65 km from our B. & B. Del Giglio on the same direction as Lucca

Pistoia is a very welcoming Tuscan city, full of charm, with its Historic Center easily accessible on foot, rich in monuments, medieval alleys, with its squares dotted with haunts. The main beauties of the city to visit are:
– The Cathedral of San Zeno with the splendid frescoes inside and the Precious silver Altar of San Jacopo.
– The Bell Tower characterized by a gothic style tower with 200 steps and a beautiful view of The city.
– The Baptistery of S. Giovanni in Corte, XIV century. elegant example of Gothic architecture with an octagonal plan with a two-tone marble facade, inside the baptismal font of 1226 sculpted by Lanfranco da Como.
– Palace of the Comune, thirteenth-century building, symbol of city power, has a stone facade, houses paintings from the civic museum.
– S. Bartolomeo in Pantano, Beautiful Romanesque church, its foundation dates back to the Lombard period, and can be placed between 726 and 764.
– Ospedale del Ceppo, Founded in 1277, the facade of the building is embellished with glazed terracotta tiles 1514-1525 by Giovanni della Robbia.
– Pieve di Sant’Andrea, houses the beautiful pulpit of Sant’Andrea, the masterpiece of Giovanni Pisano.
– Madonna of Humility, Brunelleschi-inspired Renaissance church, the dome was designed by Vasari 1561.
– S. Giovanni Fuorcivitas, dates back to the XII-XIII century. devoid of a real facade, it has a beautiful side with two-tone marble bands, the portal is adorned in the architrave with a last supper by Gruamonte 1162 inside a polyptych by Taddeo Gaddi and a glazed terracotta by Della Robbia.
– Piazza della Sala, is the place where the daily fruit and vegetable market is organized and in the evening very lively due to the presence of many haunts.
– Marino Marini Museum, with drawings and sculptures by the famous Pistoian artist of the twentieth century that enhance his particular style.

99 km from our B. & B. Del Giglio

City of Roman origin, in the Middle Ages it was the capital of a flourishing marquisate, rival of Pisa and Florence.
The 200 was the century of its great Romanesque churches. In the Renaissance, solid banks arose and beautiful palaces and villas were built in the surroundings.
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the ring of ramparts that still surrounds the suggestive and intact historic center were built.
In 1799 it fell into the hands of the French. We list the most important religious and civil buildings that mark the history of the city.
S. Martino il Duomo, a grandiose building erected in the Romanesque style, later rebuilt in Gothic style XIV-XV century. S. Michele in Foro XII – XIV century. in Pisan Gothic style. National Picture Gallery where works by Tintoretto, Veronese, Bronzino, Andrea del Sarto are kept. National Museum of Villa Guinigi, with Roman, medieval, eighteenth-century sculptures, archaeological, Etruscan, Roman finds, a work by Pontormo, and works from Lucca. Torre Guinigi medieval tower on top of which grow holm oak trees. Puccini House with memorabilia of the composer. Palazzo Pfanner, an imposing building with one of the most beautiful gardens in Tuscany, a Roman amphitheater, absolutely nothing remains of the ancient Roman theater only the layout of the square ” Le Mura” are crossed by a tree-lined avenue of about 4 kilometers are a destination for romantic walks and to admire views of the city and the surrounding countryside.
was principality under Elisa Baciocchi, Napoleon’s sister, then possession of the Bourbons, finally annexation to the Kingdom of Italy. Birthplace of Giacomo Puccini and Luigi Boccherini two of the greatest Italian musicians.

99 km from our B. & B. Del Giglio

It is a very ancient city, dating back to the Etruscan / Roman period, in the Middle Ages it was one of the 4 Maritime Republics.
Birthplace of Galileo Galilei, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.
In its Historic Center, all the most important buildings, squares and monuments that form the civil and religious history of the city are enclosed,
from the Amazing Beauty of Campo dei Miracoli, the Baptistery, the Cathedral, the Leaning Tower, the Camposanto, makes it one of the most famous and unique cities in Tuscany, known all over the world.
Continuing with the most important things to see, we find the Church of Santa Maria della Spina, a small jewel of Pisan Gothic architecture in S. Paolo a Ripa d’Arno, in Piazza dei Cavalieri, with the Palazzo dei Cavalieri and S. Stefano, to S. Caterina, S. Francesco, to the National Museum of S. Matteo.

95 km from our B. & B. Del Giglio, we recommend an excursion to Cortona, 20 km further, back towards Siena

It was an important Etruscan and then Roman center. In the Middle Ages it was a rival of Siena and Florence. In the territory of Arezzo many illustrious men saw the light; Mecenate, Petrarca, Piero della Francesca, Michelangelo, and Vasari.

The main buildings, monuments, squares are:
Piazza Grande, with an irregular plan and floor famous for the antiques market held every 1st Sunday of the month, is dotted with ancient houses with wooden balconies and buildings from different eras: the beautiful Palazzo delle Logge del Vasari, Palazzo della Fraternità dei Laici , the lower part of the Gothic style and the upper part of the Renaissance, Palazzo del Tribunale from the seventeenth century, the Bell Tower with the clock is from 1552, the Romanesque apse of the Pieve di S. Maria built between 1140 and the beginning of the 14th century,
has a facade with Pisan-type arches very elaborate and heavily damaged by time, the interior contains several works of valuable manufacture.
– San Francesco of simple Franciscan Gothic forms, is famous for the cycle of frescoes by Piero della Francesca, considered his masterpiece and one of the most important in Italy;
– Cathedral, with a fresco inside on the wall of the nave of the Maddalena by Piero della Francesca;
– San Domenico, a Gothic Romanesque church with interesting frescoes by Spinello Aretino inside and an exceptional crucifix painted by Cimabue;
– Medieval and Modern Gallery and Museum, rich in works of considerable importance, including a Madonna and Saints attributed to Luca Signorelli, a Madonna by Rosso Fiorentino, works by Vasari and Macchiaioli Toscani.
– Roman amphitheater and Mecenate archaeological museum. Only the ruins of a Roman amphitheater are visible, the museum known for the collection of Roman-Aretine pottery exported throughout the Roman Empire.