IL RIPOSO
Vacation in Tuscany. Rest & Relax in Luxury.
|
IL RIPOSO
Vacation in Tuscany. Rest & Relax in Luxury.
|
|
| Home | Outside | Inside | The Area | Touring | Seasons | Travel Info | Booking |
While
it is possible to enjoy a splendid holiday at Il Riposo without going further
than the village shops and the superb local restaurants, most visitors will want
to take in the rich natural beauty, history and culture of the Tuscan and
Umbrian regions.
Day Trips
Il Riposo is
ideally placed for days out to such tourist favorites as:
Florence
(135 km) Whether your passion is Botticelli or Brunelleschi;
Machiavelli or Cosimo de Medici; Gucci or Armani; or, let's face it, just
Linguine and Fettucine, there's always a good reason to go to Florence.
You can be there in 1½ hours (whether you're driving or taking the
train into the heart of the city). If
you're an old hand, we'll leave you to get on with it.
However, if it's your first visit and you don't know your
Donatello's from your Michelangelo's, we're happy to lay out an itinerary
for you - complete with "no, this isn't just another church"
guide notes and pre-booked tickets at the Uffizi so you can enjoy a long
lunch rather than a long wait in a queue.
We can also point the way to the best places to buy leather gloves,
hand-marbled paper and a designer label or two.
|
|
||
| Siena
(110 km) While not every Il Riposo booking can span one of Siena's two
Palios (2 July and 16 August), it is possible (and indeed probably
preferable) to take in the medieval splendor of the Piazza del Campo when
the horses are safely back in their stables.
The Duomo, with its in-laid marble floors, Pinturicchio frescoes
and a magnificent collection of illustrated choir books, is reason enough
to go to Siena. However, its winding medieval streets combined with its
stunning hillside position mean there is always something delightful to
discover around every corner. Siena
is reached either by a pleasing 1½ hour drive (including a 20 minute
segment on the motorway) or a stunning 2 hour tour through the rolling
hills of some of the finest vineyards of Chianti.
|
|
| Rome
(245 km)
"Hah!", you say, "who'd travel 245 kilometres to go
to Rome for the day?" Well,
thanks to the excellent Italian train system it's possible to hop on the
Eurostar in Arezzo and be in Rome in 1½ hours.
Once there you can spend a morning in St. Peter's and the Vatican
Museum, lunch in the Baroque splendour of the Piazza Navona and, in the
space of an afternoon, travel from BC to AD in the few short steps it
takes to cross from the Forum to the Coliseum – all with time to toss a
coin in the Trevi Fountain, stroll up and
down the Spanish Steps, pop into the Pantheon and enjoy drinks and
dinner before the evening train return.
If that's all a bit ambitious, do what recent guests and their
three children (aged 3, 6 & 8) did – take the 9:15 arriving at
11:15. Visit St. Peters, the
Pantheon, the Forum and the Coliseum and enjoy as many servings of gelato
as you can before boarding the 6:15pm return train.
|
|
|
Assisi (100 km) Assisi is a stunning medieval hilltown, most often thought of in connection with St. Francis. St. Francis is buried in the Basilica di San Francesco, which also houses the important Giotto fresco cycle, The Life of Saint Francis.
|
|
||
| Lake
Trasimeno
(130 km) Lake Trasimeno, Italy's fourth largest lake, earned a place in
the annals of warfare as the site of Hannibal's routing of the Romans.
(Hannibal lost only 1,500 men compared to the Roman's 16,000 casualties
– an Away Win on the pools and a serious upset for the bookies.)
Today, you can visit the battlefield and nearby the grimly named
Ossaia (Place of the Bones) and Sanguineto (Place of the Blood).
If you wish to focus on more cheery matters, enjoy a boat trip from
either of the lovely lakeside towns of Passignano sul Trasimeno or
Castiglione del Lago to the lake's large island, Isola Maggiore.
There is no lack of excellent fish restaurants within easy reach of
the lake's shore. |
|
| Perugia (95 km) Perugia is a stunning Umbrian town, rich in artistic and political history. From the impressive collection of Renaissance art in the local museum and the neighbouring money changers' rooms (Piero della Francesca, Pinturicchio, Fra Angelico and especially the homeboy - Perugino), to the unique underground medieval street system which leads up and into the heart of the town, to the long and pleasing cafe- and gelateria - dotted pedestrian thoroughfare through the heart of the historical centre, there is something for everyone to enjoy in Perugia. And, because Perugia is less than 1 hour from Il Riposo, it's easy to combine a stop there with a visit to nearby Assisi or Lake Trasimeno. |
|
| Gubbio (90
km) Throughout
Umbria there are an array of potters and their shops.
However, few can claim the world renown that attaches to those of
Gubbio. And, if platters and
pitchers aren't enough to motivate the trip, then there is always the fine
medieval architecture and Gubbio's equally well-earned reputation for
delicious food (served, no doubt, on a very lovely plate!). |
|
| Arezzo
(40 km) Arezzo is built on the site of Eastern Tuscany's most important
Etruscan city. Today, Arezzo is a city with thriving antique and jewelry
businesses and, among other cultural high points, Piero della Francesca's
newly restored masterpiece fresco cycle, The Legend of the True Cross
(1452-66) in the Church of San Francesco.
Arezzo is also home to the mainline train station linking eastern
Tuscany to major cities in Italy and Europe.
On the first Sunday of each month, Arezzo plays host to a large
antiques market that winds past the Church of San Francesco, up toward the
Duomo and descends to the beautiful Piazza Grande which is lined on one
side with a lovely Renaissance arcade by Vasari and on another by striking
medieval palaces. |
|
