Tuscany

Tuscany is the symbolic region of Made in Italy in the world. A place where beauty is always the master, in the form of artistic masterpieces, haute couture creations or postcard landscapes. Foreign tourists love it unconditionally and consider it the symbolic image of the beautiful country: they crowd museums, wineries, spas and villages without distinction. And we who have so much beauty close at hand why don't we take advantage of it?

Treat yourself to a holiday in Tuscany : you don't need to be wealthy foreigners to appreciate beauty. Just take a car and drive up and down the narrow streets that cross the countryside, stop in a medieval village that seems to have stood still in time and end the day with a genuine dinner washed down with a good glass of Chianti or Brunello di Montalcino .

Tuscany is not only art galleries and characteristic villages, but it is also sea and nature. You can bask in the sun on wild beaches that are difficult to reach or beaches equipped with all services, go skiing in Abetone , trekking and mountain biking in the Apuan Alps , immerse yourself in the warm waters of a natural spring inside a wood.

After your first vacation, treat yourself to a second, or a third or a fourth one, because there is such a large amount of attractions in Tuscany that you won't be able to see them all in a weekend or a week and will definitely want to come back. You never get tired of beauty.

When to go to Tuscany

Rich in attractions, scenic beauty and events, Tuscany can be visited all year round. However, there are some factors to consider to make the most of your vacation.

If you focus on the cities of art, try to avoid the high season. Florence is one of the most visited cities in Italy and can be a bit claustrophobic during the holidays, when the streets of the center and its famous museums are besieged by tourists.

Attention also to the heat: visiting Florence and the other cities of art in summer can be tiring. In the summer months it is better to go to the beach, and the options for a beautiful beach holiday in Tuscany are certainly not lacking! If, on the other hand, you want to visit the villages or take a walk, the recommended seasons are spring and autumn .

The winter can be cold and snowfalls are not uncommon in mountain areas. Keep this in mind if you are planning a vacation this season.

When organizing your holiday in Tuscany, remember to take a look at the events scheduled in the places of your interest. During the most famous events, hotels are always sold out and it is therefore important to book well in advance.

Where to go in Tuscany

Tuscany is famous for its art and its charming hilltop villages, but the options for a dream vacation are not limited to this. Here is a guide to the most beautiful places in Tuscany that will help you plan your travel itinerary.

Art Cities

Florence is the spearhead of Tuscan tourism: an unmissable destination of the noble Grand Tours of Italy of the past, it is still today one of the most visited cities in the beautiful country. The call of its artistic masterpieces, such as the Duomo and the Uffizi Gallery , and the romantic views from the Ponte Vecchio is truly irresistible.

Another symbolic city of tourism in Italy is Pisa , known by all for its famous Leaning Tower. The fame of Siena is instead linked to the Palio, a centuries-old tradition that fascinates locals and fascinates visitors from all over the world, and for the beautiful Piazza del Campo.

Lucca and Pistoia are less visited but not without historical attractions and interesting cultural sites. Give us a little thought.

Villages not to be missed

Perched on top of a hill, surrounded by greenery, framed by elegant cypresses, the villages of Tuscany are an enchantment that the whole world envies us. Choosing which ones to visit is a real dilemma because they are many and all beautiful, but three absolutely worth seeing are San Quirico d'Orcia , Certaldo and San Gimignano : three iconic medieval villages that contain centuries of history and art.

Wine lovers cannot miss Montepulciano , a village whose name is linked to one of the best known and most appreciated wines of Tuscany; beauty and food and wine also in Pienza : defined as "the ideal city" by Pope Pius II, it is the home of a very tasty pecorino cheese.

If you prefer literature to the pleasures of the table, pay homage to one of our most important writers by visiting Certaldo , Boccaccio's birthplace.

The most beautiful places for a seaside holiday

Blessed are the Tuscans: they live in dream cities and then when the heat becomes stifling they can take the car and go, in a short time they are already sunbathing on dream beaches ! Why don't you also treat yourself to a few days at the sea in Tuscany ?

You can choose between worldly places, full of clubs and entertainment, such as Forte dei Marmi , Marina di Pietrasanta and Lido di Camaiore or lesser known beaches that still retain a wild beauty. The city-symbol of light-heartedness, however, is Viareggio , a seaside resort famous for one of the most important Carnivals in the world. Other seaside resorts with a long tourist tradition are Marina di Grosseto and Marina di Carrara .

