Treasures of Tuscany & Florence

Further in, the Chianti region offers visits to Greve and the Castello di Vicchiomaggio, where 16th-century wine cellars and hillside vineyards frame a lunch al fresco. Florence follows, with its Duomo, Ponte Vecchio and local markets including Mercato Nuovo, home to Il Porcellino — a boar whose snout is said to bring luck if you rub it and slip a coin in its mouth.

Two days in Montecatini Terme allow for spa treatments or optional excursions to medieval hill towns like San Gimignano and Siena, each with layers of history and stone. After a day in Lucca's Renaissance streets and its cathedral’s Volto Santo relic, the holiday closes with a return to Pisa for the flight home.

New to Italy? Our Italy guide has the practical essentials: money, plugs, visas and when to go.