Is Tuscany very expensive and glamorous?

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Thinking of hoping there with the dc but dp has got it into his head that it's very posh(the problem being that we're not).

So what is it like?

But if youa re thinking of going in July or August don't even think about getting a mobile home without air con.

I love Tuscany but I don't think it's a great destination with young children - they find all that countryside/romantic villages/art a bit boring. It's also a very car-based holiday which I hate.

Tent?

Portofino did Albatross do transport to the nice beach?Also are there lots of interesting places near by we wouldn't want to miss and a car would be crucial for?

I love Italy and have had lots of holidays there. Tuscany is beautiful and so much to see....Venice, sienna, San Giminiano, Lucca, Pisa..Florence..all near to each other but probably not that interesting for little kids. Though in saying that Italians love kids and are really friendly. Plus wall to wall pizza and lovely ice cream always goes down well!

However it would seem a shame to go there and miss out on all the art and culture so unless your kids like that sort of thing, save Tuscany for later and go to another area of Italy for a holiday. You can get a good holiday down the coast from Sorrento but it is not cheap. Or try Sicily or Sardinia. Or forget the beach and do the Lakes. Garda is lovely, great boat trips, hotels with pools and a theme park! You can also camp there.

Good luck! Ps Try and learn just a bit of Italian, it really helps! Buon fortuna!

I'd definitely have a car, then you have the option of visiting Sienna, Florence and/or Pisa.

No transport to the other beach. To be honest I wouldn't do a tent there either - it was HOT. As someone said above - aircon is a must. We drove out the beach a couple of time, had a drive round some of the local villages one day - the rest of the time, we vegged at the pool. It wasn't an especially cultural holiday - or at least not that part of it (we stayed 10 days I think). But we did other stops in Bavaria, Austria, Valpolicella, Lake Como and Switzerland - so I was happy to do not very much to be fair.

Not sure about posh, but all of Italy is expensive. Especially the touristy bits.

I haven't been to Tuscany since 1992 and it about broke the bank then.

I would agree that it's not much fun for children. The culture (museums, galleries, etc etc) is wonderful of course, but not something I would have wanted to be hauled around as a child.

We went to Tuscany last year when our girls were 8 and 5 and we loved it. We got a great value apartment in a private villa with a private pool.

We didn't find it any more expensive to eat out than anywhere else and I wouldn't say it was glamorous as such but it is beautiful. You don't have to be posh to go there

I think it depends on your children as to whether they would enjoy it, our girls loved it but they enjoy seeing different places, museums etc. We did have a pool too so we had some days just relaxing there.

It does get very hot in the height of summer and you will need a car to get aorund but it is so worth it.

I agree with Melaniecheeks, it was quite remote and rural -lovely scenery but not lots of glamorous families wafting around like in the South of France.

We spent a lot of time driving around and were there when I was pregnant with dc1. Not sure I would go back just now with the ages my 3 are at the mo but maybe when they were a bit older.