Truffle hunting in Florence trips pull you straight out of the city and into a completely different Italy.
I’ve done this route twice, once in autumn when the white truffles were just starting and once in spring when the black season was in full swing, and the difference is not subtle.
Growing up in Naples, I was convinced I already understood Italian food at its deepest level. Tuscany’s truffle tradition corrected that fast.
These six tours cover everything from focused half-day hunts to full-day adventures combining wine, cooking, and medieval hilltowns. Here’s where to start.
🏆 Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato
A 3-hour truffle hunt with expert forager Francesca and her trained dog, followed by a gourmet farmhouse lunch with fresh truffles and wine pairings. Rated 4.9 stars across 383 reviews.
⏱ 3 Hours | 📍 San Miniato, Tuscany | 💬 4.9 Stars | ✅ See Booking Details
Truffle hunting in Florence is one of those experiences that sounds like a novelty until you’re actually crouched in the forest at dawn watching a dog work the ground with more focus than most humans bring to anything, and then you understand why a Vespa wine tour through the Florentine hills pairs so naturally with it, because once you’ve handled a fresh tartufo bianco, you want a glass of something local in your hand within the hour.
Florence rewards you when you slow down. Trust me on this.
If the market instinct is strong in you, and after a truffle hunt, it usually is, then the best Venice market tours are worth planning your next trip around; the Rialto fish market alone is worth the train ride north, though I’ll be honest, nothing quite matches the raw excitement of pulling something out of Tuscan soil yourself.
Best Florence Truffle Hunting Tours Compared
Here’s a side-by-side breakdown of the top tours to make quick comparisons easier.
| 1. Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato | 2. Full-Day Small-Group Truffle Hunting in Tuscany with Lunch | 3. 5 Hours Truffle Hunt Experience with Cooking Class |
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| Duration: 3 hours | Duration: 7 hours | Duration: 5 hours |
| Pickup: Train from Florence to San Miniato (taxi available) | Pickup: Hotel pickup & drop-off included | Pickup: Florence Santa Maria Novella station |
| Cancellation: Non-refundable | Cancellation: Non-refundable | Cancellation: Free up to 24 hours |
| Includes: Truffle hunt, farmhouse lunch, wine pairings, beverages, private transport | Includes: Guide, AC minivan, truffle hunt, 2-course lunch, wine tasting, gratuities, hotel pickup | Includes: Truffle hunt, cooking class, 3-course lunch, water, coffee/tea, alcoholic beverages, gratuities |
| Francesca’s family farm, trained truffle dog, 4.9★ (383 reviews) | Max 8 guests, sommelier guide, San Miniato woods + winery visit, 5.0★ (136 reviews) | Cooking class with local chef, Mugello Valley organic farm, 5.0★ (54 reviews) |
| 👉 Reserve Now | 👉 Reserve Now | 👉 Reserve Now |
Best Truffle Hunting Florence Experiences Highlights
- Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato
- Full-Day Small-Group Truffle Hunting in Tuscany with Lunch
- 5 Hours Truffle Hunt Experience with Cooking Class
- Tuscany: Truffle Hunting Experience with Tasting
- Truffle Hunting in Tuscany (private tour)
- Florence: San Gimignano, Truffle Hunt, Wine Tasting, & Lunch
Booking tours for your Florence trip? Truffle hunting Florence days are non-refundable, travel cover protects against illness, delays, or last-minute cancellations.
Truffle Hunting Florence (2026)
Below you’ll find full reviews of each tour, including full experience details.
Tour 1: Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato
🔴 Meeting Point: Via Collebrunacchi, 4, 56028 San Miniato PI, Italy
🔴 Departure Time: Experience starts at 11:00 AM at the farm. Train option from Florence Santa Maria Novella departs 9:38 AM, arrives San Miniato 10:19 AM
🔴 Duration: 3 hours (approx.)
