Discovering Tuscany in Vespa

Vespa's at Villa le Barone, Chianti , Tuscany
Vespa’s at Villa le Barone, Chianti , Tuscany

Discovering Tuscany in Vespa! This is a new trend! Vespa has many years of history since it was launched in 1946, and started to be produced in Pontedera, near Pisa, in Tuscany: 71 years of continuous success!

Do you wish to discover Chianti and Tuscany differently? Then, rent a Vespa (in Italian “Vespa” means “bee”) and feel like a movie star! The story of this “scooter” developed by Enrico Piaggio is amazing! In April 1946, this astonishing new, functional and innovative mode of transport was presented to the general public for the first time in a Golf Club in Rome.

Vespa was an immediate success and gained extensive media interest as well as public curiosity, surprise and also sometimes skepticism. The first sales of Vespa’s were managed through a small dealer network but developed exponentially. From the 1950s to the mid-1970s, it became a real phenomenon of society. Vespa’s became highly popular among young riders, who chose it to for being easily manageable and aesthetically pleasing.

Every year new models were developed offering significant improvements over its predecessor both in aesthetics and technical specifications. Everywhere, user clubs were formed and walks, rally and competitions were organized. The 1951 model became famous in its cinema debut in the romantic and unforgettable movie “Roman Holiday” which told the love story of Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck in Rome, and the Vespa’s appeared in many other famous Italian movies!

Today, the Vespa has many competitors, but it remains as a myth, and we are still seeing it on many Tuscan roads. We recently organized rental of Vespa’s for a family staying at Villa le Barone, they loved the itineraries we had prepared to discover Tuscany “out of the beaten track”! They said it was an enchantment! If you are a Vespa fan, it is also possible to visit the Vespa museum in Pontedera, a city between Pisa and Panzano in Chianti, in Tuscany, where the Vespa’s were produced.