Here’s our FAQs, where you can find all the answers about our tours and motorbike rentals. The FAQs are divided in 6 sections, to help you find the topic you need to. Of course, you can contact us on our form or by email (info@tuscanymotorcycletours.com) if you still have any question… we’re here to help!

1-Payment

Beverages are often excluded from the price. Tips, hotels city taxes, fuel and motorway tolls are always excluded (for fuel calculate around 10 euros per 100 km). Accessories are also excluded (see our shop for more information regarding prices).

Yes, once you have booked, you will receive a voucher containing all the information of the tour. You need to bring this personal voucher the day of the tour (pdf is also acceptable).

Private tours are possible only on request and in advance. Prices depends on many factors. Please contact us to info@tuscanymotorcycletours.com for more information.

Unless otherwise stated in the tour description, all tours include bikes rental, insurance for damages to third parties or to the transported passenger for up to 6 million euro, as required by Italian law, English speaking tour leader (we also speak French and Spanish), accommodation with breakfast, some meals (usually 1 per day).

To confirm the booking, you need to pay a 20% deposit. 30 days before the tour, you will be requested to pay the balance.

2-Reservation

If you decide to cancel the tour for whatever reason, not depending on us, you will have the following penalties:
– 30% of the total price is withheld for cancellations received from the moment the booking is confirmed until the payment of the balance (due 30 days before the beginning of the tour)
– 50% of the total price is withheld for cancellations received from 30 to 15 days before the beginning of the tour
– 100% of the total price is withheld if cancellations are made less than 15 days before of the beginning of the tour
We recommend our customers to have a travel insurance that covers cancellations.

Reserving in advance from our website is absolutely mandatory. Reservations help us determine the number of guides we need to ensure that our groups remain manageable and enjoyable, and they allow us to notify you of changes to the tour due to weather or anything that could disturb the tours.

From our website choose your preferred tour, the date, the number of participants and type of motorcycle and pay the deposit: this way your tour will be booked.

From our website on the “rentals” section you can see our available accessories. Please note that there accessories can only be booked on request, so we recommend you to contact us to info@tuscanymotorcycletours.com for more information.

In the guided tour you get a professional motorcycle guide that will always be present during the tour.
You will be able to follow a rider with local knowledge and bilingual skills. He will also give you insights on local culture and history. And will be able to judge possible ride extensions or short cuts depending on weather and group riding skills. Another advantage of our guided tours is the possibility of meeting new motorcycling friends from all over the world. It makes a big difference in sharing a trip with like minded riders even if you live thousands of miles apart.
On a self guided tour you will have the same itinerary and maps as on the guided tour, but essentially you will be riding on your own. If you like your independence while riding this could be an excellent way to travel. Self guided tours gives you much more flexibility as they do not depend on dates, schedules and travel companions.

If the tour has not reached minimum numbers of participants, we will inform all riders who have reserved a place on the tour and offer the following possibilities:
a) cancel tour and refund booking fee
b) run the tour self guided at self guided prices
c) move the reservation to another tour
d) run the tour as guided with an agreed payment integration

3-Preparation

Consider that July and August are very hot in Tuscany (around 30/35 degrees), June and September are also hot but not extreme (around 25/30 degrees), April, May and October are more moderate (around 15/25 degrees). We usually avoid to make tours from November to March because the weather is not ideal for touring on motorcycle.

We recommend to bring your own motorcycle equipment (helmet, gloves, jacket, trousers, boots). If you do not bring these items with you, you can rent it from us (check here our accessories prices).
The tours all take place during the warm Italian season, so all you’ll need to bring are light clothes to wear in the evening (a pair of trousers, t-shirts, shirts, a pretty dress, a pair of gym-shoes, a pair of flip-flops or sandals, a cardigan or light sweater). And don’t forget a light-weight towel or sarong, and your swimsuit!

Luggage capacity is limited in the motorcycle. Mainly our bikes are equipped with side cases and top case.

Helmets are mandatory in Italy. It is essential that you bring one with you. We can supply helmets, but It would be best to use one that you are comfortable with (there’s nothing worse than a tight helmet; and nothing more dangerous than one that doesn’t fit properly).

You’ll need to be 21 and have a valid motorcycle license.

Italy is a progressive European Union country. Check this link to know how to get the IDL in your country http://www.drivers.com/article/207/

Italy is a great place to ride, but not a place to learn to ride. We are not looking for fast riders, but confident riders. You need to be able to ride any type of turn with a touring bike, including tight switchbacks. Our guides are not instructors and they will refuse to give lessons on how to ride.

We suggest that anyone traveling abroad for one of our Tours consider purchasing “Travel Insurance”. It can take the worry out of the unexpected situations that can arise in any travel plan.

