Tuscany is one of our more popular destinations. For the past several years we have had the honor of working with Bruno Baldini and his wife Susanna Bottai. These two are our guides/concierge on our Tuscany bike tours – they meet and greet you, transfer your luggage from hotel to hotel, and are available for any help you may need. In fact, for the first day of our tours starting in Florence Bruno rides with you.
For 2015 we have expanded our offerings in Tuscany by creating shorter, more relaxed tours. For more casual riders, the hills of the region can be intimidating, so we created a set of itineraries that will appeal to those not wanting constant climbing. While we can’t remove the hills for you, we can shorten the riding days. Luckily Tuscany has so many great sites to see that the shorter routes will still give a full Tuscan holiday experience.
When I asked Bruno if he would like to contribute to our blog, he jumped at the opportunity. Below is a little history of Bruno and his love for his home – Tuscany.
Bruno: “Since I discovered the pleasure of bicycle riding about 25 years ago, my passion for cycling grew more and more through many different experiences : mountain biking, road biking, self-supported bicycle touring around the World.
Bruno & Susanna
It was in 2004 when I made the decision to turn my passion into work, thus becoming a certified freelance biking guide, the most beautiful and exciting work that I’ve ever done.
It was about 6 years later that I got in touch with Jamie Gilpin at Outfitter Bicycle Tours and began a collaboration for his bike tours in my home land: Tuscany.
Biking in Tuscany is a very rewarding experience, not only for the stunning beauty of its countryside, but also for the many sightseeing opportunities during the ride and for the relaxed atmosphere and quietness that you get here.
In such an idillic setting, Tuscan food is what makes the experience unique: a quick stop for a cappuccino during the morning is always a pleasure. As is a larger one with lunch, and one with a gelato. Then possibly wine tasting at the end of the ride!
And what about a possible cooking class in the afternoon where you cook the food you’ll eat for dinner?
The Relaxed Tuscany tours offered by Outfitter Bicycle Tours are particularly focused on an easy approach to the hilly Tuscan territory through relatively short stages on the bike, in order to have more time to visit the area you’re riding across (and more occasions to catch your breath during the climbs, too!).
These tours are ideal for beginners or for families or simply for all those people who just like to experience the scenic Tuscan hills riding a bicycle in a very easy and relaxed pace, taking their time to stop and explore.
The Heart Of Tuscany tours basically follow the same philosophy but are focused to cover more territory, so stages are longer and thus more demanding, even if still suitable to any cyclist with a minimum of km. in his legs.”
Come join us on one of our Tuscany bike tours!
