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Italian Guidebooks
Tuscany & Umbria
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A Culinary Traveller in Tuscany: Exploring and Eating Off the Beaten Track
by Beth Elon
Just when we thought we knew everything there was to know about Tuscany, along comes
Beth Elon–cookbook
writer and 30 year resident of a small village at the foot of the Appenines–who takes us along the back
roads and through the ancient hill towns to remote restaurants that are for the most part overlooked by tourists
and known only to the locals. At each restaurant the cooks share their highly personal recipes for regional
dishes made with local ingredients.
With this guide in hand, you’ll not only know where to dine, but what to order
when you get there. Each regional section begins with illuminating and absorbing explanations of what makes
Tuscan cooking so unique: location, location, location. You’ll read about a bean so beloved by a village
that it’s been
elevated to cult status–but that is totally unheard of a few kilometers down the road; the specialty
of the Zeri Valley, a milk-fed aboriginal baby lamb, that is almost unknown elsewhere in Italy; the endless
array of vegetable tarts found only in Lunigiana and Garfagnana.
Elon has organized ten itineraries that also include stops at gourmet shops, food festivals,
greenmarkets, and private kitchens. Along the way, she points out significant architecture, historic sites,
churches, art, museums, and points of interest in the memorable landscape. The indispensable travel information
in this guide is enriched by the author’s deep personal knowledge of the history and legend of the region–and
her delightful voice and beautiful writing.
Click here to read an excerpt from this book
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price and order information)
The Food and Wine Lover's Companion to Tuscany
by Carla Capalbo
The Food and Wine Lover's Companion to Tuscany, originally published in 1996, was one of the first guidebooks to focus exclusively on the traditional foods and local wines of this region-the most traveled-to area of Italy. This essential guide, now completely revised and incorporating over 40 new entries, is still the only book anyone needs to find the little-known shops, markets, festivals, and wineries that capture the spirit of Tuscany. Author Carla Capalbo, who makes her home in the region, passes on her extensive knowledge of Tuscan foods and wine, exploring each town, village, and quaint back road. No one considering a trip to Tuscany should leave home without this book.
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
Florence in Detail
by Claudio Gatti, Fred Plotkin
Florence is one of Italy's most extraordinary cities. Rich with the world's most important art and architecture, and with shopping that rivals most larger cities, Florence is the second-most popular destination in Italy. The newest in Rizzoli's Italian cities guidebook series created in collaboration with the International Herald Tribune, Florence in Detail provides the seasoned traveler information on well-known cultural and commercial points of interest, as well as off-the-beaten-path treasures to let one experience the city as natives do. Through seventeen walking tours and in-depth Focus sections, Florence in Detail takes the traveler to familiar sites, but offers alternative itineraries as well as introducing the reader to lesser-known sites that are extraordinary. Within each itinerary, Rizzoli has singled out one site that is particularly important or noteworthy. Identified with a red sticker, the reader can easily find Rizzoli's favorite site in every chapter. Six itineraries to small towns just outside Florence are described, including Fiesole and Impruneta. A "Best of" chapter, identifies Florence's best pastry shops, best markets, and other venues of interest to the traveler.
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Tuscany (Touring in Wine Country)
by Mitchell Beazley, Maureen Ashley, Polly Raines (Illustrator), Hugh Johnson
Each book in this best-selling series, edited by Hugh Johnson, the world's foremost wine writer, offers a comprehensive and inspirational guide to traveling in one of the world's top wine regions. Evocative descriptions of wine routes are accompanied by detailed maps showing the route and surrounding vineyards. Each title also includes the author's recommendations for hotels, restaurants, and producers.
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Walking in Tuscany
by Gillian Price
Amazon reader's Review: "I did both the no. 29 "Sovana's Sunken Roadways and Necropolises" and no. 30 "Sovana to Pitigliano the Old Way" walks and loved every minute of them. Italy is full of museums and archeological sites but this is ancient history out in the countryside! The sunken roads are fascinating gorges formed by the wheels of horse-driven vehicles that have worn ruts over the centuries in the soft rock called tufo. Sometimes these are up to 20 metres deep. We would never have discovered places so interesting and 'off the beaten track' without this book."
