Siena
Consecrated on the former site of a Roman temple in 1179 and constructed over the 13th and 14th centuries, Siena's majestic duomo (cathedral) showcases…
Must-see attractions in Tuscany
Siena
Entered via the Palazzo Pubblico's Cortile del Podestà (Courtyard of the Chief Magistrate), this wonderful museum showcases rooms richly frescoed by…
San Gimignano
Parts of San Gimignano's Romanesque cathedral were built in the second half of the 11th century, but its remarkably vivid frescoes, depicting episodes…
Pisa
One of Italy's signature sights, the Torre Pendente truly lives up to its name, leaning a startling 3.9 degrees off the vertical. The 58m-high tower,…
Pisa
Pisa's magnificent duomo was begun in 1064 and consecrated in 1118. Its striking tiered exterior, with green-and-cream marble cladding, gives onto a…
Lucca
Lucca's predominantly Romanesque cathedral dates from the 11th century. Its stunning facade was constructed in the prevailing Lucca-Pisan style and…
Arezzo
This chapel, in the apse of 14th-century Basilica di San Francesco, safeguards one of Italian art's greatest works: Piero della Francesca's fresco cycle…
Oltrarno
Fire in the 18th century practically destroyed 13th-century Basilica di Santa Maria del Carmine, but it spared its magnificent chapel frescoes – a…
Complesso Museale di Santa Maria della Scala
Siena
Built as a hospice for pilgrims travelling the Via Francigena, this huge complex opposite the duomo dates from the 13th century. Its highlight is the…
Oltrarno
The facade of this Brunelleschi church, smart on Florence's most shabby-chic piazza, makes a striking backdrop to open-air concerts in summer. Inside, the…
Siena
Cardinal Francesco Todeschini Piccolomini, archbishop of Siena (later Pope Pius III), commissioned the building and decoration of this hall off the north…
Pisa
Pisa's unusual round baptistry has one dome piled on top of another, each roofed half in lead, half in tiles, and topped by a gilt bronze John the Baptist…
-
San Gimignano
The 13th-century Palazzo Comunale has always been the centre of San Gimignano's local government; its magnificently frescoed Sala di Dante is where the…
-
Siena
Siena's recently renovated art gallery, housed in 14th-century Palazzo Buonsignori since 1932, is home to an extraordinary collection of Gothic…
Chianti
At Castello di Ama, centuries-old winemaking traditions meet cutting-edge contemporary art in a 12th-century borgo (agricultural estate). As well as…
Museo Villa Napoleonica di San Martino
Elba
Napoleon personally supervised the transformation of what had been a large farmhouse in the hills 5km southwest of Portoferraio into an elegant villa…
Siena
Popularly known as 'Il Campo', this sloping piazza has been Siena's social centre since being staked out by the ruling Consiglio dei Nove (Council of Nine…
-
Lucca
Lucca’s monumental mura (wall) was built around the old city in the 16th and 17th centuries and remains in almost perfect condition. It superseded two…
-
Southern Tuscany
At Tuscany's most significant Etruscan tombs, part of the Parco Archeologico 'Città del Tufo', signs in Italian and English guide you around four…
-
Pistoia
The bishops' palace, wedged next to the cathedral, provides a fascinating tour of Pistoia's urban history, ranging from touchable scale models of…
-
Lucca
Fire the romantic in you with a stroll around this beautiful 17th-century palace where parts of Portrait of a Lady (1996), starring Nicole Kidman and John…
-
Southern Tuscany
Twenty-two oversized Gaudí-influenced sculptures tumble down a hillside at this fantastical sculpture garden created by Franco-American artist Niki de…
-
Val d'Orcia
The serenely beautiful Romanesque Abbazia di Sant’Antimo lies in a valley just below the village of Castelnuovo dell’Abate, 11km from Montalcino. The…
-
Santuario della Madonna di Montenero
Livorno
The story goes like this: in 1345, the Virgin Mary appeared to a shepherd, who led her to monte nero (black mountain), a haven of brigands. Needless to…
-
Chiesa di Santa Maria della Pieve
Arezzo
This 12th-century church – Arezzo's oldest – has an exotic Romanesque arcaded facade adorned with carved columns, each individually decorated. Above the…
-
San Gimignano
It may seem strange to highlight contemporary art in this medieval time capsule of a town, but there's good reason to do so. This is one of the best…
-
Val d'Orcia
Pienza's duomo was built on the site of the Romanesque Chiesa di Santa Maria, of which little remains. The Renaissance church with its handsome travertine…
-
Volterra
The vast collection of artefacts exhibited here makes this one of Italy's most impressive Etruscan collections. Found locally, they include some 600…
-
Southern Tuscany
Presiding over photogenic Piazza Garibaldi (aka Piazza Duomo), Massa Marittima's asymmetrically positioned 13th-century duomo (cathedral) is dedicated to…
-
Museo Archeologico Nazionale 'Gaio Cilnio Mecenate'
Arezzo
Overlooking the remains of a Roman amphitheatre that once seated up to 10,000 spectators, this museum – named after Gaius Maecenas (68–8 BC), a patron of…
-
Southern Tuscany
This spectacular regional park incorporates the Uccellina Mountain Range, marshy plains and 20km of unspoiled coast. Access is limited to 12 signed…
-
Pistoia
This cathedral with beautiful Pisan-Romanesque facade safeguards a lunette of the Madonna and Child between two angels by Andrea della Robbia. Its other…
-
Lucca
The bird's-eye view from the top of this medieval, 45m-tall red-brick tower adjoining 14th-century Palazzo Guinigi is predictably magnificent. But what…
-
Parco Archeologico 'Città del Tufo'
Southern Tuscany
The picturesque towns of Pitigliano, Sovana and Sorano form a triangle enclosing a dramatic landscape where local buildings have been constructed from the…
-
Southern Tuscany
Set in the wild surrounds of Seggiano, this sculpture garden is the passionate project of Romanian–Swiss artist Daniel Spoerri (b 1930), who created many…
-
Pisa
For an alternative bird's-eye perspective of the Leaning Tower and grandiose Piazza dei Miracoli rooftops, take a walk atop Pisa's medieval city walls,…
-
Arezzo
Art lovers will adore visiting this conservation laboratory. The base of Art Angels Arezzo (www.artangelsarezzo.org), a group of professional art…
-
Museo Archeologico e d'Arte della Maremma
Southern Tuscany
Grosseto's major tourist drawcard features an archaeological museum on the ground floor and a museum of ecclesiastical art upstairs. Items unearthed from…
-
Val d'Orcia
Built in four stages between 1924 and 1939, these formal gardens were commissioned by Anglo-American expat Iris Origo and her Italian husband Antonio…
-
Val d'Orcia
Set in the Palazzo Borgia, this museum displays an intriguing miscellany of artworks, illuminated manuscripts, tapestries and miniatures. Highlights…
