Tuscany e-bike tours

Massimo Chellini

Founder

I was born in Montespertoli and have always lived there, cultivating my passion for cycling and hiking. I promote events about our authentic Tuscan culture and the rural world. I help organize playful events in the fields of sports and environmental education. I furthermore keep myself busy with theatre, representing all the sentiments I nourish for this beautiful part of Tuscany.

 

 


Paolo Gennai

Nature and historic guide

I was born in the countryside of Val d’Elsa and after finishing my history study at the University of Florence, I continued studying the history of science and technology, specifically in the field of mining and iron metallurgy in Tuscany. From here I went on researching the social side, reconstructing social-political community and family affairs and looking into groups with power in Tuscany, always linking the findings to the Tuscany territory. I walked the whole of Tuscany and a lot of the rest of the centre of Italy, especially the Apennines, thus acquiring the title and license of ‘Nature and historic guide’. In the past few years I dedicated myself to studying the landscape and setting up environmental projects, collaborating daily with architects, geologists, geographers, the forestry corps, agronomists, architectural archeologists and anthropologists. A multidisciplinary way of working which I believe is essential. I wrote several publications, some historical and others are hiking guides, biking guides and guides aimed at understanding the environment surrounding us. Right now I work as a nature and history tour guide as well as being a museum director. I live in Carmignano, in the province of Prato and work mostly in Central and Southern Tuscany.

Some of the books about Tuscany I wrote or co-authored.

 


Silvia Napoleone

Silvia tour guide Tuscany

My name is Silvia, I was born in 1990 and I grew up in the countryside in the middle of Chianti, between Florence and Siena. I obtained my walking/nature-guide licence in 2014 and I speak three languages: Italian, my mother tongue; English, which I studied during a six month experience in Ireland; Swiss German, which I have spoken since birth as my mother is Swiss. My travels have enabled me to see the world through the eyes of a tourist and gain an understanding of how much a genuine experience can mean. I really appreciate meeting people from every part of the world and helping them discover Tuscany in a simple, natural way as I have done up until now and still do every day! My passions are quite simply: sharing special moments with like-minded people and revealing how people and the environment have co-existed over the centuries in this part of Italy. I wish all tourists who come to visit Tuscany an enjoyable stay and I look forward to seeing you.


 

Tuscany is worldwide renowned for its scenic countryside. The Tuscan hills are fruit of the beauty, harmony and art of the Renaissance, the period in which Tuscany was transformed into this open air museum we still enjoy today. 

Toscana by bike organizes e-bike tours and ebike rentals. Tours in the Tuscan hills on electric power assisted bicycles (also called hybrid bicycles, booster bicycles or bicycles with helper motor), with qualified and enthusiastic guides or on your own with good maps to guide you.

Our e-bike tours are in the area between Florence, Siena and Pisa, an area filled with history, beauty and excellent gastronomy, like olive oil, wine, saffron, cheese and meats.

Guided tours on power assisted bicycles in Tuscany

Taking part in our e-bike excursions (or renting an ebike and doing a self guided tour) will give you the opportunity to fully enjoy the legendary Tuscan landscape, while easily pedaling on your bicycle with helper motor, even when going up hill. On an e-bike you will have full attention available for the rich, historical and interesting itineraries we propose.

With our e-bike tours in Tuscany, anybody can discover the beauty of this historic land. No need to be a cyclist, health fanatic or in any way trained to do sports. With our ebike tours you can fully experience the beauty and peace of Tuscany, becoming aware of the meaning of the surroundings and the things that move us. A unique way to be in harmony with nature while getting a real understanding of how it all came to be.

TOSCANA by BIKE ... a new way to discover Tuscany

 


The transcript of the video in English is:

Toscanabybike is a group of enthusiasts who have decided to work together and create cultural and entertaining tours for tourists visiting Tuscany. There is no need to have any vocation for cycling.

Toscanabybike offers e-bike tours, on bicycles with helper motor. Small groups of up to ten people are guided by an experienced authorized guide who knows all aspects of the region.

An e-bike is a bicycle with helper motor, consisting of the electric motor, a battery and a software handling the pedal power. This way one can cycle without effort. Cycling this way feels like cycling on flat land, while enjoying the beautiful views from our hill tops.

The presence of a guide will help open up and understand the Tuscan landscape in all its aspects. We will also taste some locally produced wines and food.

Toscanabybike offers various tours but they are all united by one logic: moving slowly through the landscape, understanding its characteristics while relaxing completely.

We have tours that focus more on nature, others focus more on architecture or the landscape, but all have stops where we will learn to understand and appreciate what surrounds us.

 

 

 

 

Authentic Tuscany bike tour

This e-bike tour is an ideal day trip from Florence for those who would like to see a little bit of everything Tuscan.

