TUSCANY

Rolling hills dotted with cypress trees, medieval villages perched on golden ridges, rows of vines that paint dreamlike landscapes: Tuscany, the region that more than any other has transformed its territory into a complete work of art. It is the land of Florence, cradle of the Renaissance and a treasure trove of unparalleled masterpieces: the Uffizi, the Duomo, the Baptistery, the Ponte Vecchio. But it is also Siena and its Palio, Pisa and its leaning tower, Lucca and its intact walls, San Gimignano with its medieval towers, Arezzo with Piero della Francesca's mosaics, Cortona overlooking Lake Trasimeno. A region that has inspired artists and writers for centuries, and which still surprises today as it did the first time.

Beaches and islands

The Tuscan coastline stretches over 600 kilometers from Versilia to Argentario, boasting an extraordinary variety of coastal landscapes. Versilia—Forte dei Marmi, Viareggio, Pietrasanta—is the Riviera of Italian bourgeois elegance, with fine sandy beaches and historic chalets. The Etruscan Coast, from Livorno to Piombino, offers hidden coves, Mediterranean pine forests, and seaside villages like Castiglioncello. The wild Maremma, with the Maremma Natural Park, is one of Italy's most pristine coastlines, with dunes, lagoons, and Mediterranean scrub. The Tuscan Archipelago—Elba, Giglio, Capraia, Montecristo, Pianosa, Giannutri, and Gorgona—forms the largest marine park in Europe.

Landscapes

The Val d'Orcia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004, is perhaps Tuscany's most iconic landscape: pale clay hills with ravines, solitary cypress groves, hilltop farms, and dirt roads stretching into infinity. Chianti, between Florence and Siena, is the quintessential wine region, where Sangiovese gives life to Chianti Classico amidst castles, Romanesque churches, and villages like Gaiole and Radda. The Crete Senesi and Val di Chiana offer surreal, lunar landscapes of great aesthetic power. Mount Amiata, an extinct volcano covered in chestnut and beech forests, Garfagnana with its Apuan forests, and Mugello just outside Florence complete a region of inexhaustible scenic variety.