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<\/p>\nWinding hills, skies right out of renaissance paintings and medieval villages, all of it under a warm sun sketch a landscape worthy of becoming the scene for the most romantic novels. The Toscana and neighbouring Umbria are destinations that offer many routes and which change with every season of the year, so even if we revisit, they\u2019re never the same. Be it the villages, be it the city, the hills put our hearts and calves to the test but reaching their summits is rewarded with a gift for our vision. The cuisine makes up for the hills with succulent dishes rich in textures and intense tastes thanks to their recipes for game and their marvellous white, black and summer truffles. The area also regales us with delicious wines from regions so en vogue at the moment, Chianti and Montalcino. But what is most unknown about the region is the proliferation of golf courses. A score of courses, more than half of them with 18 holes, give us the possibility of enjoying nature and the countryside doing what we most love. And if the round doesn\u2019t go well for us at least we\u2019ll get to keep the spectacular vistas we\u2019ve beheld.<\/p>\n
The least time needed for an escape to the Toscana is a week, increasing to ten days if we want to do it in a relaxed manner. Obviously spring and autumn are the most adequate seasons as much for the colours as for the ease of walking. The bad thing is that, being so popular and accessible during those periods, the crowds can become overwhelming. Winter offers the advantage of less people but the hours of sunlight are shorter and we can\u2019t see all we\u2019d like to. In any case it is advisable to rent a car and travel to those villages that interest us, be it on arrival from the airport in Rome or Bologna or even Pisa which are the nearest for getting to know this marvellous area of Italy.<\/p>\n
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Florence<\/strong> Florence has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site for all it offers in its streets, its palaces and museums. The Uffici gallery is a treasure where we can see masterpieces by Giotto, Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Hugo van der Goes, Giovanni Bellini, Michelangelo, Tintoretto, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Rafael or Durero, among others.<\/p>\n Lucca<\/strong> The Amphitheatre Square was founded upon the ruins of an ancient roman amphitheatre (from the year 177 BCE, at which time the Romans founded the city) and is one of the most picturesque places in Lucca. Unique in the world for its oval shape, today one can find numerous restaurants, caf\u00e9s, ice-cream parlours and souvenir shops there, as well as it being the location of the city\u2019s market.<\/p>\n San Gimignano<\/strong> Siena<\/strong> Pienza The history of this city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is closely related to pope Pius II, who was born here when it was little more than an unknown little village. When he became pope in 1458, Pius II wanted to turn his birthplace into the ideal for Renaissance cities. The works began in 1459 and lasted four years. During this period the village became a harmonious XVth Century city that remains today as it was then. The effects of the earthquake that shook the region a year ago can be seen in the large cracks in its cathedral.<\/p>\n Montepulciano<\/strong> Perugia Perusa is also an excellent cultural locus as it is the site of not one but two universities, the Universita degli Studi, founded in 1308 and the University for Foreigners, the greatest in Italy.<\/p>\n Assisi Additionally, Assisi hides alluring streets worthy of being trolled through calmly; narrow, twisting stairways, flowers and hundreds of nooks full of history that will charm you. Castelfalfi<\/strong> Le Pavoniere<\/strong> Ugolino Firenze<\/strong> Winding hills, skies right out of renaissance paintings and medieval villages, all of it under a warm sun sketch a landscape worthy of becoming the scene for the most romantic novels. The Toscana and neighbouring Umbria are destinations that offer many routes and which change with every season of the year, so even if we<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1907,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[]},"categories":[874],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
\nFor me Florence is the most beautiful city in the World. The capital of Tuscany, it\u2019s the cultural heartland and exudes the history, the art, the philosophy and the science and above all a beauty that can cause us Stendhal syndrome. At least two days have to be reserved for visiting this beautiful city and let ourselves be wooed by it. Personages like Lorenzo de\u2019 Medici, or the Dominican Savonarola, or prodigal sons like Dante Alighieri, Giovanni Boccaccio, Filippo Brunelleschi, Leonardo da Vinci or Michelangelo Buonarroti have all left a considerable mark on the Florence of their day.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_0300.jpg\")
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\nThis is a beautiful city in Tuscany, famous around the world for being one of the few communities that still has its medieval walls intact, as they were never attacked. Within the walls that surround it completely, Lucca has a historical centre that retains the original splendour from the Middle Ages.
