During our planned trip to Italy in April 2013, we are spending three nights in Tuscany. While we will have a rental car, I thought it might be nice to do some walking/hiking between towns. We are very active and outdoorsy and would be happy to hike 5-8 miles (or more!) one day, as long as there is nice scenery and maybe a good restaurant as an endpoint. I've seen several guidebooks geared towards this type of thing, but many look pretty old.

Any current guidebook recommendations for this type of thing? Or websites? Or just general suggestions for town to walk between (Pienza to Montelpulciano, maybe?)?

Anyone with experience doing this want to weigh in on how it was? Should I leave the hiking for another trip? Or was it a great memory in the Tuscan countryside? Will the weather be okay during April?

Thank you!

http://www.casasantapia.com/maps/wal...tepulciano.htm

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...tepulciano.cfm

Thank you! This is great info. I have to admit that I totally failed to do a search before posting, so thank you for responding anyway.

Has anyone heard of the Beth Elon book "A Culinary Traveller in Tuscany"?

I have A Culinary Traveller in Tuscany, but I cannot remember anything about it at the moment. Where in Tuscany will you be?
Definitely check out http://www.50hikesoftuscany.com/.

I haven't chosen an exact location yet, but I was thinking of basing in southern Tuscany (and then only exploring that area), maybe in Pienza. I have no interest in ticking off as many hill towns as possible. Just being out in the countryside and seeing one or two quaint towns. A hike fits my agenda perfectly!

Try to find a copy of this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Tuscany-Sunflo.../dp/1856912175

It's a bit out of date, but the suggested walks are still good.
I don't recall if it specifically covered a Pienza-Montepulciano route (I borrowed the book from a friend).

Stay off the S-146 road---too busy.
Do look at the backroads from Pienza to Monticchiello or from San Quirico to Bagno Vignoni---both great lunch destinations.

I found this site when researching for our trip. It looks like most of info is current.

http://www.50hikesoftuscany.com/2011...terra-and.html

Hope it's helpful. We just returned from Tuscany and did a couple of shorter hikes/walks. It's just beautiful, a new surprise around every corner!

Thanks for all of the great resources! Now the challenge is picking just one hike...