If you love the countryside and breathtaking views, Tuscany should be on your list of destinations to visit.
Tuscany is a region in central Italy filled with cute towns and breathtaking views. Not to mention the food and the wine, Molto Benne!! (meaning very good if you’re not familiar with Italian). It is also a popular movie filming destination. Twilight anyone?!
I had the pleasure of visiting four charming towns within a weekend which is enough time if you want to just get a glimpse of the beauty that Tuscany has to offer.
Arrezo:
A small Italian town in Tuscany filled with gorgeous views. It has an abundant amount of churches for you to visit and a bunch of piazzas where you can enjoy lunch or some coffee.
Cortona:
Another small town filled with beautiful green landscape and many amazing picturesque views. You cannot leave without eating the most amazing gelato that Cortona has to offer at Gelateria Snoopy located in Piazza Signorelli. It’s worth all the calories.
Pienza:
Pienza is so small that it wouldn’t even take you an hour to walk through the whole town. It is incredibly cute with tightly spaced streets and some more breathtaking views.
If you get a chance while in the Tuscany region make sure to go to a farm and take a cheese tasting tour. You will get to experience how the cheese is made and really learn about all the hard work that goes into the process. Better yet, you get to try the cheese after and it was probably some of the best cheese I have ever had.
Montepulciano:
One of my favorite cities in Tuscany. Really makes you get a workout walking around town, so be prepared for lots of steep walking (no heels ladies). Most of the town is on a hill, but as you’re climbing up, you run into all these little shops and cafes making your way up that much more enjoyable.
Montepulciano is also known to be the location that the Twilight saga movie, New Moon, was filmed. The piazza where Bella was running through to reach Edward before he was about to reveal himself to the humans is located in this town. It has become somewhat of a popular destination and lots of the nearby restaurants have pictures of the stars and the filming of the movie up on their walls.
Another great feature that Montepulciano has to offers is one of the oldest wine cellars called Cantina de’ Ricci. It is very intriguing and remarkable inside. Also, you just can’t go to Tuscany without drinking a little Vino. So take the tour and enjoy some or a lot of Chianti right after. 😉
All of these cities can be explored within a day, if you really wanted to cram it all in, but if you really want a true authentic experience then I suggest staying for a little bit more and explore the wonders this region has to offer. Another great bit is that Tuscany is not as touristy as many Italian cities are, so you will get to enjoy and see more without the hassle of a million tourists walking by.
Happy Travels – xoxo Dre <3