the-arcade
The Royal Arcade, nearby, but not quite as mouth-watering: http://royalarcade.london/royal-arcade-history/
Jermyn St. (mostly men's wear), http://www.jermynstreet.net/
Liberty (a one-of-a-kind store, quite close to Carnaby Street) https://www.libertylondon.com/
Fortnum & Mason (specialty foods), https://www.fortnumandmason.com/

Sightseeing Hidden Gyms:

Paddington Basin and Little Venice: http://www.thisispaddington.com/ https://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/little-venice-area-guide
Christopher Wren's churches: https://www.visitbritain.com/us/en/wrens-beautiful-churches-london#fQSBK8ljrmWpjSlA.97

And, since you're planning to go to the London Eye, you may find this informaiton about nearby walks useful: https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/walking/jubilee-walkway

Please feel free to send me a private information if I can be of any more help.

 

[acraven]

Lucca is a lot more interesting than Pisa; it's a lovely walled town not totally overwhelmed by bus tours, and you can even bike on top of the walls. Seeing it takes more time than you'll need in Pisa. The usual advice for those trying to combine the two in a single day-trip is to go to Lucca first and plan to hit Pisa mid-afternoon as the bus tours are leaving. I'm not sure how that works if you need timed tickets to ascend the tower (perhaps also to enter the Baptistry?). Maybe the tickets can be booked online in advance.

If you haven't driven in Italy before:

• Many cities limit traffic in their historic cores to registered local vehicles, and there may be other areas like bus lanes where you aren't permitted to drive. Failure to observe those restrictions will result in a flurry of very expensive traffic tickets months after you return home (times 3!). All drivers and navigators should read and internalize the contents of the appropriate chapter of the Italy guidebook(s) being used.
• I don't know anything about the situation on the back roads, which is probably where most of your driving will be done, but Italy is notorious for having traffic cameras that measure not only speed as you pass them but also speed between cameras (km vs. elapsed time). Photos taken by either or both can result in traffic fines months later. There is very little wiggle room there--not nearly as much as you get on the typical US highway. Best never to exceed the speed limit even slightly.
• All potential drivers need to get International Driving Permits from AAA and take them to Italy along with their US licenses. If you're stopped by the police and don't have those documents, the fine will probably be in the hundreds of euros.
• Cars nominally suitable for 3 or 4 adult passengers may not have trunk space for 3 or 4 passengers' luggage.
• Heed the warning of Marissa Castelli's recent experience in San Francisco: Leave nothing visible in the car when you stop for lunch or sightseeing along the way. Anything going into the trunk should be put there before you park. Thefts from tourists' parked cars has been an issue, at least in southern Europe, for decades.

Any of your group who haven't been to Europe/Italy recently should familiarize themselves with the various scams a tourist can encounter these days. The Rick Steves website is a good source.

Beating the security lines and other tips for dealing with extremely popular destinations like Florence is often discussed on the RS forum. I've linked to the Italian forum in case you want to scroll backward, looking for relevant thread titles. The search function on that website is not very good. I often use Google instead, using "ricksteves.com/travel-forum" as part of the search string.

 

[SandraMGfan]

In terms of tourist attractions, I haven’t been to the Churchill War Rooms, but I keep meaning to go.

I highly recommend this - those are the real rooms and still set up as it was back in 1945. Warning if you are claustrophobic though - ceilings are low and corridors very narrow!

 

[NinjaTurtles]

Florence:
We are staying at the Sine Villa Medici. Anyone have lunch/dinner recommendations? I used to go to one of the Garga restaurants back in the 90s, but the son has taken over from the father. Still good? I am told the hotel is a bit out of the center, but it was available with my employee discount and we don't mind walking or taking a taxi.

All' Antico Vinaio is an amazing sandwich shop with cured meats. La Carraia is my favorite gelateria in Florence, particularly their sorbetto.

 

[Rob]

thanks everyone!