I have been to Volterra. It was incredibly quaint. We toured the museum (I think it’s the Etruscan museum… I’m not quite sure). It was a little kitchy, but inexpensive, informative, and fun. The town is famous for alabaster and there were lots of lovely shops selling it. We didn’t buy much, but had fun looking. Overall, we spent the morning walking around and taking in the atmosphere. There’s aren’t a lot of “sights” or “attractions.” It’s the kind of place you go to relax and soak up the environment. It was also refreshing to visit a place that wasn’t overcrowded with tourists. I had a wonderful time but did not spend the entire day there. I rented a car and explored Volterra and San Gimignano in the same day.

I have been to Volterra!!! It really stuck with me. Partly because I went there thinking I was going to stay in a hostel (I was studying in Rome at the time) but had no reservation, got there and the hostel no longer existed. All the hotels were booked up, so I tried to get a bus out of town, and all busses were done for the night. I almost slept on the street! But a bartender had pity on me and somehow got me the last room in a fancy hotel. I charged it to my mom, it was my one random “emergency” charge of my semester in Europe! As it turned out, I liked Volterra very very much and I ended staying at least one more night, i think actually two. What did I like about it so much? Hmm, its very enchanting—its quite medieval in a beautifully preserved way. And some of the old medieval towns looks kinda gloomy, but not Volterra.

The town is on a cliff, there are some amazing views. There is a castle. There are ancient etruscan arches. It’s not overrun with people/tourists, so it feels very small and authentic (at least when I was there in 2001) and kinda feels like you’re transported in time. I also fell madly in love a soup called Ribolita, a bread and bean soup. I ate it every day in several different restaurants. The people were very nice. (Though I spoke Italian, I’m not sure if they knew English.)

I would recommend it, especially as a place that is off the beaten path. Of all the places in Italy that I travelled to, Volterra felt the least touristy and most interesting in an “undiscovered” kind of way.

Would it be feasible to do Volterra and San Gimignano in the same day using buses or would t be better to rent a car.
I’d probably be going from Florence nd would probably like to return to same day.

Hi Beckvanr,
I don’t think you’d be able to both in one day. Maybe if you took a very early bus to one and then midday but to another….I don’t recall if they are directly connected by bus. I believed entered Volterra via Pisa on bus and it wasn’t super efficient or easy. But not sure you’d really want to do that….it’s too much rushing, not enjoying. It’s true they are both small towns without loads of official must-see sights, but half a day doesn’t really do them justice either.