The dream of luxuriating under the Tuscan sun has endured for decades—from vineyard-lined hills to hilltop hamlets and rolling olive groves, Tuscany remains an icon of northern Italian charm. There is perhaps no better place to indulge in three of life's greatest pleasures: art, nature and of course, pasta.
While I'm well acquainted with the region's famous cities (Florence and Siena continue to surprise and delight each time I visit), I've never roamed the countryside that flanks them. Long immortalised in literature and film—most notably by Under the Tuscan Sun, starring Diane Lane, which sparked a wave of global interest—if you want Italy at its most authentic, with lashings of soul and extra helpings of food, then you will find it in droves in Tuscany.