🔴 Guide: Francesca (family host and expert truffle forager); English
🔴 Free Cancellation: No — non-refundable; no changes permitted for any reason
🔴 Includes: Lunch, beverages, private transportation
Growing up in Naples, I assumed food authority was earned by geography alone. Tuscany corrected that fast. For families and food-focused travelers wanting something rooted rather than staged, this tour earns its position. Fattoria Collebrunacchi is a working family estate, not a tourism venue dressed to look authentic, and that difference registers the moment you arrive.
The farm sits about ten minutes outside San Miniato town, with the experience starting at 11:00 AM. Getting there from Florence means the morning train from Santa Maria Novella, departing 9:38 and arriving at San Miniato 10:19, then a short taxi to the farm arranged directly through Francesca’s team. Sort that detail early.
Francesca has been hunting truffles since she was six years old. That history shows. The walk through the woods with her trained dog runs approximately one hour, and her knowledge of the terrain, the varieties, and the seasonal differences is the kind that comes from lived experience rather than a script. Larger, guide-led tours rarely offer this quality of host connection.
Lunch follows in the farmhouse dining room: bruschetta con tartufo to open, tagliolini al tartufo as the main, then tiramisu or biscotti with Vinsanto. The wines are locally produced and taken seriously. Trust me on this. Booking the Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato means committing to a full afternoon at that table, which is exactly the point.
Not suitable for wheelchair users, pregnant travelers, or those with serious cardiac or back conditions. The cancellation policy allows no refunds and no amendments, so confirm your travel dates firmly before committing. Transport from Florence is not included.
The 4.9-star average across 383 reviews makes the case without help. Groups are capped at 12, which keeps Francesca’s dining room feeling like a lunch invitation rather than a packaged event.
More Tours of Florence
Tour 2: Full-Day Small-Group Truffle Hunting in Tuscany with Lunch
🔴 Meeting Point: Lungarno Benvenuto Cellini, 33, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy
🔴 Departure Time: 10:00 AM
🔴 Duration: 7 hours (approx.)
🔴 Guide: Professional local guide (English); multiple named guides across bookings including Matteo, Andrea, Hilary
🔴 Free Cancellation: No — non-refundable; no changes permitted for any reason
🔴 Includes: Professional local guide, AC minivan transport, truffle hunt, 2-course truffle lunch, wine tasting, gratuities, hotel pickup and drop-off
What separates this tour from shorter alternatives is the full-day structure and the wine tasting layered on top of the hunt and lunch. For food travelers who want Tuscany to actually unfold rather than flash past, seven hours is the right commitment. The group cap of eight people keeps things personal. That matters more than it sounds.
The day moves from Florence by minivan to the San Miniato woods, where an experienced truffle hunter and trained dog lead the search. San Miniato supplies a significant share of the world’s most prized truffles, and the seasonal variation between white and black varieties gives this region particular credibility.
A 2-course truffle lunch follows, then a separate Chianti wine tasting at a local cellar, with the guide’s commentary threading both together. Several reviewers note that guides like Matteo hold sommelier credentials. That combination of truffle knowledge and wine fluency is genuinely rare on a single day out.
The Full-Day Small-Group Truffle Hunting in Tuscany with Lunch runs from central Florence with hotel pickup included, so the logistics stay simple from the start. Hotel drop-off at the end means no scrambling after a long and well-fed day.
Couples and serious food and wine enthusiasts tend to get the most from this one. If your priority is cooking rather than tasting, Tour 3 suits better.
“Il cane ha trovato uno!” (The dog found one!)
“Posso assaggiare?” (Can I taste it?)
Tour 3: 5 Hours Truffle Hunt Experience with Cooking Class
🔴 Meeting Point: Firenze Santa Maria Novella, Piazza della Stazione, 50123 Firenze FI, Italy
🔴 Departure Time: 9:30 AM
🔴 Duration: 5 hours (approx.)
