[Erie Von Otto]

Going to be here for a few days and I was wondering if there was anything close by Florence area that would be cool car wise. Id like to take the boy to a track or museum or something fun/memory maker for him and I... Any ideas? Thanks!

[Kwando]

Renting a car? Drive to Moden/Maranello (1.5hrs) or if not then take the train to Modena, then cab to Maranello to the Ferrari factory. Then pop over to Sant'Agata Bolognese to the Lamborghini factory. End it with the Pagani factory in San Cesario Sul Panaro..yea perhaps you should rent a car for a day or two.

[KingOfJericho]

Rent a car. Driving in Italy is not hard (there are no rules) so I would highly suggest it. Speaking from experience... Ferrari was a complete waste of time. It's a museum with many new Ferraris peppered with a few older models but that alone is not worth the trip at all. You can only tour the factory if you arrange it through your dealer and you must own a car to do so.

What is definitely worth the price of admission is the Lamborghini factory. The tour is something like 45euro but worth every dime. They may be retooling a bit for the Gallardo replacement but that factory tour was a highlight of my trip. I can't speak for Pagani but I did also take the tour at Ducati. If you're into bikes, it's pretty cool. All of these factories are within a half hour of each other. The email to set up the tour at Lambo is visit@lamborghini.com. Enjoy!

While you have the car rented, I would hit Siena. It's a beautiful little town that my wife and I loved. Pisa is also not too far from you but I've heard that all there really is is the leaning tower and every town's towers seem to lean in Italy.

[Erie Von Otto]

Thanks for the great ideas! I have sent the email to Lamborghini, but I do not think it looks good for us. On their website it says tours are booked through Oct and that no tours are available in August... Well... I can only hope we get lucky. At a minimum, I think we can still hit the museum and then go across the way to Pagani which is my sons favorite car in GT5... Ill have to check their site for times as well.

We are going to Siena tomorrow by train from Empoli. I drove down from Germany so we have a car to get around with, but with all the dents/scratches/missing bumpers Im seeing, I am nervous to drive in the larger cities to say the least... But, thank you for the tips, I had not even thought of Pagani! Many many thanks!

[Titanium3er]

I enjoyed the Ferrari and Ducati tours. I didn't make it to Lamborghini.

Skip Pisa unless you're really into that stuff. It's the epitome of a tourist attraction.

[TSM330i]

Hi,
Personally I'd skip Sienna. WAY overrated IMHO! It's a pain to park and it's in the middle of nowhere and once you finally get there - you're like "That's it?"
We went to the Ferrari museum and had fun. I'd say it's worth it just because you're in Modena and have a chance to see actual F1 cars up close. Very good balsamic vinegar there as well (Modena).

I would say if you're into doing something with cars - just get off the autostrada and drive through the back country. You're in Tuscany already - enjoy the scenary.

FYI on the Lambo tours - many companies have shut downs at certain times of the year. Kids have different school schedules than they do here in the states. I know in Germany many places shut down because it's a long school break and many people go on vacation.

[KingOfJericho]

Yeah pretty much all of Italy shuts down for much of August.

[hudamang]

I love Firenze! Tuscany region in Italy is so beautiful. When will you be in Florence? There's so much to do in this area that doesn't require a car. A lot of places are closed in August but if you aren't going in August then:

1) Eat at Mario's in Florence. Delicious home made foods.
2) Uffizi, Statue of David...
3) If you like wine or are going there with someone special, I would definitely recommend renting a car after exploring Florence and drive to Chianti Classico region, Siena, and possibly Montalcino. I think Montalcino was my favorite place in Italy. High up in altitute with beautiful views of vineyards, I can only dream of retiring there one day.

Siena has so much history to it that I didn't find it boring at all. It was cool eating at a restaurant and going down to their wine cellar that they "discovered" while doing a renovation. Here in the US, a house that's 80 years old is considered a historical landmark haha but over there, I was eating in buildings older than the Constitution. We went to a winery that had a building built in the 1400s.

The funny thing is I rented the cheapest car in Florence and when I went to the counter, they asked if I knew how to drive Automatic. I guess no one wanted the auto car so they upgraded my ride to a C Class Mercedes for the week.

Enjoy! And go eat some great food. The olive oil in Tuscany is to die for.

[ShopVac]

My 13 year old was there two days ago...you just missed him.

Wish I was there

[nycbr]

+1 on the Ducati factory. But if you drive be careful of license plate cameras - they are everywhere! And they automatically get charged to the credit card used to rent the car. Someone in my office had to cancel their credit card because of that (and can probably never go back to Italy!)

Florence is a beautiful city. Great steaks! If you go to see Michalengelo's David be sure to find his unfinished sculptures there. Amazing to see

[Erie Von Otto]

Thanks to the tips, we were able to get to the Ferrari Museum and the Pagani Factory tour. Time ran out before we were able to get to the Lamborghini museum unfortunately (they close for lunch), but my boy was thrilled and that was the point of it. He didnt stop smiling the entire time at Pagani. That place is cool, the tour guides were cool (and hot) and very knowledgeable. They are moving locations at the moment so we got to see both facilities. One was where they were assembling the Huayra (South American God of Wind) and we saw about four in progress. They said it takes about 6 months to produce one from start to finish and they are planning on manufacturing about 40 per year starting next year. The cars were phenomenal at both places. If you find yourself in the Modena area, make it a point to visit them.

Another thing to keep in mind when coming to Italy, August is the big Euro vacation month and you'll find a lot of places closed for holidays such as the Harley dealership (my friend gets no t-shirt) and they have the extensive lunch shut downs (1230-1600) unless at a major touristy place. But Italy is laid back, beautiful, great food and people, amazing architecture and I believe we will come here again. Maybe Roma...

Thanks again!

A few crappy iPhone pix because in our excitement, we forgot the proper camera... Yes, I know...