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Florence’s sculpture gallery, installed in a medieval town hall and prison, contains early Michelangelos, Mannerist Giambologna’s gravity-defying Flying Mercury (1564) and the city’s best Donatello collection, including Davids in marble and bronze (the first nude since antiquity) and a puzzled St George (1416).

Another great family-run place, tucked on a side street off the town’s main drag. Rooms are cosy, many with rural views and creaky antique furnishings. As an added attraction, a stretch of medieval town wall passes through the property.

Crostini (grilled bread topped like a pizza) and more substantial dishes at long wooden tables.

The Gazzarrinis have been making superb pastries, cakes and biscuits for five generations. To go with the cantucci they carry over 40 vin santo labels.

Mid-scale dining in atmospheric rooms, with good, solid Tuscan fare, excellent antipasto and particularly tasty duck dishes.

A converted 15th-century convent in the centre of town, with well-appointed and modishly furnished rooms enlarged from monks’ cells. Views are over the rolling Val d’Orcia hills.

A complex of converted buildings in a farm/park. Twelve doubles and nine triples, a Tuscan restaurant, pool, football pitch and gym. Mountain bike rental is also available. Minimum stay: three nights.

Ceramics in a traditional palette of yellow, green and cream, and patterns often featuring daisies (a design first used by Gino Severini).

Silvia and Riccardo Baracchi converted the limonaia of their 17th-century estate into this Michelin-starred restaurant, one of the finest in the region, adding rich flourishes to the already excellent Tuscan cuisine.

Only the eight rooms at the back enjoy the best view in town: cliff-hugging houses to one side and a slope down to Tuscany’s countryside to the other. This hotel adds a touch of class to the rusticity.