Wedged between Florence and Rome, rural Tuscany offers the quintessential Italian experience: sun-soaked hill towns, green and rolling screen-saver hills, romantically fortified farms, and cypress trees marching single file up lonely ridges. We go to Italy to experience the finesse of Florence, the splish-splash of Venice, and the grandeur of Rome, but it鈥檚 in Tuscany that we find the rustic-yet-elegant essence of Italia.
Built on hilltops for defensive purposes, the lofty perches of Tuscany鈥檚 hill towns today seem to protect them only from the modern world. After the hustle and bustle of urban Italy, it can be a joy to downshift to a more peaceful pace.
With a surprising diversity of听scenic lanes, abbeys, and wineries, the Tuscan countryside is a fine place to abandon your itinerary and just slow down.
This is one part of Italy where I recommend travelling by car. Although driving in Italy isn鈥檛 for the faint of heart, in Tuscany it鈥檚 a听joy on super-scenic small roads 鈥� and the best way to lace together the views, villages, and vineyards. Trains link some villages, but stations are likely to be in a valley a few miles from the town centre. Even buses can鈥檛 make it up, up, up into some hill towns 鈥� some of the steepest villages have escalators serving car parks at the base of their cliffs.
To connect with the rural charm that鈥檚 so much a part of our image of Tuscany, stay on a farm 鈥� an agriturismo. This kind of rural guesthouse , a working farm, provides a good home base from which to find the magic of the region.
Many agriturismi are dedicated to making sure that their guests are as well fed as their cows. Your hosts may even offer you a 鈥渮ero kilometre鈥� meal, serving food that is virtually all produced on the farm: olive oil, cheese, prosciutto, bread, and wine. That鈥檚 a meal that鈥檚 truly indimenticabile (my new favourite Italian word, meaning 鈥渦nforgettable鈥�).
And about that wine: A big reason for visiting Tuscany is to sample the great local wines. The听region is dotted with classy wineries elegantly tucked into the听hills, and many growers welcome visitors to their vineyards.
But unlike in the U.S., in Tuscany you usually need to book a tasting tour beforehand (a simple phone call a day or two ahead is usually sufficient).
The biggest dilemma facing a first-timer in Tuscany is how to choose from the many hill towns vying for your attention. Here are a few of my favourites:
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Volterra
This beautifully preserved jewel, encircled by impressive walls and听topped with a grand fortress, is just far enough off the beaten path to keep it feeling genuine. Its听long Etruscan history makes for unusually interesting sightseeing for a small town.
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San Gimignano
The region鈥檚 glamour girl, with 14听surviving medieval towers, San Gimignano is a tourist trap by day but an evocative and traffic-free delight after dark.
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Siena
Siena鈥檚 stunning main square, the Campo, has a gently tilted floor fanning out into a people-friendly stage set, making it the city鈥檚 proud centrepiece and giving the town a medieval allure. This is the ultimate hill town, with red-brick lanes cascading every which way and an unrivalled spirit that any visitor can enjoy.
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Montepulciano
This hill town boasts a medieval cityscape like a miniature Florence. With several historic wine cellars and easy access to wine country, it鈥檚 my favourite base for exploring the heart of Tuscany. Rooms with a view are standard in this dramatically sited town.
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Rick Steves (ricksteves.com) writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television and public radio. Email [email protected]