Chianti
Explore Chianti with your family: hilltop villages, castle visits, pasta classes, and some of the best food in Tuscany. Here is everything you need to plan your trip.
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🇮🇹Val d'Orcia
Val d'Orcia is a UNESCO World Heritage landscape in southern Tuscany with hilltop villages, free thermal pools, and iconic cypress-lined roads perfect for family road trips.
Your family guide
Val d'Orcia: Tuscany's most magical landscape for families
“Rolling hills, cypress-lined roads, and medieval villages that look like they were painted by hand.”
— San & Jo
Val d'Orcia is one of those places that genuinely stops you in your tracks. Tucked into southern Tuscany, this UNESCO World Heritage landscape is all golden wheat fields, winding cypress avenues, and hilltop villages that have barely changed since the Renaissance. It is the kind of place where your kids will run through ancient piazzas and you will forget to check your phone.
What makes Val d'Orcia so special for families is how easy it is to explore. You road-trip between medieval villages, stop at a steaming thermal pool, wander a Roman pilgrim route, and end the day with a bowl of hand-rolled pici pasta. There is no single big attraction to queue for. The whole valley is the attraction.
The landscape itself is endlessly interesting, especially the Crete Senesi, the strange clay hills eroded into lunar-looking gullies and rounded mounds that feel like another planet. Pair that with fortresses, abbeys, and a vintage steam train that chugs through the valley during local festivals, and you have a destination that quietly delivers something memorable at every turn.
Southern TuscanyProvince of Siena, Italy
Spring and AutumnBest seasons to visit
UNESCO World HeritageListed since 2004
Best things to do
Why we love Val d'Orcia for families
Pienza: the ideal Renaissance town
Pope Pius II redesigned his birthplace into a model Renaissance town in the 15th century, and it still looks the part. Stroll Piazza Pio II, visit the Duomo di Santa Maria Assunta, and walk along Via del Casello for sweeping views over the valley. Kids love the narrow lanes and the fact that a pope basically built his own dream city here.
Pick up Pecorino di Pienza from a local shop before you leave
2-3 hours
Bagno Vignoni: the village with a pool for a piazza
Bagno Vignoni is unlike any village you have ever seen. Its main square is a steaming 49 by 29 metre hot spring pool, used since Roman times. There are free natural thermal pools nearby and old mill ruins with valley views that are perfect for a picnic stop. The steam rising off the water makes it feel genuinely magical, especially on a cool morning.
The free natural pools downstream are great for a soak without the crowds
1-2 hours
The Gladiator road and cypress drives
The iconic Panorama il Gladiatore road became world-famous after appearing in the film Gladiator, and it is every bit as cinematic in real life. Driving the cypress-lined roads of Val d'Orcia is an experience in itself. Pull over whenever you want, the landscape rewards it. The Cipressi di San Quirico d'Orcia cypress grove near San Quirico is considered one of the most photographed spots in all of Tuscany.
Drive the Gladiator road in the late afternoon for the best golden light
Half day
Ride the vintage steam train
A vintage steam train runs through the UNESCO heritage landscape of Val d'Orcia, timed to coincide with local festivals like wine fairs, mushroom festivals, and truffle fairs. Watching this old locomotive chug through the rolling hills is a genuinely special experience, and kids are usually completely captivated by it. Check local event listings for scheduled departures.
Book early during festival season as seats fill up fast
Half day
Montalcino Fortezza and hilltop views
Montalcino is home to a beautifully preserved 14th-century Fortezza with 360-degree views over the valley. Walking the fortress walls gives your family a real sense of the medieval landscape. The town is famous for Brunello di Montalcino wine, but the views and the atmosphere are reason enough to visit even if wine is not your priority.
The Fortezza has a wine bar inside the walls, a lovely spot for parents while kids explore
2-3 hours
Abbazia di Sant'Antimo
This 12th-century Romanesque abbey sits in a quiet valley surrounded by olive groves and is one of the most serene spots in all of Val d'Orcia. The honey-coloured stone glows in the afternoon light and the interior is simple and beautiful. If you are lucky, you will hear the monks chanting, which makes a lasting impression on children and adults alike.
Gregorian chant services are held at set times, check the abbey schedule before visiting
1-2 hours
San Quirico d'Orcia and the Horti Leonini gardens
San Quirico d'Orcia sits along the ancient Via Francigena pilgrim route and has a wonderful Romanesque church, the Collegiata dei Santi Quirico e Giulitta, and the beautiful Renaissance Horti Leonini gardens. The gardens are free to enter and are a lovely spot for kids to run around while you take in the formal hedgerows and valley views.
