Who is behind Florencetown
Florencetown is a brand. The company that runs it is TOWNS OF ITALY SRL, VAT number 01811660503, and that is the name that matters when you look for reviews, ask for an invoice or make a complaint. It is a tour operator registered with the Regione Toscana under number 255, licensed since 8 February 2007, and it has third-party liability insurance with Europ Assistance. These are guarantees worth checking before you trust an operator with a whole day.
According to the available information, the company was founded in 2006 and now also works in Rome, Milan, Venice, Pompeii and Sicily. The Florence office is at via de' Lamberti 1, between the Duomo and piazza della Signoria. You can reach it by phone on 055 281103 or by email at info@florencetown.com. It is open from 07:30 to 20:30 from April to September and from 07:30 to 18:00 from October to March.
Florencetown in Tuscany: the three main tours
Tuscany by Vespa
This is the flagship product. It costs €135 at list price, and when we last checked it was on offer at €118.80. It lasts 6 and a half hours and the group has a maximum of 20 people. Riders must be at least 18, passengers at least 13. The passenger age limit matters for families with teenagers: Walkabout Tours, for example, does not accept passengers under 18.
Chianti Wine & Olive Oil
A 7-hour day in Chianti devoted to wine and olive oil, at €149, again with a maximum of 20 people. To understand what to expect from a tasting in the area, read our pages on Tuscany wine tours and on olive oil.
Grand Tour of Siena and Pisa
A 12-hour day at €239, in a semi-private format with a maximum of 8 people. It costs about three times as much as a coach trip covering the same towns, but the group is six or seven times smaller. If you want Siena and Pisa in a day without the crush of a 50-seat coach, it is one of the few options with such a low cap.
Rain, meeting point and cancellation
The meeting point is at via dei Vagellai 22r, on the corner of piazza Mentana, near the Arno, not at the office in via de' Lamberti. Mark the right spot on your map the evening before.
In the rain, the rule is spelt out clearly. The Vespa tour is never cancelled because of rain. If you decide yourself not to go, you can change the date or receive a Rain Check, a voucher that can be passed on to someone else and is valid for one year. So no cash refund, but no money lost either.
On cancellation, however, the rules don't match. The individual tour listings give free cancellation up to 24 hours before. The company's general terms mention 48 hours for small groups and 8 days for private tours.
Florencetown reviews: the overall picture
Florencetown has no page on Trustpilot. Its reviews are on Tripadvisor, under the name Towns of Italy. When we last checked, the rating was about 4.8 from about 12,000 reviews, a very good result across a large volume, with no recurring complaint comparable to the large groups of other operators. The weak point lies in the company's own pages: the inconsistency over cancellation.
What to ask before booking
Florencetown's listings are complete on price, duration and group size, but a few things are worth having confirmed by email:
- the driving licence required to ride the Vespa, especially if yours was issued outside the European Union;
- what is included in the price, lunch and tastings included, so you can compare it like for like with the alternatives;
- the meeting time in via dei Vagellai, to be checked in your confirmation and not in an old email.
Together with confirmation of the cancellation deadline, a written reply will be useful if a dispute arises.
Florencetown or the others?
| Florencetown | Classic coach trip | |
|---|---|---|
| Group | max 20, max 8 on the Grand Tour | often 50 people or more |
| Price | €135–239 | usually under €100 |
| Operator | tour operator registered with the Regione | varies |
| Cancellation | 24 or 48 hours, to be confirmed | as per the listing |
If your problem is crowds, Florencetown solves it. If your problem is budget, a coach trip with Walkabout Tours or Sightseeing Experience costs much less. For Chianti by bike rather than by Vespa, there is Tuscany Bike Tours.
Who it suits
The score is 4 out of 5, the same as Walkabout and one more than Sightseeing Experience, which also has an uncertain cancellation rule. Here, though, everything else is solid and verifiable: a regional licence, insurance, a stated cap on participants and a high rating across a large volume of reviews. The point deducted is precisely for the cancellation rule you need to have confirmed, along with the price.
Yes for couples and small groups who want the Vespa in Chianti with a clear cap on participants, for families with teenagers aged 13 and over as passengers, and for anyone who wants Siena and Pisa in a day in a group of no more than 8.
No if you are looking for the lowest price, or if you often need to cancel and want simple rules without having to ask for confirmation.
Vespa alternatives on Tiqets and GetYourGuide
For comparison, here are two Vespa tours from Florence run by operators other than Florencetown, each with its own terms. Prices on the two platforms change often, and we keep them up to date.
From Florence: Tuscan Countryside Vespa Tour with Tastings
(813 reviews) from €150
Book on GetYourGuideAll the two-wheeled options are gathered on our page about cycling and Vespa tours in Tuscany, and the countryside you ride through is described on our page about Chianti.