Tuscany Bike Tours

What Tuscany Bike Tours is and where it operates

Tuscany Bike Tours runs its own guided bike, e-bike and Vespa tours "just south of Florence in the heart of the Chianti wine region," plus a city bike tour in Florence and rides out to San Gimignano and the Via Francigena. The company behind it is Active Tours Italy S.r.l., at Via Ghibellina, 34-rosso, 50122 Firenze, with VAT number (P.IVA) 06053470487 in the footer. The about page says Keith and Andy founded Tuscany Bike Tours in 2007. Alessio, born in Florence in 1985, studied business and hospitality at the University of Florence, gained the Technical Director qualification that the site says is mandatory to open a travel agency in Italy, and joined the company after meeting the founders; in 2014 his friend Filippo joined him as co-owner of Active Tours Italy, which the about page says provides both Tuscany Bike Tours and Tuscany Vespa Tours. Filippo graduated in Business Administration in 2011 and worked as an auditor for Deloitte and a merchandising planner for Prada before spending 6 months traveling and working in Australia. The homepage sums up the countryside tours this way: "authentic Tuscan lunch, wine and extra virgin olive oil tasting, discover old villas and 12th century castles."

The range of tours

The menu splits the offer into cycling tours, e-bike tours, Vespa tours, private tours, other tours and Vespa rental. The tour list in the footer names the Tuscany Bike Tours day ride, the Best of Chianti Classico E-Bike Tour, the Chianti Classico E-Bike Tour, the Chianti to San Gimignano Bike Tour and its e-bike version, a San Gimignano Bike Tour marked "Soft," and Discover the Via Francigena and San Gimignano on an E-Bike. Vespa options are the Tuscany Vespa Tours and the Tuscany Sunset Vespa Tour, and the private options are a Private Tuscany Sunset Bike Tour, a Private Florence City Bike Tour and a Private wine tour with cooking experience for a maximum of 8 people.

Prices appear for the Vespa tours and the private wine tour. The Vespa page lists its tours "From € 95," with Chianti wine, extra virgin olive oil and a traditional Tuscan lunch, and sells them on the line "Live 'La Dolce Vita' with us" through the Chianti Colli Fiorentini. The sunset version rides among vineyards and olive groves at dusk; guests meet the guide at the office and are transferred to the start in the Chianti Colli Fiorentini. The private wine tour with cooking experience is listed from €700 and described as "a fully private experience, ideal for couples, families, and small groups." For independent riders, the site rents original Vespa Primavera scooters and stresses that "all our Vespas are AUTOMATIC."

One point is worth noting before booking: the homepage says "on our countryside tours we offer one wine and extra virgin olive oil tasting," so a countryside day includes a single tasting stop rather than a series of wineries.

What the day is like

The site says all tours "are led by fun, engaging and professional guides that will tend to your every need." The guestbook on the homepage fills in the rest, in the customers' own words. One reviewer describes starting with a castle tour where the guide explained the history of wine production, followed by a tasting and "a challenging but incredibly enjoyable bike ride around 25km." Another says that on the countryside ride guests who did not want to push themselves could "skip the hill climb and ride the van to the top," and about half the group did. A third calls the staff "very friendly and mindful of safety measures on the road"; that is a guest's view, not a claim the company makes. Guides named in the reviews include Alessio, Mario, Tom, Angus and Jacopo.

For the Vespa tours, reviewers who had never ridden a scooter say the guides teach riders in a parking lot before going on the road, and one says the team "quickly rearranged the tour due to impending rain." A solo traveler on the Florence city bike tour writes that the tour went ahead with just one guest and that rescheduling to another day at short notice was possible. Another Vespa couple writes that they were the only 2 guests that day, with one guide riding with them and a second, Jacopo, driving and leading the castle visit; a honeymooner describes the bike day as a welcome change of pace and some real exercise after days of sightseeing in Florence. Several reviews mention the castle visit with the wine and olive oil tasting and a lunch that one guest called the best pasta of the trip.

Booking and contact

Tours are booked through Book now buttons on the site, and there is an FAQs page and a Terms & Conditions link in the menu and footer. The contact details are +393382642431 and biketourbookings@gmail.com, with a second company address, activetoursitaly@legalmail.it. The about page has a contact form. Private tours are offered "for small groups, families or individuals."

What remains unsettled

The site shows no price for the bike and e-bike day tours where it lists them, and it does not give distances, elevation or start times per tour; the 25km figure comes from a single review. Group size limits are stated only for the private wine tour. Cancellation and deposit terms are not given on the tour pages; the FAQs and Terms & Conditions are separate pages. Rental prices and conditions for the Vespa Primavera are not shown, and the site does not say what riding license a Vespa tour or rental requires. It also does not say which languages guides use or whether children can join.

Who it suits

Tuscany Bike Tours suits visitors staying in Florence who want a day in Chianti built around a ride, a castle tasting and a Tuscan lunch, with an e-bike or a van-assisted climb as a softer option, and couples who want to try an automatic Vespa among the vineyards. Families and small groups can go private, including the cooking day. Riders who want a long, demanding road route or a full winery crawl should look at the details closely, since the countryside tours include one tasting and distances are not published.