On this tour you will see the beautiful Tuscan hills, some old churches, farmhouses and villa-farms that once reigned vast areas of Tuscany and turned the landscape in what we still see today. We will mostly take smaller roads with very little traffic and no tourism. We will pass olive groves, vineyards, some woodland. You will be immersed in the famous Tuscan countryside and see it the way some Renaissance painters immortalized it.

This tour can included a stop for a wine and olive oli tasting at an ancient winery and a stop for a light lunch in a simple but authentic local deli, or a fantastic experience for a lunch and olive oil and wine tasting at an authentic family farm, to taste their products " Farm to table" exclusively for us.

This tour is meant to give visitors to Florence a break, one day outside Florence in the open air with the stories about Tuscan's past that will nurture your mind.

The e-bike tour starts at 10.15 in Montespertoli and finishes around 15.00 hrs. There are direct buses from Florence at 09.15 hrs arriving in Montespertoli at 9.55 hrs. The bus back leaves at 16.00 hrs (arriving in Florence central station around 16.50 hrs).

Our prices are listed on the price page.

 

 

 

 

We have started offering tours in May 2015, therefore we do not yet have a lot of feedback. We do hope you will come on a guided e-bike tour with and will leave some comments so this part of the website will soon be filled with opinions about our services.

What they say about us

 

RENTAL

We had a wonderful time cruising around the lovely cities surrounding Montespertoli. It was a great way of really enjoying the beautiful landscape and making stops whenever we felt like.
The Toscana-by-bike-team was super helpful with giving directions and preparing us for a day by bike.
The E-Bikes were in good shape and perfect for exploring even steep hills characteristic for this area.

Alena

 

Experiencing Toscane with a bike or e-bike is just amazing.
It is worth to try it!
Also the service is very good! The man who is responsible for the bikes is a very kind man and has the heart on the right place! And also the bikes/e-bikes are in excellent condition.
Linda
Belgium

 

Guided tours July 2015 

After having returned from our holidays, we would like to express our thanks for the wonderful bike tour around Montespertoli. It was a great experience of discovering this piece of Tuscany by (the perfectly equipped) e-bike, while being told interesting background stories on the country by you.
Thanks again,
Hermann-Josef
Germany

 

We did a biking trip with ebike toscana and realy enjoyed it so much. New mountainbikes in perfect condition, very interesting stories on the surroundings, delicious food, nice biking and good company.
The biking guides really knew what they were doing, knew everything on the history of the region and were extremely friendly.
We would realy recommend going on a trip with toscanaebike since it was really one of the best trips of our holiday in Italy.
Izaak 
The Netherlands

 

When it comes to experiencing rural Toscana nothing can really compare to riding through it in the late afternoon hours.
The team at Toscana by Bike made this experience even more memorable by adding to it friendly attention to details, well kept (and new) equipment and personal guidance.
The electric-assisted bikes proved a blessing over the steep hills of Toscana and the nice snack and wine at a local house acted as the cherry on the top of a very nice experience.
Dan
Israel

 

We had an wonderful e-bike tour in July 2015 with a group of Dutch friends. The beautifull landscape and perfect e-bikes (brand new!) together with the guides made our tour unforgettable.
We had an Italian guide and Willemijn translated everything in perfect Dutch.
Now we know a lot more about Tuscany and e-bikes.
We will come back in 2 years!

Jorien en Henk
The Netherlands 

Guided tours June 2015

My 14 year old daughter and I recently spent a wonderful and enjoyable day riding through the beauty and peace of Tuscany..  we loved it!  It was a great way to experience the Tuscany landscape and culture. Our extremely knowledge guides entertained us with stories and history of the region, took us to little churches, through wineries and olive groves. We stopped and had lunch with the owner and his son in a renovated monestary turned winery, loved this part! And let me just say, the addition of the motor in the e-bike was an awesome, unique and very welcome addition to the ride, especially for the few uphill climbs. Paolo, Willemijn and Massimo, thank you for a fabulous and memorable experience. We are grateful.
Shannon
USA

Guided tours of May 2015

I had the good fortune of being part of a very informative and enjoyeable bike trip offered through Toscanabybike .
I have been on many other bike tours but this one was superior in many ways:
1) The tour guide was extremely knowledgeable with the history and culture of italy and the surrounding area, in addition to being very personable and fun.
2) The e-bikes and helmets were of high quality, safe and easy to learn.
3) The wine and olive oil tour and lunch were the very best That i have had on a tour.
4) The views were breathtaking and the sites we saw very interesting.  I would definitely recommend this tour company.
Thank you  Paul and Massimo for all the wonderful conversations and the lovely day.
Beverly
Vancouver, Canada

 

Friday the 8th of may I joined the guided tour of Massimo and Paulo through the beautiful hills around San Quirico. 
We rode the tour on excellent e-bikes of Massimo, starting at 10:30 am. We visited  an old farmers house, a ‘fattoria”, a very old water-mill and a beautiful hidden garden. 
The explanation of the history and cultural setting was marvelous and openend new insights for me. Surprising! 
We had small wine tasting at the famous ‘fattoria’, which consumed perhaps too much time, though I enjoyed it.  
Lunch was pleasant and good and the company was great. Very good and interesting conversations. 
It seems to me that the tour is attracting interesting people. 
Though I am 60 and not a trained biker, I managed very well, even in rather rough areas.