A top destination for lovers of the beautiful sea are the islands of the Tuscan Archipalago, among which the island of Elba , the island of Giglio and the island of Capraia . Here you can experience a dream holiday immersed in nature, but beware: they are very well-known destinations and not exactly cheap, so if the holiday budget is tight, book well in advance to have more choice of accommodation and get an affordable price.

Thermal baths and spa

The spas of Tuscany are the right place to forget the stress of everyday life and fully recharge your batteries. A hot bath in the natural thermal springs of Saturnia and the Bagni di San Filippo is a totally rejuvenating experience, to be tried at least once in a lifetime.

For a romantic holiday, however, it is better to book a spa hotel in the most famous spas in Tuscany: the luxury facilities guarantee privacy and dream experiences. You can search in Saturnia or at Montecatini Terme , Chianciano and Rapulano .

Come arrivare in Toscana

Tuscany has two airports , both served by flights of low cost companies and well connected to the respective city centers by roads and public transport: Florence and Pisa.

Do you prefer the convenience of the car? You can easily arrive in Tuscany by car from several directions: the strategic position of the region, located in central Italy about halfway between Milan and Rome, allows rapid movements both north and south. The two main arteries are the A1 Milan-Naples motorway and the A12 Genoa-Livorno, to which is added a third motorway and important state and regional roads.

Rail connections are also rapid: high-speed trains connect Florence to Milan, Bologna, Venice, Rome and Naples in a very short time; In addition, intercity and regional trains are in operation that allow you to reach numerous locations.

An often cheaper alternative to the train is the bus . Also in this case you can count on a dense network of connections, both of public transport companies and private companies.

Where to stay in Tuscany

Tuscany has a long hotel tradition: this applies both to city contexts such as Florence and Pisa, and to other contexts such as villages, seaside resorts and even rural areas. Finding a place to sleep in Tuscany is generally not difficult because the choice of accommodation is very wide. However, if you have special needs, budget or tastes, it is good to book in advance, especially if you are traveling for special events (for example the Palio di Siena or the Carnival of Viareggio) or during high season.

The flagship of Tuscan hospitality are the b & amp; bs and farmhouses: these are in fact the structures that best express the quintessence of the Tuscan way of life, a lifestyle devoted to beauty, simplicity and good food.

The prices of b &b and farmhouses in Tuscany vary greatly depending on the category. Some accommodations are very simple and offer basic services; others, on the other hand, are very well-kept charming houses that are mostly aimed at wealthy foreign tourists, consequently they are rather expensive.

In Florence and in the spas it is easy to find hotels and apartments of good quality; the same thing can also be said of the seaside resorts.

Discover Tuscany by car

A car trip in Tuscany is the best way to fully grasp the poetry of this timeless region. Rail and bus connections between the main cities of Tuscany are efficient, but many villages, including some of the most famous villages, are difficult to reach by public transport. It would be impossible to explore enchanting areas such as Chianti region , Val d'Orcia or the Garfagnana ... but it would also be a real shame not to!

Driving in Tuscany is a very pleasant and very relaxing experience. Leave the big cities, the roads are generally not very busy and the landscape that flows before your eyes is breathtakingly beautiful. Sinuous hills, endless expanses of vineyards or fields of sunflowers in bloom and regular rows of cypresses are the symbolic images of a car holiday in Tuscany . But the landscapes are much more varied: green meadows, maritime pines and rugged rocky mountains await you.

You can create a car itinerary tailored to your interests and the time you have available, choosing where and when to stop. For example, the car allows you to stop in the cellars you encounter along your route in Chianti or to visit multiple villages in the same day. The car is also useful for those who want to combine art cities and islands on a one-week holiday: with a vehicle at your disposal you will not waste time waiting for trains and buses to reach the port. If you reach Tuscany by plane, you can rent a car directly at the airport. At both Pisa and Florence airports there are low cost car rental agencies that offer cheap rates to those who book online.

Where Tuscany is located

Tuscany is a region of central Italy . It borders to the north with Liguria and Emilia-Romagna, to the south with Lazio and to the east with Umbria and for a short stretch with the Marche. It is bathed in the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea.