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Taste of Tuscany A week of the food, wine, art and history of central Italy
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Spend a week focusing on the best Tuscany has to offer in terms of scenery, food, wine, art and history. Our goal is not to just show you the sights, but to enrich your experience by providing the historical and cultural context of the development of Italy’s art and architecture. You can experience life as today's Italians live it! |
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Certaldo Alto
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Accommodations We suggest apartments in a charming Tuscan villa and a three-star hotel in central Florence. If your needs or tastes are different, we have many other suggestions.
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Day-by-day Itinerary Saturday Orientation Visitors can choose between relaxing at the villa and exploring the countryside on foot or by bike. Have drinks before the Welcome Dinner.
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Sunday Ancient Italy--Volterra Drive to Volterra, a hill town with a rich Etruscan and Roman heritage and beautiful views over the Tuscan plains. D. H. Lawrence writes of his visits to the Volterra’s Etruscan tombs in Etruscan Walks. Tour the Archaeological Park and the Guarnacci Museum, which contains one of the best collections of Etruscan art in Italy. Move forward in time by visiting the Roman theater from the first century BC. Just outside the city walls, this is one of the best-preserved Roman theaters in Italy. Take time to eat lunch and stroll around the picturesque town, visit the cathedral, Pinacoteca (Painting) and Museo Civico or the Sacred Art Museum. Return in Certaldo Alto in the late afternoon. Guests can explore Boccaccio's house, the town hall and church. Travelers can choose one of Certaldo's restaurants for dinner.
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Monday Medieval Italy--Siena Visit Siena, a medieval city frozen in time after a defeat in the mid-1500s by the Florentines. Siena’s traffic-free brick streets and alleys spread out from the huge Piazza del Campo through its graceful gothic buildings, many connected by aerial bridges. The Palazzo Pubblico’s bell tower offers superb views and the Sala della Pace (Hall of Peace) contains Ambrogio Lorenzetti’s renown fresco Allegory of Good and Bad Government. Behind its striking Gothic façade, Siena’s duomo contains works from the best Italian artists—Michelangelo, Donatello, Nicolo Pisano, and Bernini. The unfinished nave now houses a museum. Enjoy lunch and visit Siena’s other sights including: Palazzo Piccolomini (Pope Pius II’s family), National Art Gallery, the gothic church of San Domenico, Fortezza Medicea (fortress and wine shop offering tastings) and Saint Catherine’s house. Have dinner at one of Siena’s fine restaurants.
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Taste of Tuscany Page 2 Photos of an AST trip