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The Unofficial Guide to Central Italy: Florence, Rome, Tuscany & Umbria
by Melanie Mize Renzulli
The Unofficial Guides® are the "Consumer Reports" of travel guides, offering candid evaluations of their destinations' attractions, hotels, restaurants, shopping, nightlife, sports, and more, all rated and ranked by a team of unbiased inspectors so even the most compulsive planners can be sure they're spending their time and money wisely. Each guide addresses the needs of everyone from families to business travelers, with handy charts that demonstrate how each place stacks up against the competition. Plus, all the details are pulled out so they're extremely easy to scan.
Get the unbiased truth on hundreds of hotels, restaurants, attractions, and more in The Unofficial Guide to Central Italy--the resource that helps you save money, save time, and make your trip the best it can be.
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Umbria: The Heritage Guide
by Touring Club of Italy (Editor)
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The Heritage Guide Florence: A Complete Guide to the Renaissance City, the Surrounding Countryside, and the Chianti Region (Heritage Guides)
by Touring Club Italiano, Touring Club of Italy
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
Florence: The Surrounding Countryside and the Chianti Region (Tci Guides)
by Touring Club of Italy, Club Italiano Touring
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Frommer's Tuscany & Umbria's Best-Loved Driving Tours
by Stefano Baldi (Author), Barbara Fisher (Author)
Everything You Need to See the Best of Tuscany & Umbria by Car! Let Frommer's Take You To:
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
Frommer's Portable Florence
by Reid Bramblett (Author)
Perfect for the short-term traveler who insists on value and doesn't want to wade through or carry a full-size guidebook, this series selects the very best choices in all price categories and takes you straight to the top sights. Get the latest on hotels, restaurants, sightseeing, shopping, and nightlife in a nutshell in these lightweight, inexpensive guides.
Frommer's Portable Florence offers everything you need at a glance: the top hotel picks in all price ranges, the hottest restaurants and pubs, San Lorenzo street market shopping, pubs and wine bars, the David, the Duomo, the Boboli gardens, museum guides, and detailed neighborhood maps. Ideal for weekend visitors, families, or business travelers, this handy guide captures the best of Florence!
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
Frommer's Tuscany & Umbria
by Reid Bramblett (Author)
Meticulously researched by our expert author, Frommer's Tuscany & Umbria is the only guide you need to discover the region's artistic treasures, Renaissance architecture, rustic villages, vineyards, and fabulous shopping. This authoritative guide will reveal the best wines and hearty regional dining, tell you how to rent your own romantic villa, send you on scenic bike tours, and lead you away from the tourist crowds so you can discover the true flavor and leisurely pace of this sunny corner of Italy. We'll show you the best of Florence and its treasure trove of art and architecture, then take you through the medieval alleyways of Siena, along the Chianti Road, and to lovely towns like San Gimignano, Lucca, Assisi, Perugia, and more.
Every one of our honest, in-depth hotel reviews is based on a recent personal inspection; every restaurant has been tried personally; and every sight, shop, and stroll was checked out in detail. You'll get the latest trip-planning advice, valuable cultural insights, wonderful tips for venturing off the beaten path, and detailed, accurate maps. With Frommer's in hand, it's a snap to design the Italian adventure that's right for you.
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
Central Italy: Tuscany and Umbria: The Collected Traveler
by Barrie Kerper
Each edition of this unique series marries a collection of previously published essays with detailed practical information, creating a colorful and deeply absorbing pastiche of opinions and advice. Each book is a valuable resource -- a compass of sorts -- pointing vacationers, business travelers, and readers in many directions. Going abroad with a Collected Traveler edition is like being accompanied by a group of savvy and observant friends who are intimately familiar with your destination. This edition on central Italy -- Tuscany & Umbria -- features distinguished writers, such as Muriel Spark, Gerald Asher, Erica Jong, Jason Epstein, Pope Brock, Nancy Harmon Jenkins, and David Downie, who share seductive pieces about the side roads of Tuscany, wines of Montepulciano, renting houses in Tuscany and Umbria, cooking schools, outdoor markets, and the Festa dei Ceri in Gubbio.
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
A Food Lover's Companion to Tuscany
by Carla Capalbo
Would-be travelers' dreams of Tuscany are permeated with visions of salame, bruschetta, gelato, and robust red wine. Gourmands with a taste for the cuisine of Northern Italy may have installed drool buckets by their beds as the Italian departure date nears, but getting their hands on those fabled comestibles once en route is not as easy uno, due, tre. What you want are those family-run trattorias and wineries, those village markets heaped with fresh local produce, those hard-to-find shops laden with delectably smelly cheeses and hand-pressed olive oils. Well, Carla Capalbo's Food Lover's Companion to Tuscany is reason for to rejoice for traveling Tuscan tasters.
After two years traversing Tuscany, testing trattorias, noting markets and festivals, Capalbo has put together a loving tribute to the food of Tuscany. Going region by region, the guide takes you from Lucca and the Garfagnana through Florence, Pisa, and the Island of Elba. It visits Mount Abetone, Livorno and its coast, Chianti Classico and its wines, Seina, Mount Amiata, and the hills and valleys of Arezzo. There's an appendix with Tuscan market days listed town by town, a glossary, an index of wines, and another of wine grape varietals.
A quick flip reveals a Florentine shop specializing in chocolates (available September through May only, alas), the Mansi Bernardini estate with its fine Luccan olive oils, and Signora Renata Ginestri, baker of some of Tuscany's best breads. There's Da Antonio (a fine fish restaurant in the heart of Chianti), Tenuta Fontodi (the excellent and handsome vineyard outside Panzano), and Caseificio Cooperativa Val D'Orcia (a cheese cooperative in the hills of Contignano specializing in Pienza-style pecorini). Perusing is addictive. Just don't read the book when you're hungry.
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
Walking and Eating in Tuscany and Umbria
by James Ladsun, Pia Davis (Contributor)
Tuscany and Umbria are famous for both their glorious scenery and their superlative cuisines--could there be a more perfect vacation than walking through the countryside, stopping to dine along the way? In Walking and Eating in Tuscany and Umbria authors James Lasdun and Pia Davis offer readers 40 itineraries ranging from half-day walks to routes stretching over several days. There are written directions for each walk as well as a map. There is also a chart for each itinerary outlining travel alternatives such as buses, trains, or private automobiles and a list of restaurants along the way. Each itinerary describes the sights and terrain in charming detail, and though you might want to supplement this book with other guides specific to each area, this one does a nice job of balancing the demands of cuisine and countryside in a single volume.
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
The City of Florence: Historical Vistas and Personal Sightings
by R. W. B. Lewis
Forget April in Paris, autumn in New York, and even Disney theme parks; the world's most magical place is Florence. Rare is the poet or novelist who comes away from that Italian city uninspired (even those who may not have enjoyed a room with a view during their visit). Accurately described as a "deeply personal and learned labor of love," this volume is literary historian Lewis's erudite paean to Florentine charms. Lewis, most noted for his highly regarded biography of Edith Wharton (1975), skillfully interweaves his personal associations with the city, which began during military service in World War II, with those of more celebrated visitors over the centuries. A generous portion of history is added. Lewis has a vast store of knowledge about many subjects but never sounds pedantic; he assumes that his readers are also knowledgeable. For those who aren't, or who have never been to Florence, his book may demand too much concentration and commitment.