Remko, The Netherlands 

Cycling to Florence city centre

Words fall short to describe this unique experience ... cycling from the Tuscan countryside into Florence. The video below does give a slight impression, but the e-bike tour in real life is many times better. The colors, sounds, details and perfumes of the Tuscan countryside we will be passing through form an overwhelming experience.

 

 

We leave Montespertoli around 10.15 in the morning and cycle on e-bikes (power assisted bicycles) mostly on smaller roads. E-bikes are an ideal solution to cycling in the hills, even for those who do little sport. The roads are all good and easy to ride. We stop along the route in beautiful places to explain about Tuscany and the tour we are doing. Half way we will have a typical local snack or ice cream (depending on your preferences).

Then around Florence we get onto little known alleys, passing villas and stone walls until we get to a tiny square with very nice view over the centre of Florence. From there we continue to the centre to a point where our bus can pick the e-bikes up (including you in case you would like to return to Montespertoli). 

This is absolutely guaranteed a special day out and a unique experience.

The e-bike tour into Florence starts around 10.15 and finishes between 13.00 and 14.00 hrs in Florence.

 

 

 

The prices for the tours are:

The e-bike tour to the centre of Florence: from 130 Euro per person

Authentic Tuscany e-bike and wine tasting tour: from 130 Euro per person

Sunset e-bike tours: from 80 Euro per person, minimum group size is 4 people

 

We are very happy to send you a proposal for a custom made tour. Please contact us.

 

After a day of sightseeing or a day relaxing by the pool, come join us on a short e-bike tour through a beautiful part of Tuscany. 

Our sunset tours leave from Montespertoli between 16.00 and 18.00 hrs, depending on the season. The light is getting softer and shadows longer. A wonderful time of the day to enjoy the Tuscan countryside and doing so on our e-bikes guarantees you will relax and enjoy nature.

 

 

 

An e-bike is a bicycle with helper motor, also called 'pedelec' in some parts of the world, or 'electric bicycle'. Cycling on an e-bike in our Tuscan hills is a lovely experience because you will not be plagued by fatigue and can get to the top of every hill. 

We will stop at the most panoramic points and explain about the history and how Tuscany came to be this spectacularly beautiful. 

The tour can include a snack at a bottega, freshly prepared with local foods. Otherwise we can have a picnic in a panoramic spot.
A bottega is a small shop where they sell everything from cleaning materials to fresh bread. Before the advent of the big supermarkets, every little town would have a bottega and community life evolved around them. 

We will then return to Montespertoli and will be back before dark.

In case you prefer to do this short tour in the morning, we can arrange this as well (for groups of at least 4 people), depending on our availability.

Upon request we can pick you up and drop you off in Florence or where you are staying. 

The prices can be found on our prices & booking page 

 

 

 

 

We have e-bikes of excellent quality, guaranteeing a stable ride and good power for the up-hill stretches. Our e-bikes are casual and easy to ride for anybody, with any level of fitness. Trying is believing! 

We have several types of ebikes. A few for children (read about ebike family trips here: Tuscany ebike with children), several touring ebikes with low step in (like the Canondale in the picture below) and many ebike of the Mountain Bike type that are comfortable both for on road and off road tours.

KTM ebikes for use in Tuscany tours and rentals

The batteries are all high technology ones that guarantee to last up to 50 km in the Tuscan hills. Our tours and self guided itineraries are not over 40 kms, so you will be perfectly fine with these electric Mountain Bikes (e-MTB). We have big broad tires with high profile that give even more stability on the gravel roads we also take, both down hill as well as up hill.

We love our power assisted bicycles and are very sure you will too. We have tested the e-bikes extensively and are very confident of the quality, power and durability.

The Conway and KTM e-bikes are the last we have added (see pdf with specifications)

 

You can have a look at our older ebikes e-MTB specifications here (pdf 166 KB). 

Apart from the MTB types of e-bikes we also have a few touring bike electric bikes. These can only be used on tar roads. The trekking e-bikes have fewer gears, but have great power to get everybody up the hill just the same. These bikes are ideal for elder people or those who are a bit less flexible for getting on and off the e-bike.