🔴 Guide: Mugello & Tuscany tourist escort plus professional local chef; English
🔴 Free Cancellation: Yes — up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund
🔴 Includes: Truffle hunt with expert hunter and dog, cooking class with professional local chef, 3-course lunch, truffle for cooking and lunch, bottled water, coffee/tea, alcoholic beverages, gratuities
Most truffle tours end at the table. This one puts you behind it first. That single distinction makes the 5 Hours Truffle Hunt Experience with Cooking Class the clearest choice for anyone who wants to leave Tuscany actually knowing how to use what they found. For hands-on food lovers and curious home cooks, this is the one to book.
The setting is an organic agriturismo in the Mugello Valley, a quieter corner of Tuscany just outside Florence that produces a variety of truffles across multiple seasons. The morning begins with the hunt itself, guided by an expert truffle hunter and a dog working the woodland terrain.
What follows is where this tour pulls away from the others. A professional local chef leads a cooking class using the truffles from that morning’s search, and the result is a three-course lunch built on ingredients that were underground a few hours earlier. Three kinds of handmade pasta with truffle, a secondo with a vegetarian option available, and cantucci to finish.
The pickup is from Firenze Santa Maria Novella at 9:30 AM, so there is no complex navigation before the day begins. Groups are capped at ten travelers. The 24-hour free cancellation policy is also the most flexible of any tour in this article. That combination of accessibility and kitchen depth is hard to find elsewhere.
The cooking class adds roughly an hour to what might otherwise be a standard hunt-and-lunch format. If that extra time in an apron sounds like a highlight rather than a detour, this tour will deliver exactly what you are hoping for.
Tour 4: Tuscany: Truffle Hunting Experience with Tasting
🔴 Meeting Point: Via Zara, 110, 56028 San Miniato PI, Italy (at Tartufi Nacci — look for their sign)
🔴 Departure Time: See booking details for available start times
🔴 Duration: 2.5 hours
🔴 Guide: English and Italian (live guide)
🔴 Free Cancellation: Yes — up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund
🔴 Includes: Woodland walk with expert truffle hunter and trained dogs, tasting of truffle-based specialities, glass of Tuscan wine
Not every truffle experience needs to be a full day. This one makes the case for brevity done well. At 2.5 hours, the Tuscany: Truffle Hunting Experience with Tasting is designed for travelers who want the woodland experience and a proper introduction to fresh truffle without committing to a full day out of Florence. First-timers and those with tighter itineraries will find it very well structured.
The base is Tartufi Nacci, a family operation in San Miniato’s Corazzano locality. After a briefing, the hunt begins in their private woodland with trained dogs Maya and Birba leading the search. The handlers explain truffle varieties, seasonal differences, and foraging technique throughout the walk rather than saving everything for a post-hunt debrief. It is the difference between a lesson and a lecture. That matters.
Back at the farm, a tasting of truffle-based preparations follows alongside a glass of Tuscan wine. Reviewers consistently note that truffle products are also available to purchase at fair prices on-site, which makes for a more satisfying finish than simply watching others pack up.
Transport to San Miniato is not included and must be arranged independently. The reserve now, pay later option keeps commitment low until your Florence dates are confirmed.
The dogs are the detail everyone remembers. Maya and Birba work with a focus that makes the whole experience feel genuinely earned rather than choreographed.
Tour 5: Truffle Hunting in Tuscany (private tour)
🔴 Meeting Point: Via Curtatone, 9, 50123 Firenze FI, Italy (short distance from Santa Maria Novella train station; private hotel pickup available on request)
🔴 Departure Time: 9:00 AM
🔴 Duration: 7 to 8 hours (approx.)
