What do you think of when you think of Tuscany? Perhaps of rolling vineyards and gorgeous golf-course type landscapes that spread for miles dotted by vineyards and perfect hill-top towns lined with gorgeous out-door venues where you can sip some of the best wines in the world. Of course you would be right, but Tuscany has so much to offer away from Florence, Siena, Pisa or Lucca! No doubt, those are incredible towns… but the real natural beauty of Tuscany is away from the crowds – where the Italians go and no-one ever talks about!
What you might not know is while so many tourists are going to the Cinque Terre or Amalfi Coast, Tuscany has a truly spectacular and gorgeous coastline and this region is home to some of the most beautiful islands in the Mediterranean, in fact an entire archipelago of islands which include 7 islands, including those in order of size:
1. Elba
2. Giglio
3. Capraia
4. Montecristo
5. Pianosa
6. Gorgona
7. Giannutri
These islands are all accessible from the mainland at a variety of points from mainland Tuscany by boat, however the area of Monte Argentario and the spectacular coastline there is all accessible via mainland Italy by car and it’s a truly spectacular drive on a very panoramic road that starts at Orbetello and connects the peninsula which is connected with the mainland by three spits of land which form two lagoons, the Laguna di Ponente on the west side and the Laguna di Levante on the east side of the middle dam. The two main villages on Monte Argentario are Porto Santo Stefano, chief town, facing north, and Porto Ercole facing south.
Visitors to the area can easily see this incredible peninsula in a day as well as some of the Maremma region which includes the Saturnia hot-springs.
When you venture off the less touristy places in Tuscany towards the coast and La Maremma region, you will soon discover a paradise that goes totally un-noticed by many visiting Italy – which is totally to your advantage. Not only can you escape the crowds, but you can save money and experience authentic Italy!
Last year, we did an educational trip for travel agents to this area and all the members we brought to this area were completely shocked about what they saw!
You can see the full itinerary which included this part of Italy we did last year, here:
https://www.italyvacationspecialists.com/tours/tuscany-emilia-educational.htm
This trip was a huge success for those professionals who came to learn about the area and it is our greatest hope that you too will venture off the beaten track in Italy and come and explore – visit and learn about these undiscovered paradises in Italy that have inspired us – and that we hope will inspire you!
For more information about these areas, how to visit and how to best visit undiscovered Tuscany, get in touch with the experts at: team@italyvacationspecialists.com !
