Archive for 'Localities'

The newly released movie 'Letters to Juliet' was filmed mostly in Italy. While Verona gets most of the top billing, the film was primarily filmed in and around Siena, Montalcino and Castelnuovo Berardenga. Visit the Tuscany Villas website for more information on villa rentals in Tuscany.

 

This area is one of the most popular areas for villa rentals in all of Italy. Beautiful scenery combined with great food and wine makes for the perfect holiday vacation. Watch the movie and fall in love with Tuscany then come back and let us help you find the perfect villa or farmhouse for your trip to Italy. In Jerry Garrett's blog he posted an informative article about the filming of 'Letters to Juliet' - check it out.

For the last three weeks, I have been writing about vacation rentals in Tuscany – an introduction to Tuscany, how to select a vacation rental and the differences between houses in Italy and those in North America. This week’s blog article is about the fun things you can do in Tuscany once you are settled into your vacation rental for the week.

For this blog article I am concentrating on the area, south of Siena, near Montepulciano, Pienza and Montalcino. This is an area that my husband Steve and I have traveled to many times and we have never run out of new things to explore and old favorites to revisit.

In case you missed it, the first part of the Top Ten Places to Visit in Florence was posted last week. Be sure to read it!

Florence has been one of those iconic cities that people have dreamed of visiting for hundreds of years. During the Renaissance it was a major center of thought, expression and art of all kinds. Many magnificent churches, opulent palaces and impressive monuments were constructed over the centuries, making it one of the most memorable cities in Italy!

Florence has been one of those iconic cities that people have dreamed of visiting for hundreds of years. During the Renaissance it was a major center of thought, expression and art of all kinds. Many magnificent churches, opulent palaces and impressive monuments were constructed over the centuries, making it one of the most memorable cities in Italy!

Siena, well known for its Palio and beautiful black and white striped Duomo, is a great place to consider for your next vacation. The area was first settled by the Etruscans more than two millenia ago and sacked by the Gauls of present day France, only to be retaken by the Romans around 70 A.D. where it was named "Saena Julia" and has remained a major town in the region ever since.

Siena is truly a medieval town. In the city center, traffic is kept to mainly foot traffic, the buildings are all kept in the same style and new buildings have to be designed similarly so there is no garish modern buildings to mar the historic facades of the city. During the Palio, the city is transported back in time and many of the citizens come out in medieval costume and parade through the streets during the events leading up to and including the race itself.

Banners are waved for each section of the city, as they cheer for their horse and rider, all confined within the shell-shaped Piazza del Campo that has been lined with dirt to form the racetrack. If you are lucky enough to find a rental during one of the two Palio's each year you will be treated to experience you will not soon forget.

During the rest of the year, there is still plenty to see, do, eat and enjoy in and around Siena. It is centrally located to many smaller Tuscan hill towns that are well-known destinations, such as Montepulciano or Montalcino (both of which should be visited by any wine lover). Be sure to take a look at our full listing of Siena Villas.