E-biking with a family or children

Toscana by Bike has several solutions to go biking with a family. Pictures and more information can be found here: 
Tuscany ebike with children

So do get in touch in case you would like to do a self guided bike tour with your family, or rent a few bikes for the day!

 

We have made a few video's of our tours and more are to follow.

We use a GoPro videocamera mounted on the handlebar.

The latest video's are on top. Here you can find the Toscana by Bike video channel on YouTube.

 

A sunset e-bike tour we did with a family of 5

 

Sunset e-bike tour

 

Preparation for one of our tours in spring

 

The e-bike tour transhumance style, taking all bikes to our new shop in Montespertoli.

 

Paolo Gennai, the guide who will accompany you on the tours, wrote several books about Tuscany. 

Quando il Paesaggio si fa Museo

5 walks in Tuscany, in the Valdelsa (Elsa Valley).
Language: Italian
You can buy this book in the library of Montespertoli (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; sito web)

 

Barberino Val d'Elsa

Il Cuore della Toscana Collinare
The heart of the hilly Tuscany 
A bilingual guide to the territory of Barberino, from the Etruscans to the Middle Ages and Renaissance.
You can buy the book at Editori dell'Acero (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.sito web)

 

Acqua e Paesaggi della Memoria a Montespertoli

A book about how the need for water shaped the Tuscan communities, with 4 walks.
Language: Italian
This book can be requested at Tourist Information Montespertoli (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.sito web)

 

Roccastrada e il Suo Territorio

Insediamenti, Arte, Storia, Economia
Language: Italian
The book can be bought at: Editori dell'Acero (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.sito-web)

 

Toscana Ignota

Il Senso di un Territorio in 64 escursioni
(Unknown Tuscany; The sense of a  land in 64 excursions)
Language: Italian
You can purchase this book here: M.I.R. Edizioni (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; sito-web)

 

Unbekannte Toscana

Die Toscana Erleben in 34 Exkursionen
Language: German
This is a part of 'Toscana Ignota' translated in German.
You can purchase this book here: M.I.R. Edizioni (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; sito-web)

 

Volterra Mater

Walking and cycling in the antique Diocesi
Language: Italian
You can buy the book here: M.I.R. Edizioni (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; sito-web)

 

Il Condotto 'Reale' di Carmignano e Poggio a Caiano

(A book about water, describing an old water pipe)
Language: Italian
You can richest a copy of the book here: Ufficio cultura, Comune di Carmignano (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.sito-web)

 

La Villa e la strada regia

Il libro ripercorre la nascita del borgo di Poggio a Caiano, nato ai piedi dell'omonima villa medicea e da questa profondamente influenzato nelle sue dinamiche insediative, urbanistiche e paesaggistiche. La presenza continuativa del potere reale, e di una viabilità adeguata alla sua importanza, per così tanto tempo ha determinato nella micro società del luogo uno sviluppo sociale a antropologico del tutto particolare i cui tratti sono ancora oggi facilmente individuabili.
Lingua: Italiano
Lo puoi acquistare richiedentolo a: Ufficio cultura di Poggio a Caiano (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; sito-web)

 

Le Scuderie di Poggio a Caiano

Nel libro si ripercorre la storia nazionale da dopo l'Unità ad oggi attraverso il filtro delle vicissitudini, degli usi e delle funzioni assunte nel tempo da un monumento quale le scuderie della villa medicea di Poggio a Caiano. Un annesso solo a prima vista secondario se si pensa al valore anche simbolico che il cavallo e la carrozza, parte integrante di ogni corte reale, hanno avuto nella società pre-industriale prima dell'avvento del treno e dell'automobile.
Lingua: Italiano
Lo puoi acquistare richiedentolo a: Ufficio cultura di Poggio a Caiano (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; sito-web)

 

 

Toscana by Bike has a large number of e-bikes available and we can organise even more through a colleague we often work with. Therefore, we can accommodate group for tours. This could be for a weddings, an anniversary celebration or for team building events in Tuscany.

We have a van and bike trailer and can bring the ebikes to the place you wish, in case you prefer to start cycling from your base and not from our shop. Upon request we can organise nice tours outside our area and make sure your group bike trip will have a nice scenic and tranquil route (slightly depending on where you are based). 

When we organise group e-bike tours, we always come along with our van in case of problems, offering technical support along the way. Also we can add one or more guides to the group to make sure everybody knows how to use the ebike and gets up the hills well (sometimes this does take a little bit of explanation, especially for those who rarely cycle).

A very nice tour, for groups that have their own transport arranged, is to start at our shop and cycle to San Gimignano, passing Certaldo. Both are very old cities worth visiting and approaching them on an ebike is really lovely, because you can see the towns from different angles, slowly getting closer. A wonderful experience. You can be picked up by bus from San Gimignano and we will take care of the ebikes. 

Some pictures of groups from last year: