TRIP DETAILS   7 days   Dates: May 30-June 5, 2010 Arrival: Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy by 5:00 pm on Sunday, transfers from Chiusi train station are available   Departure: Spoleto, Umbria, Italy any time Saturday   Price: $2695 per person double occupancy.   Single: $480 This is an optional charge. If you would like to guarantee your own room, you can pay the single, if not OutWest can assign you a roommate.   Extras: $140 bike rental   Fitness Level:  moderate Accommodations: Il Marzocco Hotel Corys Hotel Brunamonti Hotel Clitunno Meals: 6 breakfasts, 4 lunches, 5 dinners (wine with most dinners)   Includes: 6 nights accommodations, double occupancy Van support and baggage transfers Walking tours of villages Activities per the itinerary English-speaking Italian guide throughout the trip Entrance fees Taxes Not included: International airfare, transportation to and from beginning and ending points of tour, alcoholic beverages (except wine at some dinners), gratuities, travel insurance, items of a personal nature like phone calls and laundry, bike rental, helmet.   Italy: Biking in Tuscany and Umbria May 30-June 5, 2010 In the center of Italy, Tuscany and Umbria offer the quintessential Italian experience. With over 10,000 years of human history, the region is a journey through the ages. You’ll discover Etruscan ruins, art from the Middle Ages, gothic villages, architecture from the Renaissance, as well as a modern European nation that prides itself on cutting edge technology, rich food, and contemporary fashion. On OutWest’s tour you’ll start in the hilltop village of Montepulciano. Then it’s biking through medieval villages in the Tuscan hills. Along the route to Umbria enjoy charming hotels, quaint villages, and scrumptious Italian food and wine. Highlights: biking through the Tuscan countryside staying in hilltop Medieval villages getting a spa treatment on your off day eating great food and drinking great wine   Not Yet Assigned We have not yet assigned a guide for ths trip. Rest assured that your guide will be competent, fun and friendly.

FULL ITINERARY:

The easiest way to get to Montepulciano is to take the train to Chiusi and transfer to a bus to Montepulciano. Those of you on the pre-tour package in Rome will have an OutWest trip leader with you. OutWest will provide detailed instruction on how to get to meet up with the group.
Accommodations: Il Marzocco

DAY TWO.  RIDING THROUGH WINE COUNTRY.  The Tuscan countryside is a patchwork of hay meadows, pastures with grazing sheep and cattle, fields of wildflowers, and quaint farmhouses. On the bike ride from Montepulciano we’ll go through the villages of Pienza and Bagno Vignoni.You’ll experience this pastoral setting as you pedal between villages with stops to enjoy food and drink. That afternoon we’ll be back in Montepulciano.
Accommodations: Il Marzocco

DAYS THREE AND FOUR.  CORTONA Today’s route brings us from the hilltop town of Montepulciano across a wide valley with relatively flat terrain, to the hillside town of Cortona. The Etruscans settled this town in the 8th century BC and the Romans later moved in. Like many Tuscan towns, a walking tour will bring us through piazzas, a Romanesque cathedral, and small pedestrian alleyways. We’ll be two nights in Cortona.

The second day in Cortona will feature riding around Trasimeno Lake, the fourth largest lake in Italy. Along the way, you can stop to visit a 13th century palace, take a stroll along one of the village promenades, stop for a drink at an outdoor café, or take a swim in the lake to cool down.
Accommodations: Hotel Corys

DAY FIVE.  UMBRIA: BEVAGNA. After transferring by van to the walled city of Assisi, we’ll make a stop to tour the town’s main plaza, cathedral, and roman ruins. The town is best known for being the home of St. Francis of Assisi. The bike journey will bring us along a route that borders a protected natural area. Our final destination is the small town of Bevagna.
Accommodations: Hotel Brunamonti

DAY SIX.  SPOLETO Best known for its Roman ruins, museums, and theater performances, Spoleto is a famous Italian cultural destination. Our biking route will bring us through the countryside and vineyard, to this city of 37,000 people.
Accommodations: Hotel Clitunno

DAY SEVEN.  ARRIVEDERCI!  This trip ends in Spoleto where you can take a train to Rome (1 1/2 hours) or Florence (2-3 hours) or other parts of Italy. Ciao!