Last updated: October 2026
Tuscany has a reputation. Villas with infinity pools, wine tastings, boutique hotels. Lovely. Not cheap.
But the Tuscany I know best is the one in the hills, where lunch is a plate of pasta and a glass of the local red, and the bill doesn’t make you wince. Here’s how to have a fab time without the eye-watering bill.
1. Pick your month
The single biggest saving is when you go. July, August, Easter and the big festival dates are the priciest. Come in May, late September, October, or the quiet months from November to March (Christmas and New Year aside), and rooms and car hire are usually much cheaper.
My month by month guide helps you pick.
2. Stay out of the honeypots
A night in central Florence or inside Siena’s walls usually costs a lot more than one in a smaller town on the train line. Base yourself in Pistoia, Pescia, Montecatini Terme or Lucca’s outskirts and hop on a train for the day.
Or rent a house in a village with a group or family and cook some meals. Have a look at where to stay: villages, towns or an agriturismo.
3. Use regional trains
Regional trains have fixed fares (no surge pricing), and Tuscany’s network links most of the big sights: Florence, Pisa, Lucca, Pistoia, Siena, Arezzo and the coast. Children aged 4 to 11 pay half price on regional trains in Tuscany, and under 4s go free with an adult.
For fast trains (Frecciarossa and Italo), book ahead. The cheapest fares go first. My train guide explains it all, including how to avoid a fine for not stamping your ticket.
4. Don’t get fined
Speaking of fines: the most expensive souvenir in Tuscany is a ZTL ticket, posted to you months later. Read my driving guide before you hire a car.
5. Free museum Sundays
On the first Sunday of every month, state museums and sites across Italy are free (it’s called Domenica al museo). In Florence that includes the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens. You can’t book for the free days, so expect queues. Go early.
Churches are mostly free too, though some of the big ones charge.
6. Free beaches and free hot springs
The Versilia coast is lined with paid beach clubs, but every resort has free public beaches too. See my Versilia beach guide.
And some of Tuscany’s loveliest hot springs cost nothing: the waterfalls at Saturnia, the pools at Petriolo, Bagni San Filippo and the Bagno Grande at San Casciano dei Bagni. You may pay for parking. My hot springs guide has the details.
7. Eat like the locals
- Lunch is the bargain. Many trattorias do a set lunch menu (menu del giorno or menu fisso) on weekdays. Workers eat it. So should you.
- Stand at the bar. Coffee at the counter is usually cheaper than the same coffee at a table.
- Aperitivo. Buy a drink in the early evening and many bars bring snacks with it.
- Picnic. Pop into an alimentari (grocer’s) for bread, cheese, ham and fruit, and find a bench with a view.
- House wine. The vino della casa by the carafe is often perfectly good, and far cheaper than a bottle.
- Read the menu. The coperto (cover charge) and any service charge must be shown on the menu. Check before you sit.
My what to eat guide tells you which local dishes to look for.
8. Go to a sagra
A village food festival is the best value meal in Tuscany. Long tables, local cooks, home-made food, cheap wine, and often music. You’ll eat very well for very little, and you’ll be eating with the locals.
Here’s my sagre month by month.
9. Free things that are the best things anyway
- Walking (or cycling) round Lucca’s walls.
- Wandering a hill village. My Dieci Castella route links ten of them.
- Markets. Looking is free. See my market days guide.
- A sunset. Any hill, any village. Free.
10. Money basics
- Pay in euros. If a card machine or cash point offers to charge you in pounds, say no. Paying in euros is almost always cheaper.
- Use a card with no foreign fees. Shops and restaurants have to accept cards in Italy, but carry a little cash for village bars and sagre.
- The tourist tax (imposta di soggiorno) is charged per person per night in many comuni. You can’t avoid it, but check whether it’s included in your booking.
More in my money, tipping and opening hours guide.
Tuscany doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Some of the best days are the cheapest ones.
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Susan
