Four Species, One Calendar
Hunts run in Tuscany nearly all year, but the species changes underfoot. The white truffle — the one worth travelling for — is an October-to-December proposition, and the rest of the calendar belongs to three other truffles entirely.
The Experience
From the operator's own listing — the hunt, the lunch, and the wine that goes with it.
Good to know: In the event of adverse weather conditions or extremely low or high temperatures, the activity provider reserves the right to change the location based on availability. Should you choose not to accept the variation, the provider will not be held responsible · Not Included: Pickup, Estate tour, Vineyard tour, Winery tour
What the dog can find, month by month, and when the white truffle is genuinely on the table.
This is the step nearly every listing skips. Tuscany's prized white truffle runs October to December; the marzuolo takes over January to April, and the summer scorzone runs May to September. Hunts operate year-round because there is almost always something to find — but the species changes, and so does what ends up on the plate. If you booked expecting white truffle in July, you were always going to be disappointed.
The hunt itself is usually 45 minutes to an hour and a half in the woods behind a dog. Almost everything above $150 is buying the rest of the day — a long lunch, a winery, a pasta or cooking class. Reviewers are consistent about this: the hunt is charming and short, and the meal is what people describe at length afterwards. Price the meal, not the walk.
San Miniato is the white-truffle town and holds the national exhibition across four weekends in November. San Gimignano has the deepest-reviewed hunts on the platform. Chianti pairs the hunt with cooking classes, and Volterra and Arezzo are the cheaper, quieter options. All are 45 minutes to 90 minutes from Florence, and most tours include transfer or meet you there.
The truffle pig is a museum fact in Italy — pigs eat the truffle and have been banned from truffle hunting here since 1985. Every hunt you can book uses dogs, usually the curly-coated lagotto romagnolo. The dog does the work; your job is to keep up, watch the dig, and not be disappointed that the whole thing takes less time than the lunch that follows.
Photo Gallery
Autumn oak woods, a working lagotto, and the shaved truffle that is the whole point of October.
Book Your Experience
Select your preferred date and time. Instant confirmation — free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
Same wood, same dog, three very different truffles - and three different arguments for what to book.
| Feature | OCT - DEC Autumn: White Truffle | Summer: Scorzone | Winter-Spring: Marzuolo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Months | October to December | May to September | January to April |
| The Species | Tuber magnatum - the prized white truffle | Tuber aestivum - the summer scorzone | Tuber borchii - marzuolo, or bianchetto |
| What It Tastes Like | Intense, garlicky-honeyed. Shaved raw, never cooked | Mild and nutty. Good, but not the one from the photographs | Strong and distinctly garlicky. Divides people |
| What to Book | The version with the long lunch or the cooking class | The shorter hunt and tasting - do not pay a premium for a scorzone meal | Whatever is cheapest. The woods are empty and the countryside is the point |
| How Busy | The peak. November weekends around the San Miniato exhibition are busiest | Warm and moderately busy, but not for the truffle | The quietest stretch of the year |
| Worth Travelling For | Yes - this is the window people fly for | No. Book it because you are already in Tuscany | No, but it is the best value of the three |
| Check Availability | See a Summer Hunt | See a Quiet-Season Hunt |
In Season Now
Every one of these operates year-round with the species that is in season — the difference is what lands on the plate.
COOK WHAT YOU FINDTruffle hunting carried out within our property, which is located in the heart of Chianti Classico very close to Greve in Chianti and 20 minutes from Florence, is a …
THE WHITE TRUFFLE TOWNJoin us and one of Tuscan's best truffle dog teams on an exhilarating morning truffle hunt experience. Francesca and Vittorio will expertly guide you through …
GOOD IN ANY SEASONImmerse yourself in the fascinating world of truffle hunting. After meeting your guide at the meeting point, begin with a brief introduction to the secrets of …
CHEAPESTThis experience, guided by our truffle hunter and his well trained dogs, takes you on a hunt for truffles into the woods around Agriturismo Biologico Diacceroni. You …
FROM FLORENCEWe look forward to welcoming you to our place in the countryside of San Miniato in the locality of Corazzano where you can live an amazing experience: after an …
AUTUMN SPLURGEThe excursion starts from Florence, where you will be picked up at the meeting point. Your driver will then take you out to the Tuscan countryside, where the truffle …
The Independent Guide
Tuscany's harvest calendar is set by regional law, not by folklore. Here is the year, honestly, including the months when the white truffle is simply not there.
