traveldk.com

Morning

Start at the Museo Archeologico Mecenate, a museum of corallino pottery and other ancient artifacts that stands on the former amphitheatre.

Head up to Piazza Grande for a cappuccino at one of the cafés under Vasari’s Loggia. Admire the square’s Gothic and Renaissance palazzi before visiting Santa Maria della Pieve.

Climb up past the Casa di Petrarca (the poet’s supposed house) to the Duomo and its masterful stained glass. On Thursday and Friday mornings you could first nip to the tiny Museo del Duomo to see paintings by Bartolomeo della Gatta, and Spinello and Parri Aretino.

Wander back downhill for lunch at La Buca di San Francesco .

Afternoon

Having pre-booked (0575 900 404), head for the Piero works in San Francesco (see Arezzo’s San Francesco).

Grab a heavenly gelato (icecream) from Caffè dei Costanti , and walk down Via Cavour to the Badia. Above the high altar (Vasari’s intended tomb) note the trompel’oeil “dome” (1702) painted by Baroque master of illusion Andrea Pozzo.

Via Garibaldi leads past SS. Annunziata to the Museo Statale d’Arte Medievale e Moderna, a mix of Romanesque sculpture, majolica ceramics, and paintings by Parri Aretino, Bartolomeo della Gatta and Vasari.

Morning

Start with the Duomo group, especially if it’s winter, as the museum closes in the afternoon. Explore the Gothic nooks and Baroque crannies of the cathedral itself first, then pop across to Santa Maria della Scala.

Don’t skip the Museo Metropolitana (see Museo Metropolitana: Duccio’s Maestà) with works by Giovanni Pisano, Donatello and Duccio, plus fabulous views from the unfinished façade wall.

Descend the stairs to see the Baptistry before heading back around the other side of the Duomo for lunch at Antica Osteria da Divo .

Skip dessert so that you can pick it up at Bini pastry shop around the corner at Via dei Fusari 9–13 (don’t eat it just yet).

Afternoon

Stroll down Via di Città, where there are plenty of attractive shops on your way to II Campo (see Piazza del Campo). Either eat your pastries from Bini or grab an outdoor table at Bar II Palio, Piazza del Campo 47–9. Order a coffee or glass of wine, and drink in the ambience of one of the loveliest squares in Italy.

Head inside the Palazzo Pubblico for the Museo Civico displaying Siena’s greatest Gothic art. Exit the Campo on the north side to join the locals for a bracing espresso or Campari at famed café Nannini before continuing up Via Banchi di Sopra as part of the lively evening passeggiata .

Morning

A 9am start in Chiusi, at the Museo Archeologico Etrusco. After learning about the Etruscans, head across the piazza to join a Labirinto di Porsenna tour. They leave every half hour, so you might be able to squeeze in a 10-minute tour of the Museo della Cattedrale as well.

Pick up winding SS146 to Montepulciano . Park at the base of town to stroll up Via Gracciano nel Corso (its name changes constantly), sampling wines along the way. Since 1858, Liberty-style Caffè Poliziano (Via Voltaio nel Corso 27-29), has served light lunches with countryside views.

Afternoon

Continuing up the main street, pop inside the Gesù for Andrea Pozzo’s illusionary painted “dome”. Next, it’s Piazza Grande (more winery shops) and then on to the Duomo.

En route to Pienza at Montepulciano’s edge, turn right (signposted) to see the Tempio di San Biagio (but skip the bare inside). Pienza is a quick stop. After admiring the altarpieces in the Duomo (see Churches Outside Florence) and giant cracks from the cliff’s settlement, tour Pius II’s Palazzo Piccolomini. An alley by the palazzo leads to Via Gozzante, a panoramic walkway out of town.

Go on to Montalcino . If you’re visiting in summer, head to the fortress for sunset views from the ramparts. In winter, make your way to the Caffè Fiaschetteria Italiana in the main square.

Morning

Start with Pistoia and the stupendous Gothic frescoes inside Capella del Tau (incredibly, a private owner in the 16th century whitewashed over them). Go down to zebra-striped San Giovanni Fuoricivitas for a Romanesque feast.

Pop next door into what was once part of the church but now houses the Café Valiani for flaky croissants and cappuccino. Don’t dawdle: you need time for the Duomo (closes at noon, (see Churches Outside Florence)) then Sant’Andrea (closes 12:30). Head back to the centre by way of Ospedale del Ceppo and its terracotta reliefs. Join the locals for a hearty lunch at workaday Lo Storno trattoria just off the picturesque market square where medieval-style second storeys project over the ground floors of the buildings.

Afternoon

From Pistoia, it’s a quick drive to Prato . Stop first at Palazzo Daitini’s frescoes (the St Christopher by the door was a common feature, believed to help protect those leaving the house) to pay your respects to the medieval Merchant of Prato, who inscribed his account ledgers “For God and Profit”.

Do the Duomo (see Churches Outside Florence) and, if you have time, the adjacent Museo del’Opera del Duomo and the Palazzo Pretorio. Grab a bag of cantucci at Antonio Mattei and clamber onto the broken ramparts of Castello dell’Imperatore for a nice view of Santa Maria delle Carceri (1485–1506), a fine High Renaissance church.

