Val d'Orcia

The Val d’Orcia landscape is made of hills with the typical cypresses, “calanchi” (a sort of canyons hollowed in a clay soil), “biancane” (small bare clay soil hills with a white color due to the sodium sulfate on the surface) and the wiggly Orcia river.
Looking at the hills around the area you can see many country villages and isolated monuments of great charm surrounded by oak forest, olive groves and cornfields.
Around Montalcino the widespread vineyards produce the famous “Rosso” and “Brunello” di Montalcino. This region embraces the southern villages of Radicofani, Sarteano, Pienza, Montalcino, San Quirico and Castiglione d’Orcia. To visit the Sant'Antimo Abbey (one of the most important Tuscan monastery above all for its gregorian chants), the Collegiata of San Quirico and Pienza, famous for its architecture and for a very good quality of cheese. Beyond wine and cheese, saffron and olive oil (DOP certificate) are the local products. To relax there are two spa centers with thermal bath, one in San Filippo and a very old one in Bagno Vignoni, close to San Quirico.