Montepulciano: First DOCG, First Pievi, and One Very Steep Barrel Race
Montepulciano produced Italy’s first DOCG wine and now its most precise subzone system. Add underground cellars, a barrel race, and Tuscany’s finest piazza.
Torrita di Siena and Montefollonico: Donkeys, Vin Santo and a Hilltop Secret
Torrita di Siena runs a donkey palio with eight contrade. Above it, the tiny village of Montefollonico judges homemade Vin Santo from 78 producers.
La Verna: The Mountain Where Francis Received the Stigmata
The Franciscan Sanctuary of La Verna sits on a rocky mountain in the Casentino where Saint Francis received the stigmata in 1224. Della Robbia terracottas, sacred forest, and profound silence.
Pratovecchio Stia: Where Dante’s Exile Began and Tuscan Cloth Is Still Made
Pratovecchio Stia combines the castle Dante cursed in the Inferno, the Romanesque Pieve di Romena, the source of the Arno, and the workshop where Panno Casentino cloth is still made by hand.
Follonica: Cast Iron, Blue Flags, and the Gateway to the Mining Hills
Follonica has a church built with cast-iron columns and rose window, Blue Flag family beaches, and the only train station serving the Colline Metallifere.
Monterotondo Marittimo: Walking on a Volcano
At Monterotondo Marittimo’s Le Biancane park, you walk free among fumaroles, bubbling mud, and bleached rock — Tuscany’s most extraordinary hidden attraction.
Scarlino and the Singing Sands: Cala Violina, a Fortress, and Garibaldi’s Escape
Cala Violina’s quartz sand sings when you walk. Max 700 visitors per day, €1 booking required. Above it, Scarlino’s fortress looks to Elba and Corsica.
Aulla: The Town That Was Erased and Built Again
Aulla was almost completely destroyed in WWII and rebuilt from scratch. What survived — a 9th-century abbey and a Renaissance fortress — tells the story of everything that didn’t.
Equi Terme: Caves, Hot Springs, and a Canyon Between Two Mountain Ranges
Equi Terme packs Neanderthal-era caves, 27°C thermal springs, a zipline, and the 50-meter canyon walls of the Stretti di Giaredo into one tiny Lunigiana hamlet.
Fosdinovo: The Castle Where You Can Sleep in the Middle Ages
Fosdinovo’s Malaspina castle has been inhabited for nine centuries and now operates as a B&B. Ghost legend included, sea views to Corsica optional.