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It is fortunate that the spa waters of Acqua Santa clean the liver, for Chianciano lies at the end of a wine road from Montalcino past the Chianti and Montepulciano. This group of thermal spas – with waters and mud packs to invigorate the body – is linked to the hill town of Chianciano Alto by a long string of hotels.

The ultimate Tuscan idyll, a landscape of hills clad in grape vines, topped by castles, and dotted with countryside trattorie serving Italy’s most famous wine=.

Tuscany’s famous wine region has vineyards and castles, market towns and monasteries.

Italy’s most famous, oftmaligned red.

Since the 18th century the most structured and highest quality Chianti.

Now being refurbished to three-star status, the Bigallo has long been famous among the Florence budget-conscious for its views of the Duomo group. The only drawback is the noise of pedestrians on the streets below.

The fine Museo Archeologico Nationale Etrusco in Chiusi contains bucchero (black Etruscan earthenware), bronzes, anthropomorphic canopic jars and even a few 2nd-century BC painted funerary urns. Apply here to visit the best decorated tombs in the valley.

The 12th-century Duomo is swathed in trompe-l’oeil frescoes (1887–94) that look like medieval mosaics. Next door, the Museo della Cattedrale preserves 15th-century illuminated scores from Monte Oliveto Maggiore. Meet here for guided visits to the Etruscan-carved “Labirinto di Porsenna” tunnels.

Top restaurant, favoured by intellectuals. The annexe serves a limited menu from the same kitchen at less than half the price.

Florence’s best restaurant has a relaxed elegance fostered by the chatty waiting staff and décor. They prepare traditional dishes, but with no pasta or roast meats, and they do not spare the peperoncino . The trattoria branch on Via de’ Macci has a shorter menu from the same kitchen, but much lower prices.

From the Duomo’s dome in Florence to countless belltowers, Tuscany offers dozens of fun scrambles up to dramatic lookout points, many reached via tight, evocatively medieval stairs.