Museo Civico Archeologico di Pitigliano
Southern Tuscany
Head up the stone stairs to this small but well-run museum, which has rich displays of finds from local Etruscan sites. Highlights include some huge…
Must-see attractions in Tuscany
Santuario della Madonna del Monte
Elba
To enjoy an invigorating 40-minute hike, head up through Marciana along Via della Madonna to reach this much-altered hilltop chapel with its 13th-century…
Siena
Nestled in the shadow of the huge Gothic church of San Francesco, this 15th-century oratory is dedicated to St Bernardino and decorated with Mannerist…
Southern Tuscany
In the 7th century BC Roselle (Rusellae) was already an Etruscan town; it fell under Roman control in the 3rd century BC. Although there are no great…
San Gimignano
The name of this 13th-century church refers to its original location next to a drawbridge (ponte means bridge) leading to the bishop's castle. The…
Chiesa di San Pietro alla Magione
Siena
Serenely beautiful, this Romanesque church was built in the 10th century and used by the Knights Templar in the 12th century. It then passed to the…
Biblioteca Comunale degli Intronati
Siena
Occupying 13th-century buildings once used by the University of Siena, this municipal library was established in the 1750s. Its labyrinthine structure…
Siena
Sheltering behind an anonymous facade, this Ashkenazi synagogue in Siena's former Ghetto once serviced a community of 500. Sadly, a mere 50 Jews now live…
Livorno
Constructed between 1704 and 1714 but extensively damaged during WWII and subsequently rebuilt, this church was named after the King of Castile. Its…
Museo Nazionale della Residenze Napoleoniche
Elba
Villa dei Mulini was home to Napoleon during his stint in exile on this small isle. With its Empire-style furnishings, splendid library, fig-tree-studded…
Pistoia
Just steps from Piazza del Duomo is this beautiful gem of a Romanesque church, thought to date from the 8th to 10th centuries within the ancient city…
Pistoia
Pistoia's Gothic Palazzo Communale is strung with works by Tuscan artists from the 13th to 20th centuries. Don't miss Bernardino di Antonio Detti's…
Abbazia di San Michele Arcangelo a Passignano
Chianti
The four Vallombrosan monks who call this medieval abbey home open their quarters to visitors on regular guided tours. The highlight is the refectory,…
Chiesa di San Michele Arcangelo
Chianti
An 11th-century church on this site was destroyed in the 13th century and replaced by this structure, which was subsequently heavily altered over the…
Pistoia
This gallery inside Palazzo del Tau is devoted to Pistoia's most famous modern son, sculptor and painter Marino Marini (1901–80). Dozens of his drawings…
Montepulciano
Elegant Piazza Grande is the town's highest point and main meeting place. If you think it looks familiar, it might be because it featured in New Moon, the…
Livorno
This early-18th-century Domenican church with its thick stone walls and prominent dome stands sentry on the western side of Piazza dei Domenicani as it…
Centro Per l'Arte Contemporanea Pecci
Northwestern Tuscany
The striking work of Holland-based, Indonesian architect Maurice Nio at Prato's contemporary-art museum lures art lovers into its lair with a dazzling…
Northwestern Tuscany
In San Pancrazio, 11km north of Lucca, the gardens of Villa Oliva surrounding a 15th-century country residence designed by Lucchesi architect Matteo…
Lucca
Tucked across the walkway from the Baluardo San Regolo are Lucca's pretty botanical gardens, well worth a meander and a contemplative moment in the shade…
Southern Tuscany
A splendid Maestà (c 1335–37) by Ambrogio Lorenzetti, as well as sculptures by Giovanni Pisano that originally adorned the facade of the duomo, are the…
Chiesa di Santa Maria in Portico a Fontegiusta
Siena
This three-aisled 15th-century church was built on the site of Porta Fontegiusta, one of the original gates in the city walls, to thank the Virgin Mary…
Chiesa di San Giovanni Fuorcivitas
Pistoia
Gargantuan black-and-white striped marble facade aside, the star turn of this striking Romanesque church fronting Via Cavour is Luca della Robbia's glazed…
Pisa
Straddling the southern bank of the River Arno, this attractive city park – complete with children's playground and benches aplenty – is ensnared within…
Southern Tuscany
Built over a 200-year period starting in the 12th century, this Romanesque–Gothic cathedral was commissioned by local boy-made-big Pope Gregory VII …
Siena
Operated by a social cooperative that gives support and employment to people with disabilities or dependency problems, this urban oasis is home to a small…
Volterra
Local, Sienese and Florentine art holds sway in this modest collection in the Palazzo Minucci Solaini. Taddeo di Bartolo's Madonna Enthroned with Child …
Arezzo
Located inside a stunning 13th-century palazzo where the bishop of Arezzo lived from 1256, this museum exhibits 12th- to 16th-century works of sacred art…
Pistoia
Across the square from the cathedral is its 14th-century octagonal baptistry, elegantly banded in green-and-white marble to a design by Andrea Pisano. An…
Elba
About 5km out of Portoferraio town, wander through the ruins of this 1st-century-BC Roman villa overlooking the sea at Punta delle Grotte and you will be…
San Gimignano
Works of medieval religious art from San Gimignano's key churches are on display in this modest museum. Particularly beautiful items made from precious…
Pistoia
Don't miss this beautiful small square, with its laid-back cafe life and striking, life-size sculpture of three blindfolded men, Giro di Sole (Around the…
Southern Tuscany
Work on this massive fortress started in the 11th century. Today it still stands sentinel over the town, its sturdy walls linking two bastions surrounded…
Montepulciano
Montepulciano's 16th-century duomo is striking, largely because its unfinished facade gives the building a stern, heavily weathered look. Inside, don't…
Northwestern Tuscany
To learn how the Romans worked with marble, visit this surprisingly informative, open-air museum adjoining the souvenir shop across from the quarry…
Museo dei Minerali e dell'Arte Mineraria
Elba
Rio's mining history dates from Etruscan times, with open-cast working continuing right up until 1982 when the mines closed. This museum charts that story…
Siena
For an unforgettable view of Siena's unique cityscape, head up the 131-step, narrow corkscrew stairway to walk atop the unfinished facade of the Duomo…
Lucca
The great Giacomo Puccini, who came from a long line of Lucchesi musicians, was born in Lucca and grew up in an apartment at Corte San Lorenzo 9, today a…
Northwestern Tuscany
This cave, 9km west of the SS445 along a very narrow road, showcases a world of underground abysses, lakes and caverns. April to October, choose between…
Northwestern Tuscany
Around the corner from the cathedral on pedestrian Via Garibaldi is this atmospheric old-world baptistry. The pair of baptismal fonts – one originally in…