🔴 Guide: English-speaking tour guide and driver; English and 2 additional languages offered
🔴 Free Cancellation: Yes — up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund
🔴 Includes: Roundtrip AC 8-seater minivan, English-speaking guide/driver, 2 hours truffle hunting with expert hunter and dog, 4-course truffle-based Tuscan lunch, guided visit to San Gimignano, hotel pickup and drop-off on request
The word “private” earns its place here. Everything about the Truffle Hunting in Tuscany private tour is built around your group moving at your group’s pace, which changes the quality of every single element. For families, couples celebrating something, or anyone who finds shared minivans with strangers exhausting, this structure is worth it.
The day runs from Florence at 9:00 AM, heading to the oak and chestnut forest near Certaldo for two dedicated hours of truffle hunting with a professional hunter and trained dog.
Two hours in the woods is a serious allocation. It shows in the results reviewers describe. A four-course homemade lunch follows, incorporating the morning’s finds, with Chianti wines alongside. Private, unhurried, and genuinely Tuscan.
Then San Gimignano. The medieval hilltop stop adds cultural depth that most truffle tours skip entirely, including a chance at Dondoli gelato, which has its own reputation worth taking seriously. The van is wheelchair and stroller accessible, and dietary requirements including vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free are accommodated on request at booking.
The day runs long. Seven to eight hours is a genuine commitment, and the San Gimignano leg means you return to Florence closer to evening. That is the trade-off: fuller experience, fuller day.
Tour 6: Florence: San Gimignano, Truffle Hunt, Wine Tasting, & Lunch
🔴 Meeting Point: Piazza Lorenzo Ghiberti, 5R, 50122 Firenze FI, Italy (at sfoglia re restaurant)
🔴 Departure Time: 8:30 AM; return to Florence by approximately 5:00–6:00 PM
🔴 Duration: 8 hours
🔴 Guide: Matteo (certified sommelier and local guide); English
🔴 Free Cancellation: Yes — up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund
🔴 Includes: Round-trip AC van transport, truffle hunt with expert Leonardo and dog Aiki, truffle-inspired lunch with handmade pasta, wine tasting and cellar tour at a medieval winery and 18th-century villa, San Gimignano visit, gelato, breakfast, all food, wine, and taxes
This is the most composed of the full-day options, and it shows in the sequencing. Where other tours pair the hunt with lunch and call it done, this one adds a medieval winery with cellar tour, a historic villa, a proper guided walk through San Gimignano’s UNESCO streets, and award-winning gelato before the drive back.
For travelers who want Tuscany to feel like a complete chapter rather than a single scene, this structure delivers. Eight hours earns its length here.
The day opens in central Florence at 8:30 AM with Matteo, whose sommelier background threads through every stage. It is not incidental. By the time the wine tasting arrives at the medieval cellar, you are already primed from the morning’s truffle context, and Matteo’s pairings land with real purpose.
The hunt itself takes place in private Chianti woodland with Leonardo and his dog Aiki, whose nose reviewers describe with the kind of enthusiasm usually reserved for the lunch that follows.
That lunch is built on handmade pasta prepared with the truffles found that morning, accompanied by locally sourced dishes and wines from the estate. The Florence: San Gimignano, Truffle Hunt, Wine Tasting, & Lunch group caps at eight participants, which means the winery tour and villa visit feel like private access rather than a managed crowd. That intimacy scales across the whole day.
Not suitable for anyone with animal allergies, mobility impairments, food allergies, or pregnant travelers. If those restrictions apply, Tour 3 or Tour 4 offer more accommodating alternatives.
Comfortable shoes are essential. The day covers woodland terrain, cobblestone streets, and a working vineyard, and arriving in anything less than proper walking footwear is the one mistake worth avoiding before 8:30 AM.
FAQs (6 Best Truffle Hunting in Florence Tours (2026))
Do I need to travel outside Florence for truffle hunting?
Yes, all truffle hunting Florence tours take place in the Tuscan countryside, primarily around San Miniato and the Mugello Valley.
