Tuscany
The area, like all Tuscany, has everything that one associates Italy with - beautiful nature, excellent climate, thermal baths, historical and cultural sites, excellent local cuisine and some of the most renowned Italian wines (Bunello Montalcino) and the ares is famous also for truffles.
Tuscany is a land of art, culture and history, but it is also a place where you can have fun, relax and above all experience good living. It has lots of outlets, retail stores and malls of designers’ name of fashion like Gucci, Prada or Armani. In every town lots are the small shops of leather items, or clothes handmade. All the little medieval towns are plenty of restaurant for all tastes and budget, particular are the wines ways.
Among the places to see nearby are the Duomo of Florence with Giotto’s bell tower, Piazza del Campo in Siena, the leaning tower of Pisa and Piazza della Signoria with its majestic sculptures. Tuscany was home to Galileo Galilei, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Giacomo Puccini and Dante Alghieri
The area is famous for its unique landscape and rich network of small towns and villages, each with its own character. The hills are decorated by golden fields and vast stretches of cultivated land divided by rows of cypress trees. The land is characterized by large farmhouses, olive groves, fields of sunflowers and vineyards. The area features Medieval towns, castles, churches and some well-known seaside resorts. The area is ideal for wine and food- tasting and for taking most of the traditional flavours.
Tuscany is the ideal destination for art and history lovers, as Florence became the cultural capital of Tuscany and Italy and a cradle of the Renaissance. Various masterpieces from famous artists can be seen here like the architecture by Brunelleschi, the sculptures by Donatello and the paintings by Masaccio, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raffaello and Benvenuto Cellini.
Living in Tuscany today also means living close to the world of high fashion and seeing the collections of top stylists such as Roberto Cavalli, Gucci and Prada. In the area are to be seen the production headquarters, as well as the outlets and shops of the finest-quality garments, but also prestigious Florentine leather, Tuscan fabrics and linen, etc.
Val D'Orcia
Val d'Orcia is a wide valley in Tuscany, lying to the North East of Mount Amiata, between the provinces of Siena and Groseto. The valley is known for its wonderful scenery and numerous towns and villages dating back to medieval times, of which Montalcino and Pienza are the best-known.
Since 2004 the valley is a protected park and a World Heritage Site. It has unspoilt nature and incredibly beautiful colours, as well as numerous must-see locations including the towns of Pienza and Montalcino, the last one famous for the production of Brunello wine. Other places of interest in the area include Abbadia S. Salvatore with its ancient Benedictine monastery, Castiglion d'Orcia with its fortress, and Montepulciano to the east of Siena.
Distance
The apartments are near both the Cassia Road and the A1 motorway (20 min away by car) and can be easily reached from anywhere in Tuscany and thus they are a great base from which to set off to discover all the wonders of this part of Italy.
Pienza is just one and a half km away. Pisa (and Rome) is only two hours away, Florence one and a half hours and a mere 30 minutes to Siena. A short journey away is Lake Trasimeno and Assisi (one hour and 50 minutes). Orvieto is one hour and 15 minutes and Perugia is one and a half hours.
The area is close to several airports:
• Florence (about 1,30 hours -120 km- drive)
• Rome Fiumicino (about 200 km away)
• 2 hours from Bologna
And three sea ports:
• Livorno (2.5 hours) – an important trade port and a cruise ship destination
• Piombino (2 hrs)
• Porto Santo Stefano (1 hr 45 mins)