La Porta is the first restaurant that Pinuccia recommended and booked for us and it really was great. It is in the very tiny town of Monticchielo which, as I recall, was even closer than Pienza. She also sent us to a restaurant in San Quirco but I can't remember the name. Honestly, I'd ask for her recommendation. I hope you do enjoy it as much as we did!

Le Traverse looks beautiful!

I stayed at Il Poggiolo for 3 nights last November and loved it. If you have any specific questions, let me know.

Hi Flame 123 - I would like to know about your stay last November at Il Poggiolo. That is the time of year I am thinking of booking. Did you drive to various towns for dinner each night?

Hi nancythenice - We did not do much driving at night. Il Poggiolo, while being technically outside the small town of San Quirico, is very close, i.e. 500 meters. We could conceivably have walked into town for dinner but we chose to take the car instead. We had two dinners in the town itself and I believe we had a light dinner one night in the apartment, after having a more substantial lunch that day.

Flame123 - a review on Trip Advisor mentions noise from a nearby road as a big problem. Did you experience that? Perhaps in November, it would not be a problem anyway as the windows would be closed.

Nope, no noise at all, but as you write the windows were closed at night and the heating was on. During the morning when we opened the windows while eating breakfast or getting ready for the day, I also did not experience any unpleasant noise. On the contrary, it was quite tranquil and serene!!!

As I started this thread I thought I should post a closing comment. As our recent travels took us to 5 continents, our trip reports will be somewhat fragmented in the locations that we visited.

Just a brief note to say that Le Traverse is an excellent choice to stay near to Pienza in the Southern Tuscany region. Pinuccia is a "legend" in the design and delivery of local hospitality.

We stayed at Le Traverse for three nights in early July in one of Pinuccia's four unique and beautifully designed suites. The landscape around Le Traverse is beautiful and highly photogenic. Compared with towns like San Gimignano and Montepulciano, Pienza is a relatively small village and is very well preserved. The views to the south at sunset from the edge of town looking toward Mt Amata are spectacular and luminescent. Looking up to Pienza from the valley where Le Traverse is located we gained the impression that very little has changed in the last 300+ years. Pinuccia has a great interest in her accomplished family, the arts, good food and wine. She is ably assisted by a wonderful lady - Aleccia who prepares breakfasts and ensures that guests are well looked after. Pinuccia and Aleccia have the most genuine and memorable smiles.

GoodWill - Glad you liked Le Traverse! We had enjoyed it so much ourselves, that whole Val d'Orcia area was incredible. It is still on my list for a return visit, but a much longer one next time.

Thanks! Post a link to your trip report here when you write it.