Lovely part of the world - we went there on honeymoon. We stayed in a friend's place in one of the many small hilltop villages, which was lovely, but not exactly a tourist destination. We liked Pisa too.

My memory of the roads is that the motorway is fine except for some pretty large bumps and dips that can take you by surprise if you aren't ready for them!

Enjoy the trip - I'm guessing it will be hot!

San Gimignano in July will be absolutely packed, as will Florence. If you are into the museums, book slots for the Florence ones before you go, otherwise the queues will be huge.

Siena is beautiful and has some wonderful stuff to see, park in one of the car parks at the bottom of the hill below the town gates and walk in from there.

If you are staying near Lake Trasimeno, then Perugia and Orvieto are both well worth a visits on day trips and not so busy. Orvieto has the most beautiful cathedral.

Thanks that is very useful info Guys. I'm off to Florence in July with the family and museums are high on the visit list.

San Gimignano will be busy as said above but definitely worth a visit.
Florence and Pisa are worth a trip too but I thought the Duomo in Sienna was equally as impressive as Florence.
We had a new Panda 4x4 which was great fun to drive around in!

Edit:
There are lots of street sellers in Pisa.
We got mobbed by a bunch of them on returning to our car (main car park by the leaning tower) and one guy was quite pushy.
Best to ignore them completely as we found out later!

There's Rufina where you'll find the winery
(sort out the driving accordingly )

Brian, as said mostly above, if contemplating the Uffizi in Florence definitely book in advance or failing that turn up an hour before opening. I'm guessing that's probably all you can take in in one day, there's so much fantastic to see. Take a break, before the lunchtime vultures descend, in the cafe upstairs to chill and recharge!

Nearby if you don't get mown down by swarms of Lambrettas enjoy the walk over the Ponte Vecchio where someone will surely be happy to take a photie

Depending where you're coming from, a train might be worth considering as parking's not easy unless you're a good distance out of the city.

The Duomo, of course, and some wonderfully ornate doors.

While you're at Montecatini Terme, take the funicular up to Montecatini Alto.

Siena is really hot, the design seeming to trap the heat. Having said that it is really beautiful and the plaza has historic, fierce and almost suicidal horse-racing.

Lucca, the walled town, is more tranquil, and a walk around under the shelter of the trees which line this massive fortification (there's a road inside it) is almost as relaxing as the vino you'll have with your meal

Don't forget to try the wild boar.

Thanks that is very useful info Guys. I'm off to Florence in July with the family and museums are high on the visit list.

maybe we will see you in Florence, we will be in Montecatini Terme for the last few days so were planning on go to Florence for a day trip between 26-29th. When are you going?

Alas not, as we are in Florence from 6th-13th July.
No car this holiday so I'm looking forward to the freedom of a few extra glasses of wine to savour the Italian cuisine with
Though we have not sat down and planned our week in detail yet. So maybe we'll hire a car for a day here or there.
Will get the maps out and read through all the recommendations in this thread.

After the twice in a lifetime experience at the 20th annersary in Turin we travelled on to Florence.
We found just the perfect spot to explore the city in a hotel close by the train station Hotel Adler Cavalieri.
Two to three days should give you enough time to explore the town.
Personal highlights are: palazzo pitti and it's vast garden, medici chapel and palazzo vecchio.