\nCradle of the famous composer Giacomo Puccini, Lucca also harboured Dante Alighieri during part of his exile and the writer represented the bustle of feudal families of the day in his Divine Comedy.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_0767.jpg\")
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\nSmall village that is located in the hills of Tuscany only 60 kilometres from Florence, it is particularly known for the 14 medieval towers that have been preserved, built along with another 58 in a kind of \u201ccompetition\u201d in which the most influential families would try to demonstrate their power and wealth. This location was the Manhattan of its day.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_0628.jpg\")
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\nLocated in the centre of the beautiful region of Tuscany, Siena is one of the most attractive cities in Italy thanks to its excellent combination of art, history and the unique natural landscape that surrounds it. Siena is a magical destination in which it is a pleasure to lose oneself in the medieval alleys, but, as well as letting ourselves be carried away by its charms, there are places that one cannot leave unvisited: the historical centre dominated by the Mangia and the Duomo, the cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption. Together with them, the Palazzo Pubblico, currently the Town Hall, and the old hospital of Santa Maria della Scala are some of the main monuments.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_1026.jpg\")
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\n<\/strong>More than picturesque, cinematic: thanks to its streets, this village has been the chosen location for filming such well known movies as Gladiator, Romeo and Juliet or the English Patient among others.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_0333.jpg\")
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\nOf ancient Etruscan and Roman origins, Montepulciano was a location fought over by Florence and Siena. From the XVIth Century the burg was the centre of a great cultural and artistic fervour that embraced not only great humanists but the completion of splendid churches and dwellings by great architects.
\nNowadays Montepulciano is a great focus of attraction for tourists thanks to its characteristic urban planning and the cultural events it is famous for, particularly thanks to the magnificent vineyards that surround it and from which one obtains the excellent Vino Nobile of Montepulciano.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Etruscan walls and a delightful medieval old town: This is Perugia (or Perusa), an ideal city for gourmands and artists, capital of the region of Umbria.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_1434.jpg\")
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\n<\/strong>Very close to Perugia one finds the walled city of Assisi. It is built on the slope of a hill and surrounded by extensive green fields.
\nIt is the birthplace of the famous Saint Francis of Assisi (San Francesco in Italian) and because of this it is a place of pilgrimage for many clergy and faithful people. The Basilica of San Francesco was erected on the site where the saint wished to be buried after his death. It consists of two churches with one overlaid upon the other. Do not forget to visit both as they are of equally exceptional beauty thanks to their architecture and the colourful frescoes that decorate the interior.<\/p>\n
\nWith regards to golf courses, as I commented, there are over twenty. As it is impossible to present them all, we have selected three of them because their characteristics are representative: one for its seniority, another for the landscape and another for the qualities of the course. All three coincide in having long and difficult courses.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_1333.jpg\")
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\nThis tourist complex offers two courses: the Mountain Course, with 18 holes and the Lake Course with 9 holes.
\nOpened in 1991 it was designed by Rainer Preissmann & Dr. Wilfried Moroder on very undulated terrain where one\u2019s feet are hardly ever level. Over six thousand metres for the men and over five thousand for the ladies add an extra degree of hardness. Without a doubt one has to be fit to complete this course, and not compete with it but enjoy the marvellous views of the Tuscan countryside. It is considered one of the toughest courses in Italy.<\/p>\n
\nThe golf club is located three kilometres from Prato, one of the oldest industrial cities near Florence. The golf course has 18 holes and was designed by Arnold Palmer. It is of Parkland style, very flat but with a lot of water. It is long and difficult but wide and very playable. It is built in a carefully restored XIXth Century villa belonging to the Medici.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ladiesingolf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/IMG_1131.jpg\")
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\nThe club is located in one of the most beautiful places in Italy and it is very well known for its beautiful and orderly construction and its atmosphere. In the hills of Chianti there are many fairways with impressive views of the mountains, and the vineyards whence many wines of world renowned quality come from.
\nIt has 18 holes and is the oldest in the area, being designed in 1934 by Peter Gannon & Cecil Blandford. The grounds are undulated and it is a difficult course mostly because of the position of one\u2019s feet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"