Florence is one of the best home bases for exploring Tuscany and nearby cities. The most popular day trips from Florence are conveniently accessible by train, with destinations like Pisa, Lucca, Bologna, Arezzo, and Siena just one to two hours away. Renting a car or joining a guided tour provides access to Tuscan hill towns, […]
If you’re planning your first visit to Florence, where you stay will shape the entire experience. Florence is compact and walkable, which means a well-chosen hotel puts the Duomo, the Uffizi, and the Ponte Vecchio at your doorstep. A poorly chosen one means commuting to the magic instead of living inside it. We’ve visited Florence […]
San Quirico d’Orcia is a small hilltop town in Val d’Orcia, one of the most scenic stretches of Tuscany. We first visited in late September, during harvest season, while staying at a nearby villa. We fit it in between stops at Pienza and Montalcino, not expecting much from a town this size, and left having […]
Planning a trip to Tuscany? This guide covers everything you need to build the perfect itinerary, whether you have 3 days, 5 days, or a full week. How long should you spend here? Where should you stay? Should you rent a car? What towns are worth visiting? These are all questions that may be running […]
Monteriggioni looks almost too perfect to be real. Perched on a rounded hilltop in the Chianti countryside, its ring of medieval walls and 14 towers appears almost exactly as it did in the 13th century, a complete, intact fortification unlike almost anything else in Tuscany. We visited on a day trip from Siena, just a […]
From world-famous cities like Florence and Siena to quiet hill towns and scenic drives through vineyard-covered hills, Tuscany offers a wide range of experiences, but deciding what to do (and what to skip) can be overwhelming. We’ve explored Tuscany on two very different trips: a one-week highlights tour with our kids and a longer 10-day […]
One day in Florence is enough to see the best of this city, if you plan it right. With a well-planned day, you can visit Florence’s top sights, including the Duomo, Michelangelo’s David, the Uffizi Gallery, and Ponte Vecchio. Watch the sunset over the rooftops, stroll through Florence’s scenic streets, and end the day with […]
Some cities in Italy overwhelm you with options. Siena does the opposite, and that’s exactly what we loved about it. The historic center is compact and entirely walkable, the main sights are clustered within easy reach of each other, and the city has a pace that makes it easy to slow down. The things to […]
Pisa and Lucca are two popular day trip destinations from Florence. Their close proximity to one another, small sizes, and handy train stations make them very easy to combine into one amazing day trip from Florence. We’ve visited both cities on separate trips to Italy. We stopped in Pisa while traveling by train from Florence […]
Two days in Florence is the sweet spot for a first visit. It’s enough time to see everything that matters, without the feeling that you’re sprinting from one landmark to the next. With two days, you can climb the dome of the Florence Cathedral, stand in front of Michelangelo’s David, spend a proper morning in […]
Florence is one of the most rewarding cities in Europe, and the best things to do in Florence range from climbing Brunelleschi’s iconic dome to watching the sunset from Piazzale Michelangelo. We know this firsthand, having visited Florence twice. Our first trip was a quick day and a half visit in July with our kids. […]
After two trips through Tuscany, we’ve visited a lot of hill towns, including Siena, Cortona, Montepulciano, Pienza, and a handful of smaller villages tucked into the countryside. Arezzo was one of the last ones we visited, and arriving on a Sunday in early October, we weren’t sure what to expect. What we found was one […]
The first time we visited the Siena Cathedral, it was a hot July afternoon and our kids, then 9 and 11, were well past the point of cathedral fatigue after several days of museums and churches. We weren’t expecting this to be the stop that won them over. But inside, with the mosaic floor on […]
Volterra, Italy is one of the most rewarding Tuscan hill towns to visit and one of the most underrated. We climbed the tower of Palazzo dei Priori for a 360° view of the countryside, walked a Roman theater that dates back to the 1st century AD, climbed Torre del Maschio with a guide and just […]
There’s a moment when you round a corner on one of Cortona’s side streets and the whole Val di Chiana valley opens up below you, and you think: how is this town not more famous? Tim and I had that moment during what was supposed to be a quick afternoon stopover between Arezzo and Assisi. […]
Perched on a hilltop in Tuscany’s Val d’Orcia, Montalcino is one of Italy’s most beautiful wine towns, famous for its Brunello wine, sweeping vineyard views, and charming medieval streets. Whether you’re here for a quick stop or a slow afternoon of wine tasting, this small town delivers one of the most memorable experiences in Tuscany. […]
There are a lot of ways to see Florence from above, from climbing the Duomo dome, walking up to Piazzale Michelangelo, or ducking into a museum rooftop café. But the best way, in our opinion, is from a rooftop bar in Florence at golden hour with a Negroni in hand. Tim and I have been […]
Planning your list of things to do in Montepulciano? This hilltop town in southern Tuscany is one of the most atmospheric places in the region, known for its Renaissance architecture, sweeping views over the Val d’Orcia, and its famous Vino Nobile wine. Perched on a hilltop in Val d’Orcia, Montepulciano is compact but packed with […]