We will be celebrating our 50th anniversary this year by going to Italy in May 2023 for 5 weeks. We have been to Rome 18 years ago and will be spending 6 days near Campo de Fiori in Rome. The rest of the time we will be staying in Cortona. We have the Rome portion pretty much covered. We found a nice place to stay in Cortona and it had nothing to do with “Under the Tuscan Sun”. The Cortona/Tuscany portion is where we are looking for advice.. We are within walking distance of Cortona. We have rented a car for the month in Cortona and want to visit hill towns in Tuscany and Umbria. My cousins will be with us in Rome and for 12 days in Cortona. We are seniors and do not plan on keeping busy every day. We do plan on a trip to Florence for a day trip, and possibly to Venice for a night or two. We are looking for advice on things to do at a gentle enjoyable pace. Plus any recommendation, for great sights and good food at reasonable prices. After that, we have two more weeks with my daughter and friend. More likely than to look for good food and wine and maybe cooking classes. I have read many posts on this great site, so just hoping someone can offer a little advice. Thank you.
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When we went to Cortona for a week we did a day trip to Pienza , Montepulciano and Montalcino, and also went into Umbria several times. Also explored Arezzo. We stayed at Il Falconiere at the base of Cortona’s hillside.
After this visit we decided we would stay in Umbria on another visit which we have done. We spent two weeks in Spello in the upper part of town is a friend’s home. We highly recommend it as a base.
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Thank you for the reply. We are hoping to book a cooking class or two. One primarily more for the adventure and learning some pasta making techniques. The other would be more advance but not over the top. We realize it is getting a little late, but we are flexible in our dates.
Any recommendations for restaurants in Cortona that are particularly enjoyable and not overly expensive would be appreciated. One of our group is vegan but I don't see that as a problem.
I am worried about parking at the hill towns that we plan to visit. I am sure I can find that info on the forum here, but any advice will be appreciated.
Any advice on things to do around Lake Trasimeno (if we have particularly nice weather) would also be appreciated. Are there any beaches (preferably sandy)?
Thanks for any help. I have more questions but don't want to overload.