Sorry, this is not Tuscany!

On our Visit Tuscany’s network we often read sentences like this: “Now I’m in Florence and then I’ll travel to Tuscany” or “While in Italy I would like to visit Florence, Pisa and Tuscany”. These sentences are not clear because the real question is: “What would you like to visit in Tuscany?”. Remember that we are speaking of about 22.994 km²! Speaking of weird questions, many of you have asked us “is Tuscany in Florence?” and we have replied here.

One of the most common mistakes that tourists make about Tuscany is to consider Cinque Terre part of it. We would like to say that this beautiful part of Italy is Tuscany, but actually it isn’t, since Cinque Terre area belongs to Liguria Region. Cinque Terre is really close to Tuscany and it’s a good idea to visit this area while here: there are frequent trains from the main cities (Florence, Pisa, Massa). You can read more in this post.

Sometimes in the comments of Visit Tuscany’s network people write us that the thing they love more about Tuscany is… Venice! Unfortunately, like Cinque Terre, Venice it’s not Tuscany. It it would be really wonderful to count Venice in the list of Tuscan main cities, but it’s not true. Venice belongs to Veneto region, in Northern Tuscany. To reach it from Tuscany have a look at this post.

Actually we also have a small Venice in Tuscany… it is located in Livorno and is a neighbourhood! Read more here.

In Tuscany we have many special dishes known all over the world, just think about fiorentina steak, lampredotto, chicken liver crostini, ribollita, etc. For a complete guide about Tuscan dishes read this post.
Pesto and amatriciana pasta is not a typical Tuscan food but it’s common to find them in almost every restaurant. Just be aware that you’re eating something Italian but not Tuscan.