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
Tuscany Jewish Itineraries: Place, History and Art (Jewish Itineraries)
by Dora Liscia Bemporad (Editor), Francesca Brandes
Amazon Reader's Review: "Considering the specialized nature of this book and the few other publications on this subject I find it not only a useful travel guide, but also an in-depth, scholarly publication on this subject. The illustrations are of outstanding quality for a book of this sort; the book format helpful to the traveler. I do not understand why this book is catalogued as Bemporad/Brandes whereas the editors are Bemporad and Annamarcella Tedeschi Falco."
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On the Road with Francis of Assisi - A Timeless Journey Through Umbria and Tuscany, and Beyond
by Linda Bird Francke
Francke (Ground Zero; Growing Up Divorced) invokes the legendary 13th-century saint as a spiritual tour guide of Italy, tracing Francis's footsteps to illuminate his spiritual and physical journey to sainthood. Submerged in the region's rich history, Francke traverses the country as Francis did for 20 years, lingering in Assisi (his birthplace), Venice and Rome, visiting chapels and devotional spaces bearing relics of his life or visual homage to the myths he inspired. Her vivid reimaginings create a window into Francis's life, which is blessed with an intriguing backstory that Francke skillfully revives in scenes of drama, despair and passion, as when Francis stridently severs ties with his father to a tittering crowd while "in the buff." She also lavishes attention on St. Clare, the feverishly devout nun who submits to the Franciscan order and falls desperately in love with its leader. Francke peppers her reverent yet witty account with local color and amusing anecdotes that usher history into the present, noting, for instance, that Peter Jennings kept on his desk a statue of St. Clare, as her miraculous witnessing of a Christmas church service marked history's "first live broadcast."
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The Most Beautiful Villages of Tuscany
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The Most Beautiful Country Towns of Tuscany (Most Beautiful Villages Series)
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Umbria: Italy's Timeless Heart Nothing is more authentically Italian than the mountains and valleys of gentle Umbria, where the olive groves and vineyards, like the ancient hill towns that populate the region, remain almost entirely undisturbed. These restful landscapes, less publicized than those of neighboring Tuscany, enfold impressive Etruscan and Roman ruins, medieval castles, grand cathedrals and palaces, and outstanding art such as Giotto's frescoes in Assisi, paintings by Perugino, who was Raphael's teacher, and other native masterwork. Paul Hofmann, whose most recent travel guide was hailed as "an indispensable book, a book to cherish" (The New Yorker), knows Umbria intimately. After four decades of visits and sojourns, he has produced this volume, rich with personal and historical anecdotes, profiling its cities and towns, villages and natural sights. Though the farthest reaches of Umbria are only a three-hour train or car trip from Rome, many of its hidden spots are unfamiliar even to Italians in neighboring provinces. Hofmann's affection for the region is infectious, his insight unparalleled, and in his able hands, its simple joys--twisting country roads, robust wines, hearty food--unfold for the visitor.
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Amazon reader's review: "I found this book while in tuscany and found it very useful. The map was lame. But the descriptions of the wineries, restaurants and towns actually led us to some real gems. For a quick overview of the primary tuscan wines, this is a helpful guide. If you need lengthy in-depth discussion of every wine and estate in tuscany you may need to look somewhere else. Besides, tasting the wine is more fun than reading about it."
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In this favoured land, the hills are green with dusky olive groves, bright vineyards, dark cypress trees; bright Mediterranean blue complements the pure light and serenity of the Tuscan countryside. This beauty is matched by the fabulous art treasures found in the famous museums, churches and monuments here, in the cradle of Italian culture. Includes over 1,000 descriptions of attractions, recommend touring programs and selected places to stay. Over 130 color photographs.
