Villa rentals in Tuscany
Few places in the world have a WOW factor quite like Tuscany. Whether it’s a silent sunrise in the emerald-green expanse of the Val d’Orcia; lunch on the terrace of your Tuscany holiday rental overlooking vines and olive groves; or the milky-pink sunset of a Chianti spring… At any time of day or year, renting a villa in Tuscany is an experience like no other.
At Tuscany Now & More we take pride in our service. We have 30 years’ experience matching every guest to just the right villa. Someone from our small team visits or stays in every villa we list and knows the area — this is why we keep our portfolio small. (And probably why the world’s leading luxury travel magazine says we’re Tuscany’s best villa company.)
Almost all our villas in Tuscany have air-conditioned bedrooms — which you’ll appreciate in the hot Tuscan summer — and many have air-conditioning throughout. Every Tuscany Now & More villa has a private swimming pool, free use of our concierge service, for pre-trip arrangements and an emergency number available 24/7 while you are in-destination. Your concierge can arrange a private chef, daily maid service, or shopping delivered to your villa, and memorable experiences like Tuscan cookery classes in your holiday rental’s kitchen.To see what real travellers think of our service, and the experience of staying in a Tuscany Now & More luxury villa, read our verified reviews.
About Tuscany
History left its mark across this region, in the Renaissance art of Florence and the medieval brick palaces of Siena. Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, Gucci, Puccini and St. Catherine of Siena are just a handful among of hundreds of famous Tuscans. You can visit their many sights and shrines from several Tuscany holiday rentals.
Older, pre-Roman Etruscan heritage is preserved in museums and tombs, and even the landscapes, of Volterra and the Maremma, including at a UNESCO World Heritage Site near Tarquinia, in neighbouring Lazio.
All of these — and many more fascinating places, first-rate wineries and spectacular landscapes — are within easy range of our vacation rentals and luxury villas in Tuscany.
What to Do in Tuscany
Art and architecture; food and drink; the stone streets and scenery of a hilltop town — these are the mainstays of any itinerary from our luxury villas in Tuscany.
From the medieval period to the Renaissance, Tuscany led Europe in art and architecture. In Florence, Lorenzo Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise and Brunelleschi’s cathedral dome face each other across Piazza del Duomo. Michelangelo, Botticelli, and Leonardo da Vinci were all Tuscans, and left works across the region, many now in Florence’s Uffizi Gallery.
Pisa’s glory days were earlier, during the Romanesque period. The city is now famous for a bell tower that went wrong. We call it the Leaning Tower of Pisa — though its architect would likely have been embarrassed, not proud, to hear that! Pisa is a favourite daytrip from many of our villas for families.
Siena’s style is Gothic, in the architecture of its shell-shaped Campo (main square) and on the frescoed walls of its Palazzo Pubblico. The nearby village of San Gimignano is another immaculately preserved Gothic relic.
Tuscany’s scenery is just as good from two wheels. Cycling or e-biking is a great way to explore the back-roads of the Chianti around Radda, or the photogenic clay landscapes of the Crete Senesi, south-east of Siena.
Food and Drink in Tuscany
Tuscan ingredients speak for themselves. Flame-grilled beef from the Chianina breed of cattle makes an authentic bistecca alla fiorentina. Simple dishes like panzanella (a salad of bread, tomato, olive oil and basil) or pasta ribbons tossed with a wild-boar ragù are elevated by Tuscany’s incredible seasonal produce. Truffles are abundant, in season, if you fancy a treat. Many of our villas in Tuscany offer truffle hunting trips.
Tuscany is one of the world’s great red wine regions. Brunello di Montalcino, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, and Chianti Classico are produced within growing zones where quality is strictly controlled by DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) rules. The Maremma’s Morellino di Scansano is another robust red pressed from the native Sangiovese grape.
Shopping in Tuscany
Wine and olive oil are sold almost everywhere. Extra-virgin olive oils are especially good in the Chianti, the hills close to Pisa and around Monte Albano, west of Florence. All Tuscany’s best red wines, as well as the sticky-sweet Vin Santo and many niche Tuscan wines, age well and can be cellared.
Several Tuscan towns have strong artisan traditions. Painted majolica ceramics have been made in the Valdarno, west of Florence, for centuries. Cortona and Colle Val d’Elsa both have excellent ceramic workshops. Impruneta is the home of Tuscan terracotta. Volterra has an alabaster heritage stretching back to the Etruscans.
Leather manufacture is a Florentine tradition. Although lots sold in city shops and markets is imported, the Scuola del Cuoio trains the next generation of artisans and sells their hand-made wares. Our guide to buying leather in Florence will help you find the best.
After Milan, Florence is Italy’s second city for fashion. There’s plenty of high-toned shopping for designer threads along Florence’s Via de’ Tornabuoni. Florence is also the home of internet fashion sensation Luisa Via Roma. The Mall outlet, east of Florence, sells end-of-line items from top-end Italian couture brands at discounted prices, including by the famous “Florentine Four” fashion designers: Gucci, Pucci, Cavalli and Ferragamo.
