36 Best Hotels in Tuscany, Italy

Pope Alexander VII of the famed Sienese Chigi family gave this palace to his niece as a wedding present in 1600, and, through the centuries, it has been a private home as well as a grand hotel—one that exudes elegance from its stately pillared entrance to its crisp-linen sheets. Some guest rooms take in panoramic views, whereas others have 18th-century frescoes and massive chandeliers. The excellent staff is reason enough to consider a stay here.

Enchantment reigns at this tiny 13th-century countryside hamlet, part of the fiefdom of the aristocratic Florentine Guicciardini family and reinvented by the modern Count Roberto Guicciardini. A castle, church, and cobbled streets set the stage. Guest rooms vary in style; high wood-beam ceilings, terra-cotta floors, and modern bathrooms are the rule throughout. Apartments sleep as many as eight people and have as many as two baths.

The pale yellow exterior only hints at the elegance inside this hotel created by joining two Liberty villas dating from 1899 and 1902. Refined furnishings include gem-color fabrics and dark wood. Many rooms have balconies that face the sea or the mountains, and all of them have comfortable beds with linen sheets and copious pillows. Though beach privileges come at an extra price, the pool is so pretty that going to the beach may seem irrelevant. Half- and full board are available, and a seven-night stay is mandatory.

After serving as a Franciscan convent and then the residence of the noble Strozzi family, the Collegiata has been converted into a fine hotel, with no expense spared in the process. Arched, multipane windows look out on the surrounding park. All the guest rooms (some with private balconies) are furnished with a mix of wood and upholstered antiques in warm browns and reds and precious tapestries. Bathrooms have large whirlpool baths. A summer restaurant occupies the deconsecrated church.

The location has been described as "heaven on earth," and a stay at this elegant Ferragamo estate—situated near a medieval village and with accommodations that include a 10-bedroom villa (rented out as a single unit) that was once a luxurious hunting lodge—is sure to bring similar descriptions to mind. Here, the houses have been converted into splendid suites and villas that sleep two to eight. No two are alike, and the shops and craftspeople who work in the village are all part of the hotel: the atmosphere is magical.

Options at this sumptuous lodging include rooms and suites in an 18th-century villa, or, for more seclusion, private suites and villas at the far end of the property. The hotel serves an almost exclusively international clientele. Cooking classes and guided wine tastings are available, a small shop sells estate-produced olive oil and wine, and the restaurant serves sumptuous fare.

A 14th-century monastery has been converted into this upscale country hotel, where rooms have the style and comfort of an aristocratic villa, with classic prints and bold colors such as daffodil yellow. Common areas are luxurious, with fine woods and leather upholstery. In warm weather, breakfast is served on the patio next to the garden ablaze with flowers.

In this lovely 15th-century palace, spacious rooms have high ceilings, tile floors, and 18th-century furnishings, and many have views of the valley below. Bathrooms throughout are tiled in local stone. Common areas are elegant, with deep, plush couches that invite you to recline. There's an ample breakfast buffet and you can arrange for a light lunch in the warmer months. The multilingual staff goes out of its way to be helpful.

A refined and comfortable country house offers numerous sitting rooms with terra-cotta floors and attractive stonework, as well as wood-beamed guest rooms filled with simple wooden furnishings and handwoven rugs. The grounds, flanked by vineyards and olive trees, are equally inviting, with lawns, terraces, and a pool. The Ristorante Vignale serves excellent wines and local specialties like cinghiale in umido con vin cotto (wild boar stew flavored with wine). 

Renaissance gardens, beautiful rooms with high ceilings and elegant furnishings, a panoramic pool, and expert staff are just a few of the things that make a stay at this 16th-century villa memorable. A short walk outside the small town of San Casciano Val di Pesa—with bus service to Florence—Il Poggiale sits on a ridge with spectacular views of the Chianti hills. An excellent breakfast is served on an outdoor terrace in fine weather, and the hotel's restaurant provides a buffet of antipasti along with a menu of Tuscan dishes for guests in the evening. The numerous public sitting rooms are intimate and cozy, and a small spa, with a sauna, massage room, and whirlpool tub complete the picture.

An open-hearth fireplace and hand-hewn stone porticoes hark back to the 13th century, when this was a fortress, and although it's now a small hotel with modern amenities, including a beautiful outdoor pool, the traditional tone is maintained by the wood-beamed ceilings and simple, country-style furniture. The scent of lavender and rosemary wafts from the gardens, and all rooms have soothing views of the surrounding vineyards and hills.

