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Charming Itineraries around Tuscany

Tuscany is certainly one of the most beautiful regions in Italy. There are many things to see and lots to do across the region, from visiting hilltop villages to the seaside, from the mountains to the beauty lanscapes of the Valdorcia. For this reason we’re suggesting an itinerary for what to see and do in Tuscany if you have 7 days, recommending the cities, towns and activities that you cannot miss during your holiday in Tuscany.

These are of course just general recommendations in order to help you plan your next vacation in Tuscany. Driving is definitely the best transportation to use to move around Tuscany, but it’s not the only one.

Florence Day 1 & 2

Florence has so many things to offer.

There are must museums and monuments that cannot be missed such as the Uffizi Gallery, Piazza della Signoria with Palazzo Vecchio, Ponte Vecchio (famous Old Bridge) and Piazza Duomo with the Cathedral, the Baptistery and Giotto’s Bell Tower.

If you are going to stay 2 days in Florence we have more detailed suggestions.

Pisa and Lucca Day 3

Pisa is certainly renowned for the famous Piazza dei Miracoli, home to the Leaning Tower and the large Duomo, baptistery and Camposanto.

Lucca is a small Venice without water, enclosed within its huge Renaissance walls which are fun to do on bike. The historical city center deserves a visit, inclusing its peculiar shaped oval-shaped Piazza dell’Anfiteatro.

Chianti and San Gimignano Day 4

In Chianti, visit Greve in Chianti and its particularly shaped square, Panzano and its ancient center, Castellina in Chianti and its scenic walls, Gaiole and its massive castle, Radda and its ancient walls. We have a more detailed itinerary in Chianti if you want more ideas.

Furthermore there are many wineries and farms that produce good Chianti wine. Known and esteemed worldwide, Chianti’s intense color and pronounces taste can be enjoyed at many small estates that do not export their excellent wines outside of Italy. Most wineries offer local products and wine tastings. They often organize tours of their wine cellar to let you discover the secrets of this ancient Tuscan tradition.

Siena and Monteriggioni Day 5

Siena is definitely another medieval city in Tuscany that deserves to be visited. The city center is gathered within the ancient walls and holds many beautiful monuments and museums. First of all the Piazza del Campo, famous for its particular shell-shape and for the Palio of Siena. The Palazzo Comunale and Torre del Mangia overlook the square.

The Duomo stands majestically, a precious example of Romanesque-Gothic style in Italy with its commesso’s marble floor, the Baptistery and the Church of San Domenico. View our itinerary for a day in Siena for more information.

Val D’Orcia and wine tastings Day 6

Val D’Orcia, or Valdorcia, is another famous region in Tuscany for its stunning landscapes and good wine.

Gentle hills, spotted by dark cypresses or yellow sunflowers, make this region the perfect postcard to send back to your friends and families. It offers plenty of cities and villages that merit a visit, starting from Montepulciano, Montalcino, Pienza, San Quirico D’Orcia as well as the small towns of Bagno Vignone, Buonconvento and Radicofani.

Cortona and Arezzo Day 7

The city of Cortona become very popular after the book and then film “Under the Tuscan Sun” came out. It is a small town whose origins go way back to the Etruscans. The center is built around the main square of Piazza della Repubblica, over which Palazzo Comunale looks over.

Here you should visit the Diocesan Museum (Museo Diocesano), that displays a beautiful Annunciation of Cortona by Beato Angelico, and MEAC (Museum of Etruscan Academy of Cortona) that holds important Etruscan and Roman findings.

Don’t miss the Basilica of Saint Francis with the stunning frescoes depicting the Legend of the True Cross by Piero della Francesca, the Church of San Domenico displaying the wooden Crucifix by Cimabue, the magnificent Loggias by Vasari in Piazza Grande and the Archaeological Museum Clinio Mecenate.

Tuscany of course is much more than this. These are just a few suggestions and ideas to get you started on planning your first visit to Tuscany.

Florence Church

florence-s.croce — Florence - S. Croce Church

The Basilica di Santa Croce (Basilica of the Holy Cross) is the principal Franciscan church inFlorence, Italy, and a minor basilica of the Roman Catholic Church. It is situated on the Piazza di Santa Croce, about 800 metres south east of the Duomo. The site, when first chosen, was in marshland outside the city walls. It is the burial place of some of the most illustrious Italians, such asMichelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, Foscolo, Gentile and Rossini, thus it is known also as theTemple of the Italian Glories (Tempio dell’Itale Glorie).

The Basilica is the largest Franciscan church in the world. Its most notable features are its sixteenchapels, many of them decorated with frescoes by Giotto and his pupils, and its tombs and cenotaphs. Legend says that Santa Croce was founded by St Francis himself. The construction of the current church, to replace an older building, was begun on 12 May 1294[1], possibly by Arnolfo di Cambio, and paid for by some of the city’s wealthiest families.

It was consecrated in 1442 by Pope Eugene IV. The building’s design reflects the austere approach of the Franciscans. The floorplan is an Egyptian or Tau cross (a symbol of St Francis), 115 metres in length with a nave and two aisles separated by lines of octagonal columns. To the south of the church was a convent, some of whose buildings remain.
In the Primo Chiostro, the main cloister, there is the Cappella dei Pazzi, built as the chapter house, completed in the 1470s. Filippo Brunelleschi (who had designed and executed the dome of the Duomo) was involved in its design which has remained rigorously simple and unadorned.

