Cypress-lined roads, hill towns turning gold at sunset and Brunelleschi’s dome on the horizon. In Tuscany the galleries and the wine cellars are never far apart: come for one city and you’ll end up planning three.
Choose September for Lucca’s public religious traditions, or build a music-led visit around one Lucca Summer Festival concert. Santa Croce gives you a procession through the historic centre rather than a performance inside a venue. For ordinary sightseeing, choose dates outside Lucca Comics & Games: its crowds reach well beyond the festival pavilions. Film screenings, […]
Choose the Luminara of San Ranieri for a candlelit riverfront festival evening, and plan to stay overnight rather than hurry away after the fireworks. For a sightseeing-led trip, the Pisan New Year offers a daytime spring tradition. Gioco del Ponte brings historical pageantry, while Summer Knights suits a visit built around a particular concert or […]
A rooftop drink in Florence can put you close to the cathedral, above the Oltrarno squares or beside a hotel pool. Choose the outlook first, then the occasion: View on Art suits a cathedral-focused spritz, while Grand Hotel Minerva offers an evening setting for pizza and a drink. The six choices below include cocktail terraces, […]
A seated craft beer in Florence can be a drink on its own or the start of a meal. Mostodolce pairs its house beer with pizza near San Lorenzo; Birreria Art.17 offers changing taps in Sant’Ambrogio. Across the Arno, Archea Brewery has its own-recipe house range, while Diorama pairs beer with cured meats and cheese […]
Choose Florence Korea Film Fest for a trip built around contemporary Korean cinema with English subtitles, or the autumn 50 Days of Cinema for a particular film strand. The latter brings several festivals together, so choose the programme that interests you before choosing your stay. For a screening-led visit, summer is a weaker choice: the […]
Choose December after the customary opening and before Christmas for a Florence visit that combines daytime sightseeing with Florence Lights Up in the evening. You get the winter displays without making the busiest holiday stretch the centre of your stay. Treat the lights as an addition to the city’s museums, churches and squares, rather than […]
At Pisa Airport, choose your meal around which side of security you need to be on. Al Volo suits a quick stop in arrivals, Mastro Bistecca Osteria offers a Tuscan steak meal in the public terminal, and Buoni & Belli serves the departures area after security. Outside the terminal, Pizzeria La Paradisea and Luigi’s Burger […]
Pisa’s nightlife gives you a choice between a sociable evening around Piazza delle Vettovaglie and music-led nights at Lumière or Borderline Club. In summer, Arno Vivo adds outdoor music and dancing beside the river. Choose the music first if a concert or dance night is your priority. Choose the central bars if you would rather […]
After visiting the Leaning Tower of Pisa, choose the meal you want before choosing the nearest table. Quarto d’Ora Italiano suits a pizza lunch, while L’Ostellino offers a takeaway sandwich when another monument admission is approaching. For a seated meal, Cantina Vasari centres the choice on beef tartare, Osteria dei Cavalieri on Tuscan cooking and […]
A quick lunch in Pisa can mean a filled panino or a portion of chickpea flatbread, without settling in for a restaurant meal. Choose one stop to suit your appetite and the part of the centre you are visiting. L’Ostellino suits a break around the cathedral complex, I Porci Comodi offers a substantial roast-pork sandwich, […]
