Archive for 'Florence'

We've recently written a lot of posts about shopping and fashion in Tuscany and Florence, in particular, is a great place for those interested in Italian fashion to go shopping. While Milan is more famous for her fashion and one of the main fashion capitals of the world, Florence is also a very important city in Italian fashion and has been ranked in the top 15 fashion capitals of the world. Famous designers like Gucci and Pucci come from and are still headquartered in the city and there are endless great places to go shopping all over.

Florence is known for her museums and the Medici, in particular, were instrumental in building, and leaving behind, the extraordinary wealth of priceless artworks that live in the city today. However, in addition to their collecting of art, they also assembled a vast selection of natural specimens such as fossils, animals, minerals and plants. These examples and a large collections of books are held today in the Museum of Natural History.

Opened to the public in 1775 by Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo, it was originally comprised of several natural history collections housed within the Palazzo Torrigiani on Via Romana. It has grown immensely over the centuries and is now one of the finest collections in the country.

Christmas in Tuscany is a wonderful time of year. As a traditionally predominantly Catholic country, the festive season is particularly important and widely celebrated and there are lots of traditions of partake in. Food, of course, is a big part of this and there is always something good to eat at this time of year in Tuscany, whether that be one of the many regional Christmas sweets or partaking in a Christmas day feast of savoury delights. There are also plenty of beautiful Christmas markets dotted in cities and towns all around the region, presepi (live cribs) that can be visited, Santa's grottoes and meetings with Befana (the kindly witch who traditionally performs Santa's job in Italy) and local traditions and events. In addition to all of this, the twinkling lights and decorations make beautiful Tuscany even more lovely.

You've finally done it. You've said goodbye to stress, planning, chaos and chores and you've decided to spend Christmas abroad, rather than glued to the kitchen and commitments. You've embraced adventure!

But it's not that simple. Many of us are sentimental about Christmas and the festive period (no matter what you believe or which holidays you celebrate) and it's hard to let go of that entirely. Especially if your social media feeds are full of people gathered in cosy homes with their families. Well, why not have a bit of both? Now that you have found avacation rental in the Florence area, embrace the festivities and the luxury by letting someone else bombard you with delicious food in a lovely setting: the Winter Garden by Caino at the famous and historic St. Regis in Florence.

All this week we have been talking about foodie trips to Tuscany and introducing you to some incredible food bloggers that live in or know lots about the region. If you are a food lover who has found a vacation rental in Tuscany and are beginning planning your trip, you'll want to know where and what you're going to eat! We have plenty of articles on typical products, foodie experiences, wineries, tours, classes and restaurants but it is always best to hear these things directly from the locals. To help you out, we have rounded up a list of some of the best and most informative food bloggers in Tuscany.

Here are more of our favourite food bloggers in Tuscany but be sure to read our previous posts for more of our picks as well.