Check the calendar below
Tuscany runs four truffle species across the year. Which one a hunt finds depends on the month you book.
Tuscany has a truffle in season almost every month of the year. It is not the same truffle. That single sentence resolves most of the confusion in this niche, and most listings do not bother with it.
Hunts run year-round because there is nearly always something for a dog to find. What changes — dramatically — is which species, how it tastes, and what it is worth.
| Species | In season in Tuscany | Character |
|---|---|---|
| White — Tuber magnatum Pico | October – December | The prized one. Intense, garlicky-honeyed; shaved raw, never cooked |
| Black winter — T. melanosporum | November – March | Delicate and aromatic. Uncommon in Tuscany; wants cold, dry weather |
| Marzuolo / bianchetto — T. borchii | January – April | Very widespread here. Strong, distinctly garlicky |
| Summer scorzone — T. aestivum | May – September | Mild, nutty, dark-fleshed. The one most summer visitors find |
These are Visit Tuscany’s published dates, and the harvest calendar is regulated — it is set under Tuscan regional law 16/2008, not left to custom.
One honest wrinkle in the sources. Visit Tuscany’s regional guide gives the white truffle as October to December, while its own San Miniato page describes a substantial harvest running September to December. Both are the regional tourism board. We report the discrepancy rather than pick the more flattering number: treat October to December as the reliable window, with late September sometimes producing in the San Miniato hills.
San Miniato is the centre — a hill town between Pisa and Florence whose surrounding woods are among Europe’s best Tuber magnatum ground. Its National White Truffle Exhibition runs across four weekends in November, which is the single densest concentration of white truffle in the Tuscan calendar and worth planning around if the truffle is the reason for the trip.
The species is also found in the Siena area and in the Valtiberina, Mugello and Casentino woods, and across a scatter of small towns straddling Pisa and Florence — Palaia, Volterra, Montaione, Certaldo, Montespertoli among them.
Yes, in one specific way: the meal.
The hunt is broadly the same experience in any month — a dog, a wood, a dig. But an October hunt can put shaved white truffle on your pasta, and a July hunt puts scorzone on it. Both are good; one is the thing people fly for.
So:
See what is bookable this month
Autumn is the busy window and the good operators fill first — particularly the November weekends around the San Miniato exhibition, when the town itself is busy. Book free cancellation: a truffle hunt depends on ground conditions, and a very dry autumn genuinely reduces what the dogs find.
One thing worth setting expectations on: a bad year is a real possibility. Truffle yields swing hard with summer rainfall, and prices at market follow. No operator can promise a big find, and the honest ones do not try. What they can promise is the dog, the walk and the meal — which is why we keep pointing at the lunch.
More on choosing between the hunts on the main comparison, on the regional differences on the Tuscany page, and on how Tuscany compares with Alba — where the dates are genuinely different — on the Italy page.
We are not affiliated with any operator or with the Comune di San Miniato. Tours here are sold by GetYourGuide and we earn a commission if you book through our links, at no extra cost to you. Harvest dates shift with weather; confirm with your operator.
Guest Reviews
"Super informative and fun activity, loved meeting grappa (the dog). The wine tasting a lunch could’ve been its own activity it was absolutely delicious and we tried so many amazing wines! One of our best days in Tuscany and the vineyard was beautiful"
"Awesome! Loved the truffle hunting/Berto and the wine tasting /olive oil and lunch was first class…..we loved it! Can’t wait to come back!"
"Excellent! Well-trained truffle hunter, very friendly! A very fine and delicious lunch in a tasteful atmosphere! Finest wines! Friendly and courteous service!"