In 1560, the choir screen was removed as part of changes arising from the Counter-Reformation and the interior rebuilt by Giorgio Vasari. As a result, there was damage to the church’s decoration and most of the altars previously located on the screen were lost.
The campanile was built in 1842, replacing an earlier one damaged by lightning. The neo-Gothic marble façade, by Nicolò Matas, dates from 1857-1863.

A Jewish architect Niccolo Matas from Ancona, designed the church’s 19th century neo-Gothic facade, working a prominent Star of David into the composition. Matas had wanted to be buried with his peers but because he was Jewish, he was buried under the porch and not within the walls.
In 1866, the complex became public property, as a part of government suppression of most religious houses, following the wars that gained Italian independence and unit.
The Museo dell’Opera di Santa Croce is housed mainly in the refectory, also off the cloister. A monument to Florence Nightingalestands in the cloister, in the city in which she was born and after which she was named. Brunelleschi also built the inner cloister, completed in 1453.

In 1966, the Arno River flooded much of Florence, including Santa Croce. The water entered the church bringing mud, pollution and heating oil. The damage to buildings and art treasures was severe, taking several decades to repair.
Today the former dormitory of the Franciscan Friars houses the Scuola del Cuoio (Leather School)[1]. Visitors can watch as artisans craft purses, wallets, and other leather goods which are sold in the adjacent shop.

Web-site: www.firenzeturismo.it

Tuscan tours

Tuscan tours - Santo Stefano Church

Pieve Santo Stefano Church
This church was built on the site of a small, early Christian church betwen 1000 and 1200. Its Romanesque layout can still be seen on left side and in the apse with its the three windows with one light.

In the 16th century the church was enlarged and a portico was added to the faced, but the inside was completely redesigned at the end of the 18th century.

The church has a nave and two isles, and a vaulted ceiling with decorations dating back to 1910. Inside there is a very fine, late 16th century organ, the work of Onofrio Zecchini; an altar price by Zacchia with La Madonna tra i Santi Rocco e Sebastiano, which is now in the Villa Guinigi museum and has been replaced by an 19th century copy by Michele Ridolfi.

Tuscany landscape

Tuscany landscape - San Concordio di Moriano

From Lucca to Mammoli
The are that extends along the right bank of the river Serchio from the bridge at Monte San Quirico, where the water courses down from the narrow mountain sides, is studded with villages such as Santo Stefano di Moriano, San Michele di Moriano and San Quirico di Moriano; higher up, there is Aquilea, Gugliano, Mastiano, Arsina and San Concordio di Moriano. All of them immersed in the peaceful landscape of vineyards, olive groves and woodland of the valleys and the steeper north facing slopes.

On the left side of the road leaving from Lucca there are the beautiful entrances to villa Barsanti, villa Ciurlo and villa Boccella, and the avenues and parks of other villas which can be seen from higher up the road.

The flat areas between the foot of the hills and the river Serchio, on the other hand, are geometrically patterned by extensive areas of fruit trees.
The first village, indicated by a votive cross at the turnoff for the curch, is San Quirico di Moriano, whose ancient origins are documented in a 9th century parchment that mentions the locality of Aniciano or Nicciano and the church of Saints Quirico e Giulitta.

Italian style

Help save the Church of Santa Caterina in LUCCA – Italian style
There is still time to record your vote to help save and restore one of Lucca’s most beautiful churches. FAI (the Fondo Ambiente Italiano) is a not-forprofit organisation modelled one the UK’s National Trust. It exists to raise funds to support the restoration and care of Italy’s national heritage, whether it be buildings or areas of natural interest, and to raise awareness and improve access to these sites for the benefit of all.
Every other year, it conducts a major survey among Italian residents of the places they would most like to see restored and preserved for future generations.

This project is called I Luoghi del Cuore (places of heart) and FAI uses its results to raise awareness of deserving projects with local and national organisations, and to lobby for their restoration, with the financial support of the bank.
This year, high on the list of potential restoration projects is the Chiesa di Santa Caterina in Lucca, The church sits at the angle of Via del Crocifisso and Via Vittorio Emanuele II, opposite the former cigar factory, the Manifattura Tabacchi, itself scheduled for development by the Comune di Lucca. The unusually ovalshaped church, which dates from the mid 18th century, is regarded as one of the finest surviving examples of the high baroque style.

Yet for over 20 years it has been closed, and is now in need of considerable repair. FAI was instrumental in having it opened briefly in May so that luchesi could get a glimpse of its extraordinary interior. If you are registered resident in Italy, and wiuld like to record your support for this architectural gem, here’s what you do. The process is slightly laborious, but only to deter dirty tricks, as this one prize worth winning.

. Go to the project website: www.iluoghidelcuore.it
. Hit the button Segnala il tuo luogo del cuore
. In the pop up screen enter your provincia and Comune, and select Chiesa di Santa Caterina from the choices offered to you (yes there are other deserving projects in Lucca, but the Church of Santa Caterina currently has the best chance of wining funds)
. Add additional comments or photographs if you wish but thi is optional.
. Complete the security test ( a simple addition of numbers)
. Finally press the Completa la segnalazione button, which takes you to the registration page, where you will need to enter your name, address, e-mail address etc.
. You will then receive confirmation that an e-mail has ben sent to you from I luoghi del cuore
. Open the e-mail and hit the Attiva button to confirm your vote (satisfyingly, you will then see the total number of votes cast for your choice increase by one on the I Luoghi del cuore website).
It costs nothing, so please do your bit. Final results will be announced by FAI after voting closes on 30 September.

Exceptionally, the church will be open from 5pm to 8 pm each Saturday and Sunday during the month of September. FAI petitions can be signed at the church while visiting.