Villa in Tuscany

Neil Copeland on 21 September 2015
For our summer holiday this year we decided to book a villa in Tuscany. The reason was that some of my family enjoy relaxing by the pool but others enjoy visiting places to take in the history and culture. The advantage of staying in Tuscany is that you can visit some interesting and beautiful places in the region. We flew Easyjet from Bristol to Pisa, picked up a hire car and then drove for 2 hours to our villa. The villa was just outside a walled town called Lucignano – a classic example of Medieval town planning with high exterior walls and narrow alleyways circling around the towns interior. Whilst some people prefer to be in the country with no near neighbours, I have found that selecting a villa near to a town allows you to easily shop for provisions, pop out to a local bar for a few drinks and also to eat out in a selection of restaurants without someone having to drive. We could therefore enjoy sampling the local wine without having to worry about how much we had drunk.

We spend half of our week enjoying relaxing by the pool with a lovely view towards the town. The pool terrace was quiet, private and equipped with comfortable sunbeds. The pool itself was really well maintained but was initially cold when getting in. Once in you could splash around for ages. Most villa pools are not heated and our experience was typical of what you will find in the area.

The other half of our week involved day trips to visit the major cities and towns in the area. We visited Florence, Siena and Pisa. Our highlight in Florence was exploring on and around the Ponte Vecchio – a historical bridge over the River Arne with shops built on it. We also enjoyed the Cathedral which is spectacular on the outside but somewhat plain and simple inside. In Siena we visited the main square where the famous annual horse race takes place and also the cathedral which was more interesting inside than the one in Florence. Finally we visited Pisa to see the iconic leaning tower.

Was the holiday a success? Yes it was a success as we could easily combine some wonderful sightseeing with a relaxing villa holiday lazing by the pool. If you are tempted to visit this fascinating part of Italy there are a number of villa providers we can offer who provide some fantastic properties in the region. Please do not hesitate to call me if you want any further information and advice.