2 Best Sights in Tuscany, Italy

This 1,000-year-old village is worth a stop—skip the nondescript new town and head straight to the centro storico to explore winding stone streets with tiny churches around every corner. The abbey for which the town was named was founded in 743; its current appearance reflects an 11th-century renovation, but the original crypt remains intact. The tourist office in town has hiking-trail maps for Monte Amiata.

The largest town in southern Tuscany, Grosseto is the capital of the Maremma. First recorded in the 9th century as a castellum (small fort) built to defend a bridge and a port on the nearby River Ombrone, the town is now a thriving agricultural center. Badly damaged during World War II, it has been largely rebuilt since the 1950s, but a small centro storico, protected by defensive walls that follow a hexagonal plan, is worth a short visit on your way to the coast.