The Horti Leonini gardens are free and perfect for a picnic break
1-2 hours
The Crete Senesi: Tuscany's lunar landscape
The Crete Senesi are a geological wonder, clay hills eroded over centuries into dramatic gullies called calanchi and smooth rounded mounds called biancane. The effect is almost otherworldly, especially in the early morning light when the pale clay catches the sun. Kids find the strange landscape fascinating, and it makes for unforgettable family photos.
The Crete Senesi look most dramatic in spring when the surrounding fields are green
Half day
Our verdict
How Val d'Orcia scores for families
Kids
Fortress walls to climb, a village with a steaming pool for a piazza, a vintage steam train, and lunar clay hills. Val d'Orcia keeps curious kids genuinely engaged.
Culture
A UNESCO World Heritage landscape with Renaissance towns, medieval abbeys, Roman pilgrim routes, and architecture that inspired the great painters. The cultural depth here is extraordinary.
Food
Hearty, simple, and delicious. Pici pasta, pecorino cheese, ribollita soup, and Cinta Senese cured meats make this a dream destination for families who love good food.
Nature
Rolling hills, cypress groves, volcanic terrain, and free thermal springs make for a beautiful outdoor setting. Not a beach destination, but stunning in its own way.
Budget
Many of the best experiences are free or low cost, scenic drives, gardens, thermal pools, and village wandering. Accommodation and dining in the valley can be mid-range to premium.
Planning your visit
How long should you stay in Val d'Orcia?
1
1 day
Quick taste
Pick two or three villages, do a scenic drive, and stop at Bagno Vignoni. You will see the highlights but feel a little rushed.
sweet spot
3
3 days
Sweet spot
Three days gives you time to road-trip between five or six villages, soak in the thermal pools, visit the abbey, and eat very well without rushing.
5
5 days
Deep dive
Stay longer and you can catch a steam train festival, hike the Crete Senesi, explore Radicofani and Castiglione d'Orcia, and really settle into the pace of the valley.
Fun facts
Things about Val d'Orcia your kids will remember
Hollywood came to Tuscany
The famous opening scene of the film Gladiator was shot on a real road in Val d'Orcia. That cypress-lined track is still there, and you can drive it yourself. Your family will recognise it immediately.
A village with a pool instead of a piazza
Bagno Vignoni is the only village in Italy where the main square is a giant steaming hot spring pool. It has been used since Roman times and still bubbles away today, right in the heart of the village.
The hills that look like another planet
The Crete Senesi clay hills were not sculpted by artists. They were shaped by millions of years of erosion, creating gullies and rounded mounds that look so strange and beautiful that Renaissance painters used them as backdrops in their most famous works.
Taste Val d'Orcia
What to eat with your family in Val d'Orcia
Pici cacio e pepe
Kids love itTrattoria Il Pozzo, Monticchiello
Pici are thick, hand-rolled pasta noodles made from just flour and water, a staple of Val d'Orcia cooking. Served with a simple cacio e pepe sauce, they are rich, comforting, and almost universally loved by children. Look for them on the menu of any local trattoria.
Ribollita
Local favouriteAgriturismo Il Rigo, San Quirico d'Orcia
This thick Tuscan bread and bean soup is the definition of cucina povera, simple peasant cooking that has stood the test of time. Made with stale bread, cannellini beans, and seasonal vegetables, it is deeply warming and filling. A perfect lunch on a cooler spring or autumn day.
Pecorino di Pienza
Must tryMarusco e Maria, Pienza
This sharp, hard sheep's milk cheese is aged in caves beneath Pienza and is one of the great symbols of the valley. You can taste it fresh or aged, and local shops often offer samples. Pair it with local honey or fig jam for a snack your whole family will enjoy.
Pappa al pomodoro
Safe choiceOsteria Acquacheta, Montepulciano
Another bread-based classic, this thick tomato and bread soup is simple, flavourful, and very popular with younger children. It uses the same unsalted Tuscan bread that appears throughout the local cuisine, cooked down with ripe tomatoes, olive oil, and basil.
Cinta Senese salumi
Local favouriteLa Grotta, Montepulciano
Cinta Senese is an ancient pig breed native to this part of Tuscany, and its cured meats, including salami, finocchiona, and ham, are some of the finest you will find anywhere in Italy. Order a mixed antipasto plate at any local restaurant and you will almost certainly find it on there.
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