Today’s tour takes you on a beautiful drive along the Arno Valley, from Florence to Arezzo. Along the way, you will pass vineyards, olive groves, chestnut woods and monasteries with stops at the peaceful Vallombrosa Abbey and the charming little town of Poppi, with its imposing Castello Pretorio before arriving in Arezzo. One of the richest cities in Tuscany, Arezzo is home to some of the finest jewellers and gold smiths in Italy and indeed, boasts the world’s largest gold manufacturing plant. It is the old town, however that is of the most interest, not least forits wealth of antique shops and if you are lucky enough to be there at the right time, a huge monthly antiques market. The Piazza Grande, the Duomo and the Roman theatre are all worthy of attention but it is the Basilica of SanFrancesco which beckons the most, for it is the home of Piero della Francesca’s‘Legend of the True Cross’ one of the finest Renaissance frescoes in Tuscany, if not the world.