"It was an amazing experience and excellent wine and food"
"LOVED the truffle hunting experience! Alessandro was absolutely wonderful - explaining the process of how a truffle starts and grows to how to train the beloved truffle hunting dog. We thoroughly enjoyed our time and the dog successfully found many truffles! The wine tasting/pairing and lunch following the hunt was also delightful and memorable! Excellent wines and oils and a very tasty meal. Would highly recommend!"
"An exceptionally good experience which takes place in a 320 year old family owned vineyard in Tuscany. The truffle hunt was conducted by a very knowledgeable guide and his trained truffle dog Spilo. We did gentle laps of the oak tree plantation while Spilo did all the work, then we were taken back to a lovely dining area for a generous wine tasting and incredible four course meal. The whole experience could not be better!"
"My 6 year old daughter had so much fun running with the dog - Spillo - as he found and dug truffles out of the ground! I actually appreciated that the area was private, clean and safe! Our guide Alessandro gave an educational lecture that we appreciated! The wine tasting was also fun!"
"Great tour guide very knowledgeable and fun to talk to truffle hunting was great and different to the usual wine tasting"
Read all 102 verified reviews
See All ReviewsOctober to December is the only time a Tuscan hunt can put white truffle on the table. This is the deepest-reviewed hunt on the platform here — 4.8/5 from 102 verified guests, from $221, with lunch and wine. Free cancellation. Starting from $221 per person.
Check Availability & BookCan't Make These Dates?
Find a tour that fits your schedule — all with instant confirmation and free cancellation.
Which truffle is in season, when, and what that changes about your booking.
October to December, on Visit Tuscany's published calendar. That is the window for Tuber magnatum, the prized white truffle, and it is the only time a Tuscan hunt can put it on your plate. One wrinkle worth knowing: the same regional tourism board's San Miniato page describes a substantial harvest running September to December, so late September sometimes produces in those particular hills. We report the discrepancy rather than pick the more flattering figure - treat October to December as the reliable window.
Yes, and you will find truffle - just not the famous one. May to September is the summer scorzone (Tuber aestivum): dark-fleshed, mild, nutty and a fraction of the white truffle's price. It is a real hunt with a real find and the dogs work exactly the same way. The honest advice for a summer visit is to book on the strength of the day out - the countryside, the dogs, the lunch - rather than on the ingredient, and not to pay a premium price for a scorzone meal.
The marzuolo, also called bianchetto - Tuber borchii - from January to April. It is particularly widespread in Tuscany, found in much the same ground as the white truffle, and it has a strong, distinctly garlicky smell that some people prefer and others find aggressive. This is the quietest and cheapest stretch of the year for a hunt, with the fewest visitors in the woods. If you like the countryside more than you care about the specific species, it is an underrated window.
The National White Truffle Exhibition runs across four weekends in November. San Miniato is the centre of Tuscany's white truffle country - a hill town between Pisa and Florence - and the exhibition is the densest concentration of white truffle in the Tuscan calendar. If the truffle is the reason for your trip rather than a nice addition to it, that is the month and the place. Expect the town to be busy on those weekends, and book hunts and tables well ahead.
Yes, and it is worth building into your expectations. Truffle yields swing hard with summer rainfall - a dry summer means a poor autumn, and market prices follow. No operator can promise a big find and the honest ones do not try. What they can reliably promise is the dog, the walk and the meal, which is precisely why we keep pointing at the lunch rather than the ingredient. Book free cancellation, and treat a spectacular find as the upside rather than the product.
Yes, mainly through the meal. October to December, book the version with the long lunch or the cooking class - the truffle you find is the one worth eating properly, and that is when the premium combinations earn their price. May to September, book the shorter, cheaper hunt-and-tasting: paying $400 for a scorzone lunch is poor value. January to April is marzuolo season and the woods are at their emptiest, which is its own argument. Our worth-it page works through the value at each rung.
Still have questions? Email us at info@tuscanytrufflehuntingtour.com