Most tours depart from central Florence meeting points and include round-trip transport by minivan or coach. San Miniato is approximately 50 minutes from Florence. Tours that do not include transport (such as Tour 4) require you to arrange your own way to the meeting point, so check inclusions carefully before booking.
Are the truffle hunts suitable for children and families?
Most tours welcome families, though suitability varies by tour and child age.
Tour 1 at Fattoria Collebrunacchi has hosted families with children as young as nine and ten, with reviewers specifically praising it as a highlight for kids. Tour 5 (the private tour) accommodates families in a dedicated group setting with stroller access and infant seats available. Infants on Tour 1 must sit on laps. Always check the specific tour’s additional info section and note any restrictions at booking.
What is the cancellation policy for truffle hunting tours from Florence?
Cancellation policies vary significantly between tours, so review carefully before booking.
Tours 1 and 2 are fully non-refundable with no amendments permitted under any circumstances. Tours 3, 5, and 6 offer free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund. Tour 4 (via GetYourGuide) also offers free cancellation up to 24 hours prior. If your travel plans are uncertain, prioritise tours with flexible cancellation terms.
Will we actually find truffles on the hunt?
In most cases, yes, the trained dogs locate truffles reliably, though results vary by season and conditions.
Reviewers across multiple tours report finding black and white truffles during their hunts, with some groups discovering five or more in a single outing. White truffles are typically found in autumn and winter months, while black truffles are more common in spring and summer. The Mugello Valley, used by Tour 3, produces multiple truffle varieties across most of the year, making it a reliable year-round option.
What food and wine is included in truffle hunting tours from Florence?
Inclusions range from a simple tasting with a glass of wine to a full four-course lunch with wine pairings, depending on the tour.
Tour 1 includes a three-course farmhouse lunch with wine. Tour 2 includes a two-course truffle lunch plus a separate Chianti wine tasting. Tour 3 includes a full three-course lunch prepared during a cooking class with alcoholic beverages included. Tour 5 includes a four-course homemade Tuscan lunch with Chianti. Tour 6 includes a truffle-inspired lunch, a winery cellar tasting, and gelato in San Gimignano. Tour 4 includes a truffle tasting and a glass of Tuscan wine only.
How physically demanding are truffle hunting tours?
The woodland walks are generally moderate in difficulty, though terrain and duration vary.
Most tours involve one to two hours of walking through forest terrain that may be uneven, muddy, or sloped depending on season and conditions. Good walking shoes are strongly recommended across all tours. Tours 1 and 2 are not recommended for travelers with back problems or serious medical conditions. Tour 5 notes that the forest near Certaldo involves oak and chestnut woodland, and reviewers suggest long trousers for denser sections. Wheelchair access is available only on Tour 5.
How much do truffle hunting tours from Florence typically cost?
Prices vary depending on duration, inclusions, and group format, with most experiences falling in the range of roughly $140 to $375 per person.
Shorter tasting-focused experiences such as Tour 4 sit at the lower end of that range, while full-day tours with lunch, wine tasting, and additional destinations like San Gimignano sit higher. Private tours (Tour 5) are priced per group rather than per person and represent better value for families or couples travelling together. Group discounts may be available on some tours — check the booking page for current pricing and availability.
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Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato Rating & Criteria
Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato is the #1 Ranked Tour in 6 Best Truffle Hunting in Florence Tours based on a dynamic blend of category-specific criteria.
Truffle Hunting Experience with Lunch in San Miniato Review by Sofia Esposito — Eat Drink Travel
Food Quality: Freshness and depth of truffle-based dishes
Host Authenticity: Family-run estate, generational expertise
Guide Knowledge: Depth of truffle and foraging insight
Group Atmosphere: Intimate setting, max 12 travelers
Value for Money: Full lunch, wines, and hunt included
Truffle Hunting Experience
Francesca's family estate in San Miniato delivers one of Tuscany's most authentic truffle experiences, pairing a genuine woodland hunt with a gourmet farmhouse lunch and locally produced wines.
