Vineyards, Villas, Wine & La Dolce Vita🍷✨

Tuscany was everything I imagined Italy would be — rolling hills, vineyards stretching into the distance, charming medieval towns, incredible food, local wine and those little moments that make you wonder if you’re actually living inside a movie. 🍷✨

We made the Tuscan countryside our home base, which gave us the perfect combination of relaxation and adventure. From our beautiful villa stay and countryside picnics to wine tasting, exploring Montepulciano and spending a day in Florence, this was easily one of the most memorable parts of our Italian adventure.

🏨 Our Stay | Hotel Villa Campomaggio

We stayed at the beautiful Hotel Villa Campomaggio, tucked away in the Tuscan countryside and surrounded by greenery, vineyards and those quintessential Italian views.

The property itself was absolutely whimsical and romantic. One of my favorite features was the gorgeous outdoor pool surrounded by the historic villa and Tuscan landscape. It was the perfect place to relax after a day of exploring.

The hotel also offered a spa, restaurant and beautiful outdoor areas, so you could easily spend a day simply enjoying the property.

And the location was perfect for us. We could enjoy the peaceful countryside while still being close enough to take day trips and experience some of Tuscany’s most iconic destinations.

🏛️ A Day in Florence

Of course, we couldn’t stay in Tuscany without spending a day exploring Florence!

Walking through Florence feels like walking through an open-air museum. The architecture alone is incredible, especially seeing the magnificent Florence Cathedral — the Duomo — and Giotto’s Bell Tower towering over the city.

And because apparently looking at the tower wasn’t enough for us…we decided to climb Giotto’s Bell Tower. 😂

The climb was definitely a workout, but reaching the top and seeing Florence spread out below us made every step worth it.

We also visited Florence’s famous food market, wandered the historic streets and, naturally, sampled plenty of Italian food along the way. 🍕🍓🇮🇹

🍷 The Famous Florence Wine Windows

This was one of those experiences I knew I HAD to do.

Florence is famous for its historic buchette del vino — little “wine windows” built into buildings throughout the city.

So naturally, when in Florence…

you order a glass of wine through a tiny centuries-old window. 😂🍷

It was such a simple experience, but also one of those uniquely Florentine moments that makes traveling so much fun.

🧺 Cugusiando | A Tuscan Picnic at Caseificio Cugusi

One of my absolute favorite experiences of our entire Tuscany trip was our Cugusiando picnic at Caseificio Cugusi.

Before heading outside, we visited the shop and chose our own local cheeses, cured meats, wine and other goodies to create our picnic.

Everything was packed into an adorable traditional picnic basket, and then we headed outside into the Tuscan countryside. 🧺🍷🧀

And the setting…

absolutely unreal.

Our picnic area overlooked the rolling countryside with vineyards and hills stretching out around us. It was exactly what I pictured when I imagined having a picnic in Tuscany.

Obviously, this also required a flowing red dress and a little countryside photo moment. ❤️📸😂

🏘️ Montepulciano | Wine & Dessert After Our Picnic

One of the best parts of our picnic location was seeing the beautiful hilltop town of Montepulciano in the surrounding countryside.

So after finishing our picnic, we decided to head over and explore it ourselves.

We wandered through the historic streets, admired the old stone buildings and eventually found the perfect place to sit down for dessert and another glass of wine. 🍰🍷

Because apparently the wine we had at the picnic wasn’t enough. 😂

Sitting in a Tuscan hilltop town enjoying dessert and wine after spending the afternoon picnicking in the countryside was one of those little travel moments I never wanted to end.

There was no rushing. No huge itinerary.

Just Tuscany.

🍇 Wine Tasting | Villa Cerna

Naturally, Tuscany also meant wine tasting.

We visited Ristorante Foresteria Villa Cerna, conveniently located not too far from where we were staying.

Between the wine, food and surrounding vineyard scenery, it was another beautiful opportunity to experience the Chianti region and actually slow down and enjoy where we were.

And that’s probably one of my favorite things about Tuscany — so much of the experience isn’t about checking attractions off a list.

It’s about sitting down, drinking the wine, eating the food and enjoying the view.

✨ Our Tuscany Experience

Tuscany gave us a completely different side of Italy.

We climbed towers in Florence, drank wine through historic windows, explored food markets, stayed at a gorgeous countryside villa, relaxed by the pool, tasted local wines, packed our own Italian picnic basket, ate cheese and meats overlooking the hills, wandered through Montepulciano and finished an afternoon with dessert and — of course — another glass of wine.

It was romantic, adventurous, relaxing and unbelievably beautiful all at once.

Villa mornings. Florence afternoons. Tuscan picnics. Hilltop villages. Cheese. Wine. Dessert. Repeat. 🇮🇹🍷🧺✨

If you’re dreaming about Tuscany, don’t just visit the major cities.

Stay in the countryside. Pack the picnic basket. Visit the little towns. Drink the local wine. Take way too many pictures. And give yourself time to simply enjoy being there.