Itineraries

GUIDE AND SUGGESTIONS FOR VISITING CITIES IN TUSCANY

Volterra, gem of Etruscan, Roman, Medieval and Renaissance art, stands at a height of 550 metres a.s.l. and dominates the whole valley of the river Era and the valley of the Cecina, as far as the sea. History never ceased to make its mark on Volterra from the Etruscan period until the 19 th century, with art and monuments of the highest order, which can be appreciated by simply strolling through the streets of the historic centre, but also by visiting the city’s three museums: the Etruscan Museum, the Pinacoteca Civica and the Museum of Sacred Art.

Along with these go an unspoilt landscape, a quality of life still on human scale, and a skilled craft unique in the world: the working of alabaster. A city to be experienced intensely, discovered little by little, with its different atmospheres, its contrasts, and the pulsing of a civilization and culture that  render it unique and inimitable.

EXCURSION TO PISA A splendid excursion through the fertile, charming Tuscan landscape to the historic university city of Pisa, famous for its architectural beauties. After a stroll along the beautiful Lungarni, which flank the river, we continue on foot to visit the Piazza dei Miracoli, where we find the celebrated Leaning Tower, the Baptistery and other notable monuments.

We then visit the Cathedral, a peerless masterpiece of Romanesque art built in the 11 th and 12 th centuries. A pleasant walk takes us to Piazza dei Cavalieri, in which is the seat of the historic Scuola Normale di Pisa, one of the world’s most famous universities.

EXCURSION TO SIENA AND SAN GIMIGNANO A lovely trip through the smiling hills of the Chianti countryside, an ever-changing scene of vineyards and olive-groves. On arrival in Siena we must visit the historic centre, making our way on foot through the narrow medieval streets, admiring the splendid buildings on our way to the Cathedral, of which we visit the interior containing the Piccolomini Library and the adjacent Museo dell’Opera Metropolitana. We may like to end our visit in Piazza del Campo, one of the most beautiful in the world, in which rises the Palazzo del Comune.

San Gimignano, a small town which has remained intact upon its hilltop through the centuries, is famous for its many towers, its frescoes and other art treasures, and there is enough time to discover all its beauties. On the way back we may pay a visit to the ancient medieval village of Monteriggioni, whose mighty walls (used in a stunning image by Dante) are still intact.