Trade Paperback, 342 pages
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
by James Bentley, Hugh Palmer (Photographer)
With the recent popularity of such notable books as Frances Mayes' Under the Tuscan Sun and Elizabeth Romer's The Tuscan Year: Life and Food in an Italian Valley, a legion of new Italia fans are finding out what many already know: the charm of Tuscany cannot be denied. In The Most Beautiful Villages of Tuscany, author James Bentley and photographer Hugh Palmer offer a decidedly unique view of this remarkable region. Focusing on thirty-six villages and towns from all over Tuscany--chosen for "both their intrinsic beauty and for the part they have played in Tuscan history and culture"--the gorgeous full-color photographs, accompanied by superb accounts of each village, truly "bring the region to life, evoking the richness of architecture and landscape, and bringing out the charm of the Tuscan people." The final chapter is devoted to useful travel information, including passages on hotels and restaurants, market days and festivals, as well as a select bibliography and detailed map of the region. As beautiful as it is informative and entertaining, The Most Beautiful Villages of Tuscany is "the perfect visual tribute to the timeless beauty of these small towns and villages."
by James Bentley, Alex Ramsay (Photographer)
Author of the highly successful The Most Beautiful Villages of Tuscany, James Bentley, with photographer Alex Ramsay, has now turned his attention to the equally beautiful towns of Tuscany. Traveling from north to south, as in the Villages volume, we encounter first the towns with substantial Etruscan and Romanesque features, then the walled towns of central Tuscany, followed by the coastal and thermal communities of the south. The country towns described and photographed in this book have been selected not only to exemplify the remarkable variety of this part of Italy but also because they embody its exceptional artistic and architectural heritage. There are works by Luca della Robbia and Donatello in Impruneta; Piero della Francesca was born in Sansepolcro. The architects of the Renaissance have left many masterpieces as well, often under the patronage of powerful local families: Michelozzo built the Villa Medici near Fiesole, while Giuliano da Sangallo designed the Medici fortress at Sansepolcro. Other aspects of the cultural heritage of these towns are more ancient: Volterra has the remains of Etruscan walls, and the Romans used the thermal springs at Chianciano Terme. A noted characteristic of Tuscan towns is their gastronomy. The wines of Chianti are well-paired with the beef of the Chiana Valley, while bread is justly celebrated in the area around Montecatini. Other markets feature non-gastronomic delights: alabaster in Volterra, flowers in Pescia, books in Pontremoli. Twenty of the most beautiful towns of this opulent land are treated in this visual and textual feast by Alex Ramsay and James Bentley, which is completed by a guide to the principal sites, events, hotels, and restaurants of each town. 273 color illustrations.
by Paul Hofmann
Italy's well-known and loved travel writer shares the secrets of his favorite province.
Oz Clarke's Wine Companion: Tuscany Guide
by Marc Millon
Michelin Green Guide to Tuscany
Eyewitness Travel Guide to Florence and Tuscany
Over 1,000 color photos
312 pages
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Cadogan Tuscany (Cadogan Guides)
by Dana Facaros
Cadogan's newly updated guide misses no treats in this popular Italian region of golden charm. With their accustomed dry wit and insight, Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls travel the wine roads of Chianti, test local gourmet delicacies, wax lyrical about hilltop villages, delve into the glorious artistic and architectural heritage of Florence, bring to light murky tales of Medici decadence, and at the end of the day tell you simply where to relax and drink in the sunset. This guide includes entertaining and illuminating insights into medieval secrets and Renaissance intrigues. It provides reliable and discerning listings of where to stay, eat, shop and play for all budgets as well as practical and informed advice on where to fish, ride, ski, pothole or joust.
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Cadogan Umbria (Cadogan Guides)
by Dana Facaros
Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls, Cadogan's inimitable writing duo, are widely acclaimed for their unique blend of eloquent, entertaining cultural comment and practical, discerning travel advice. They lived in Umbria for three years and remain frequent visitors to the region. To date, they have over 45 Cadogan guides to their name, including the Italy series. This guide provides informed, fascinating insights into saints and sinners, artists and popes. It includes detailed, discerning listings on where to eat and stay, shop and play as well as advice on wine-tasting, art towns, music festivals, markets and scenic touring routes.
(Click here for an excerpt, as well as price and order information)
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