Morning

Start your day on the “Field of Miracles” in Pisa (see Campo dei Miracoli, Pisa). Admire the Pisano pulpits in the Duomo (see Duomo Pulpit) and the perfect acoustics of the Baptistry. You can compare the artist’s original sketches with reproductions of the finished frescoes at Museo delle Sinopie. Enjoy the cathedral’s treasures at Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, where charts show how the Campo buildings form various perfect geometries.

Grab a bus or taxi to Pisa’s great oft-missed sight, the excellent painting collection of Museo San Matteo. Stroll back along the Arno to the Ponte di Mezzo, turn right up Borgo Stretto then left into the colourful Vettovaglie Market, where you will find Trattoria Sant’ Omobono .

Afternoon

Catch a train or drive to Lucca , where your first stop is the Duomo (see Lucca’s Duomo). Then climb Torre Guinigi for the panoramas.

Walk through Piazza Anfiteatro and under the glittering façade of San Frediano to see its Miracles of San Frediano frescoes and the shunken body of St Zita, patron saint of maids and ladies-in-waiting. Head down fashionable Via Fillungo for a spot of shopping and the impressive San Michele in Foro.

Finally, climb onto the city walls. If you are staying the night in Lucca, rent a bicycle to return tomorrow (the shops close at 7:30pm); if not, stroll the walls on foot.

Morning

Book your Accademia tickets (see Florence’s Accademia) for 8:30am and spend a leisurely 90 minutes perusing the paintings and Michelangelo statues. On your way to the Duomo (see The Duomo Group, Florence), stop at Carabé, Via Ricasoli 60r, for a Sicilian gelato ; later you can compare this milk-based treat to the Florentine milk-and-yolk version.

Be at the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo around 10:30, then head for the Duomo itself: climb the dome for stupendous views. Pop into the Baptistry for its glittering Byzantine mosaics and bronze doors.

Stroll the Via dei Calzaiuoli and turn left onto Via dei Cimatori for lunch on-the-go from >I Fratellini , nibbling your sandwich and sipping wine while lounging on the cobbled street.

Afternoon

During riposo , when much is closed, trek over to Santa Croce (see Santa Croce) to pay your respects to the artistic luminaries buried there, and browse the leather shop. On your way back to the heart of town, stop at Vivoli, Florence’s best gelato parlour at Via Isole delle Stinche 7r, for a fortifying triple scoop.

Have Uffizi reservations (see The Uffizi, Florence) for 4pm: this will give you a good three hours to commune with the masters of the Renaissance. Overloaded with art, stroll across the Ponte Vecchio in the twilight, pause to gaze up the Arno, and plunge into the Oltrarno district to find a good restaurant for dinner.

Morning

Start in the most dramatic of Maremma’s hill towns, Pitigliano , perusing the ultra-modern archaeological museum set in a fortified palazzo.

Head north to Sorano to visit the Fortezza degli Orsini (be there by 11am for a tour of its cellars), then poke around the abandoned, cliffside Via delle Rovine neighbourhood.

Ask at the Fortezza for a map of the Etruscan tombs and vie cave in the area, then take off towards Sovana, looking out for signs indicating Etruscan ruins (tomba, ippogeo, via cava ). Explore as many as you can before heading into Sovana for lunch.

Afternoon

Pop into Santa Maria Church and the 11th- to 13th-century Duomo, which preserves good carvings, some of which pre-date the Romanesque.

Follow the twisting road west through San Martino sul Fiora (more Etruscan roadside stops), then turn south to Saturnia. Skip the spa and head to the Cascate del Gorello open-air hot springs south of town to wallow in the natural whirlpools.

Go south to Manciano, from where you can reach coastal A12 highway: south to Tarquínia and Cerveteri (for great Etruscan tombs); or north to Monti dell’ Uccellina , the Etruscan Riviera beaches, or Piombino and ferries to Elba .

Morning

Start early in Monteriggioni which takes all of five minutes to walk from one end to the other, but take time to stop in the bar on the piazza for a cappuccino.

Drive on to Volterra starting with San Francesco and its amazing frescoes. On the Piazza dei Priori admire the Palazzo dei Priori (1208–57), the oldest Gothic town hall in Tuscany and the model for most others, including Florence’s Palazzo Vecchio. Tucked into an alcove on the square is the back door of the Duomo – dive inside. Head down Via dei Sarti for the Pinacoteca; continue on this street, which becomes Via di Sotto, lined with several good alabaster workshops, then Via Don Minzoni, where the Etruscan Museum lies.

Afternoon

One block back, on Piazza XX Settembre, Il Sacco Fiorentino is a good spot for a quick lunch before retrieving your car and continuing to San Gimignano getting there just as the tour buses are leaving (but before 4pm in winter, when things close early). Take a quick spin through the Collegiata frescoes before clambering up the Torre Grossa for perhaps the most beautiful panorama in Tuscany.

If you have time after descending – and after pausing at the Museo Civico – head to the other end of town for Sant’Agostino’s frescoes (by 6:30pm). Try to be up on the Rocca for sunset over the towers.