I'm thinking about taking a day trip to Castiglione del Lago from Pienza. Anyone have any opinions on the town? Worth going to? If so, what should we see or do there?
Thanks!
Posted by
Portland
3644 posts
We once rented a cottage very near there. Of all the places nearby, I thought CdL was the least interesting. One hidden gem in the area is the Etruscan Museum in Chiusi. In addition to seeing the fine artifact collection, we were able to get a guided tour of a subterranean burial chamber. With so many interesting choices in the area, I would rank CdL very low.
Nb. Our trip was a long time ago. 30 years ?
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7936 posts
Month of year? Car or not? Number of guests? Meal plans?
We day-tripped there in 2016, during 3 or 4 nights in Sinalunga, Tuscany. Although it was very hot, we thought it was a charming spot, with much less crowding than other parts of Tuscany and Umbria. If we had wanted to visit the big town beach, it looked like we could have had a real "Rick Steves Moment" of local life, with no English audible. The large town-museum was excellent, if home-brewed. I think there's a ruined castle, which you can't enter. It had plenty of strolling, although less tourist-retail (or even local-retail) than the big name towns. Others have written that there are lots of dining options there, but we we concentrating on our third, and by far, BEST Winery-Restaurant lunch, at nearby Avignonesi. One of the many unusual things about Avignonesi is that they straddle two provinces, which greatly affects the naming rules for their wine and blends. They also (back then) were doing the first scientific/practical testing of "old men's tales" about how far apart (for example) vines should be planted. The lunch has to be paid for in advance. This winery is so gracious that when we arrived very early for our tour, they served a few of us sparkling whites that they don't even make themselves.
(We are old enough to have gastric reflux, so we had big lunches, and just a snack at the hotel bar for dinner.)
I suspect we also went to Cortona that day, just long enough to see the important (museum) Renaissance art there.
Posted by
Boise, ID, USA
2309 posts
I was also underwhelmed by CdL (loved Pienza, though).
Posted by
169 posts
Castiglione del Lago is a nice town to walk around, but a few hours would be plenty to see what's there.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/seowDsAp2RqDwgXy7
Castiglione del Lago castles, churches, and historic areas:
Rocca del Leone fortress with a park overlooking Lake Trasimeno
Palazzo della Corgna
Chiesa di Santa Maria Maddalena
17th-century Chiesa di San Domenico
Old Town Hall
Centro Storico