Route & Highlights

Tuscany is a very famous region in central Italy with an area of about 23,000 square kilometers and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. This area offers the perfect mix of relaxation and sightseeing for campers. If you are planning a holiday with your home on wheels in this region, here is a little inspiration for you.

Fiete and I started our tour coming from Sicily and the South of Italy. We started from Rome over to Piombino and the main sightseeing areas in Tuscany such as Siena, Florence, Livorno, Pisa and Carrara. Here is our route in detail:

Landscape & Nature

Tuscany has especially impressed me with its charming Renaissance cities, where you can experience a touch of history up close. Surrounded by green hills, on which some of Italy’s best wines grow, the area has much to offer for nature lovers. Not on the motorway, but on the small streets, which often wind tight and through a dreamy landscape.

Poppy field in Tuscany

The center of Tuscany is wine country. On the hills, vineyards, olive groves, forests of gnarled holm oaks are scattered – and again and again long cypress rows stretch across the often bare, earth-colored ridges.

Olive tree plantage in Tuscany

The best wine productions include Chianti, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Morellino di Scansano and Brunello di Montalcino. Make sure to try them all during your stay at Tuscany.

Explore & Discover

The places we have come by have all well-known and inspirational names auch as Greve, Castellina, Montepulciano and Montalcino.

Along the way, wineries offer tasting and sales, which from my opinion is one of the life feelings in Tuscany you don’t want to miss out on. So makes sure to stop at theses places on your way to the most touristic spots such as Siena, Florence and Pisa which I am excited to introduce to you.

Siena

In Siena the cathedral with its white and black marble campanile is the main attraction, but by no means the only one. It stands tall and powerful on one of the highest hills in the city and shines in the most beautiful afternoon light.

Besides the cathedral, this city has many more churches from the Renaissance and Romanesque times. At the Palazzo Pubblico you can again admire the fine frescoes.

View over Siena

Also make sure to inhale the typical Italian life here. People stroll, eat ice cream, sit on the floor, and some even lie down, talk, or just watch the others stroll and talk. Your best experience will be at The Piazza del Campo.

Florence

This city is the capital of Italy’s Tuscany region is home to many masterpieces of Renaissance art and architecture as well as its influence on high culture. It is regarded as the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance and has been home to many influential figures in the history of art and science offering well-known museums such as the Uffizi and the Pitti Palace.

One of its most iconic sights is the Duomo, a cathedral with a terracotta-tiled dome engineered by Brunelleschi and a bell tower by Giotto. The Galleria dell’Accademia displays Michelangelo’s “David” sculpture.

View over Florence

Florence is also great for some shopping antiques and collectables, leather products and food. A great place to pickup authentic and genuine products is at the covered Market of San Lorenzo and to Sant’Ambrogio Market for fresh in season produce, oils, pastas, wine and more.

Fiesole is a small village above Florence, which has a very natural charm, abundant greenery and a fantastic view. It’s worth it to explore this little town as well if you are in the area.

Livorno

Here you should definitely take time for a tour of the waterfront and the district Venezia Nuova with its canals and bridges.

Livorno

I liked the Fortezza Vecchia fortress, which was built in the 14th century and where you can enjoy great concerts today.

The Livorno bay area has also great beaches to offer, which especially Fiete enjoyed very much as it gave him a little break from all the city sightseeing and shopping in Tuscany.

Beach close to Livorno

Pisa

From Livorno it is only 30 kilometers to Pisa, where the famous “Leaning Tower” stands. You can read all about my Pisa experience on my tour from Venice to Tuscany.

Pisa has not much to offer than the famous leaning tower. I haven’t seen much of the city as parking here was a nightmare and it didn’t feel very safe to leave the RV standing unattended. There were mobile traders and tourist everywhere, so I decided to make a quick visit here.

Leaning Tower

A quick tower visit and that was is to see already. The tower itself is much smaller than I would have expected but it is worth a picture and get back on the route.

Lucca

The fact that Lucca was once considered an important city-state in the middle of Tuscany, can be quickly recognized by the magnificent cathedral and the so-called gender towers. Also unusual is the Piazza di Anfiteatro. There, the houses were built on the ruins of the Roman amphitheater and arranged in this form.

Lucca

If you want, you can also combine the city sightseeing with a visit to the neighboring thermal baths of Montecatini and Monsummano.

Carrara

This coastal town of the province of Massa is famous for the white or blue-grey marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione River, some 100 kilometers west-northwest of Florence. If you are in the area make sure to make a tour of to the marble quarries and the caves – it’s a fantastic experience. Bring your sunglasses as the marble is shining bright white.

Marble quarry

For tips on places to stay with your motorhome while you are in the area, check out my review on Italian campsites.

What are your favourite places in Tuscany? Tell us more in the comment field, we are excited to hear them.