Historically speaking Tuscany is a land rich in splendid ancient villages, enchanting destinations where you can breathe history, art and beauty at every turn.
Diamonds set in picture-postcard landscapes, scattered through the hills of the Val d'Orcia, perched between the Apuan Alps and the Apennines, or overlooking the sea.
A richness that is also evident in the selection of villages awarded the Orange Flag by the Touring Club, the quality label dedicated to small inland villages that stand out for the preservation of the landscape, hospitality, enhancement of cultural heritage, quality accommodation facilities and excellent cuisine.
Tuscany is currently the Italian region with the highest number of Orange Flags: 43.
These 43 Orange Flags are destinations full of charm making up a mosaic of stories and traditions and representing an ideal itinerary that crosses the whole of Tuscany.
From the Valdelsa Valdicecina, where villages stand out like islands among meadows and vineyards, to the Val d'Orcia, whose hillsides host world-famous pearls. In Valdichiana Senese and in the Terre di Siena, villages speak of Etruscan history, food and wine excellence and spa relaxation. In the Chianti area, the hills of the Lucchesia and the Costa degli Etruschi (Etruscan Coast), the Orange Flags overlook the vineyards. Art and history characterize the villages of the Valtiberina, Valdichiana Aretina and the Lunigiana, while nature is the main character of the villages of the Pistoia Mountains and Garfagnana. Traditions and the scents of typical products cross the narrow alleys of the villages of Mount Amiata and of the Terre di Pisa. The Maremma reveals its medieval past in the north and its hidden face, carved into the tuff, in the south, while villages in Valdinievole and in the Empolese Valdelsa and Montalbano tell their story through their most distinguished fellow citizens.
Partiamo proprio dalle Terre di Siena, un palcoscenico naturale tra cielo e terra, prati e vigneti, dove pievi e borghi emergono come isole nel grande mare di terra, creando così uno dei paesaggi più belli d’Italia. In questa cornice unica al mondo troviamo San Gimignano, con le sue splendide torri, Montalcino patria del Brunello, ma anche Monteriggioni, il castello perfettamente conservato alle porte di Siena, e ancora Castelnuovo Berardenga, Radda in Chianti, Trequanda e Cetona, dove la natura incontra la storia.
Il cuore della Val d’Orcia protegge invece uno dei centri storici più incredibili al mondo, Pienza, la città ideale del Rinascimento dichiarata dall’Unesco Patrimonio dell’Umanità, ma anche Sarteano, con antichissime origini etrusche, Radicofani, ultima tappa toscana della Via Francigena, e Montepulciano, la patria del vino Nobile. Senza dimenticare Chiusi, con il suo labirinto di Porsenna, un percorso sotterraneo che risale all’epoca etrusca, Montefollonico dove si produce il tipico Vin Santo, e Murlo.