4-Motorcycle

Sure! Many of our customers come from close countries such as Switzerland, France, Germany, Austria and they come with their motorcycles. In this case, please consider that the Italian highways only admits motorcycles of more than 250 cc.

Yes! Even if we are not a motorcycle rental company, we have partners dedicated to this business and you can rent a motorcycle from them through us (the rental contract will be signed with them) for the same price you would pay if renting directly from them.

All rental bikes are insured for damages to third parties or to the transported passenger for up to 6 million euro, as required by Italian law. An extra insurance is available on request, please contact us for more information.

Each motorcycle is assigned a damage deposit. This will be confirmed when your booking is taken and can be seen in the rental section. This is the maximum liability that you have in the event of damages to or theft of the motorcycle.

No. To make things simpler and give you total freedom, our rental prices does not have km limit.

5-During the Tour

When you are in Florence you will be staying in 3/4-star hotels. While on the road we have chosen small, family-run country hotels. They offer comfort, friendliness, and a welcoming atmosphere: something which the big hotels just don’t have. Our aim is to give you an intense flavor of Italy, the real Italy. The hotel rooms are double, in case you wish to have a single bedroom there will be an extra charge, usually of 50 euros per night.

The guide is a rider who knows well the Tuscan territory and speaks at least 3 languages (including always English). The guide is NOT an instructor so do not expect from him to give you lessons on how to ride a motorcycle!

Yes. If for any reason you prefer to do this way, during the day, instead of riding with the group, you might like to go off on your own adventure: we’ll meet up again in the evening at our chosen hotel. We do not recommend this as you might miss the best roads and tips of the day.

Usually departure are around 9 or 9:30 am and we arrive to the destination around 6 pm. Considering stops, visits, lunch, etc, we will be riding around 3 to 4:30 hours per day.

Usually our groups are from 3 motorcycles (minimum number of bikes per tour) to 6. So in case there are 2 people per motorcycle + the guide, we should never be more than 13.

Passengers are welcome and they have a special price. Please check on the tour details for more information.

We live in a digital and credit card age. When traveling Internationally, it is advisable to carry some cash in the local currency. It’s best to exchange money at your local bank or credit union, their rates are better than airport exchange rates. ATM’s are all over the world and getting more cash is easy, but will come with a foreign transaction fee which can vary widely due to country and individual bank policies. Always contact your credit cards and notify them of your travel plans and any large purchases or hold that will be placed on your card. All motorcycle rental agencies require a security hold or bond of €1500 up to €3000. These are held so that the bike returns to them and in the same condition it left. The hold for the security amount is then released. You may not want to use cash for everything but it is advisable to carry enough for food and gas where ever you are going.  European credit cards operate on an EMV or “chip and PIN” technology. That means they are embedded with a microchip and you are required to use a PIN to verify security and authorization of payment. PIN’s  on credit cards in the USA mean a cash advance and hefty percentages apply. So, use a local ATM and get the most cash you can – fees vary widely, and use cash for small purchases and your VISA or MasterCard for larger purchases, just remember to tell them to pass when they ask for your PIN.

English and Italian are always spoken and usually also French and Spanish.

Our staff will make their best to get the bike going again. If the bike has an irreparable problem, we will try to get another one as soon as possible so you can continue the tour. Please note that all motorcycles used are recent bikes which are meticulously checked prior to the tour by official brand dealerships, and have an unblemished track records.

We’d like to point out that our motorcycle holidays are not races, so high priority is given to safety, without obviously spoiling the ride.

Your tour guide has the authority to take a rented motorcycle off the hands of any participant at any given moment if he feels that the rider is endangering himself and/or others. Italy has a huge motorcycle and scooter community and, statistically, in proportion to motorcycle numbers, there are no more motorcycle accidents than in any other country.

If during the tour you are unlucky enough to have an accident on your rented motorcycle, the guide will do everything they can to help you. If it is only a question of the bike being damaged, you can choose whether to continue your tour in the guide’s motorcycle (when possible) or interrupt your holiday. In this instance, we will not refund your tour.

In case of personal injuries, an ambulance will be called and you will be transported to the nearest hospital and treated accordingly. First aid is guaranteed to anyone and emergency medical staff throughout Italy is well trained to cope with this kind of situation.

Please note that we strongly recommend you get your own medical insurance prior to your holiday.

6-Weather

We have to arrange the hotels in advance and put down deposits, so we’ll have to ride to each night’s destination. That said, we never want to be unsafe so well make alternate arrangements if absolutely necessary.
Most of the tours will take place between the end of March and beginning of November, which means that the temperature will be pleasant. Usually, we will ride in the rain, wind and any other weather conditions that nature decides to throw at us. After all, we’re going on adventures! That said, if the weather is unsafe for any reason, the trip will be modified or postponed.