This charming hotel with a friendly staff is right off the main shopping drag, Via Fillungo. Terra-cotta floors and stenciled walls impart a cozy feeling, while the high brick and timbered ceilings create a sense of spaciousness. The sitting room, with its fireplace and bar, provides a lovely place to relax. Breakfast is served in a cheery room with sponged-painted walls.

Just outside Monteriggioni, this estate lined with lavender bushes and cypress trees has guest rooms featuring wood beam ceilings and terra-cotta floors in either the 17th-century villa or the adjacent workers' quarters (converted into 10 apartments. Festive striped fabrics in yellows, oranges, and reds cover iron canopies in some rooms. The facilities, such as the health club and the tennis courts, are those of a four-star establishment. A poolside restaurant is open in summer.

Stay in a fortified castle, which was built more than a millennium ago, was rebuilt during the Renaissance, and is now a charming inn and a prestigious wine estate where you can taste local vintages. Throughout the main building and two nearby farmhouses you'll find wonderful heavy wooden furniture.

Caryatids stud the grounds of this well-kept neoclassical villa (it's been a hotel since 1870), where a small garden invites reading, and guest rooms are functional, airy, and reasonably quiet. The location—minutes from the main sights but near the long-distance bus terminal and parking area—is a big plus here, as is the pleasant staff. Single rooms are not the usual monastic-cell size. Head downstairs to the restaurant for inexpensive meals.

Amid rolling vineyards and olive trees, this fattoria (farmhouse) produces fine wine and olive oil and accommodates guests in apartments (sleeping up to 6) and a separate house (sleeping up to 14). The main stone house retains its enormous stone fireplace and a 16th-century family chapel next door. Lodgings have traditional wooden furniture—some antique—and full kitchens; some units have fireplaces. Half-board is available.

Rooms at this 1911 hotel—a short walk on tree-lined streets from the center of town and even closer to the thermal baths—are spacious, with high ceilings. Many also have deep bathtubs with water jets. You can enjoy an aperitivo in the majestic lobby or on the rooftop terrace.

If you're looking for a place within the town walls, this is a fine choice—one where contemporary furnishings in the guest rooms are softened by warm, umber-color walls and floral artwork. Rooms at the back of the hotel have magnificent views and some have panoramic terraces. The Gigli family has run the hotel since 1886.

Originally a 19th-century villa belonging to Marchesa Guendalina Strozzi—her ancestors were powerful bankers in Renaissance Florence—this is now a contemporary inn. Some of the public rooms have a quaint historical charm to them, but the guest rooms have more contemporary decor, with basic wooden furniture and no frills. Ask for one of the eight with a whirlpool tub. In winter, you can use this as a base to ski to the slopes; in summer, the Bellavista is perfectly situated for trekking and mountain biking.

High above Sorano, this austere-looking 11th-century Orsini castle has spectacular views of the town and surrounding countryside. Wood-beam ceilings hang above white and pastel walls in most rooms, and windows have dark-wood shutters. A careful mix of antique and modern furniture—Rococo chairs and upholstered couches—makes for a pleasant and comfortable stay. The hotel closes for some time during the winter; the length and month of the closure vary annually.

This hotel on a private bay provides access to a sandy white beach from the bar and restaurant. A central building and several surrounding cottages contain guest rooms with simple white-wood desks and beds with ironwork insets. Some rooms have balconies.

Worldly cares are softly washed away by the comforts of the rooms (some damask linens, tapestry-like canopies, marble highboys), the superlative attentiveness of the staff, and the hotel's magnificent garden setting. A buffet lunch is served on a canopied terrace above the pool, and numerous smaller terraces are tucked away on the sloping cliffs, perfect for a peaceful afternoon nap. Chaises and white umbrellas sit ocean-side on the beach. Some rooms are in separate cottages. If absolute privacy is your main concern—and you're willing to pay for it—one suite has a private pool.

The former stables of the Villa Bottini have been transformed into a modern hotel with stylish rooms done in a warm wood veneer with blue-and-white fittings. Free bicycles are a nice bonus in this bike-friendly city, and the sumptuous buffet breakfast could see you through dinner. Residenza dell'Alba, the hotel's annex across the street, was originally part of a 14th-century church; now it's a luxe accommodation with in-room hot tubs, high sweeping ceilings, patterned rugs, and lush, comfortable furniture.

Viareggio's first hotel—opened in 1871 to host those on the Grand Tour, as well as many Russians who stayed for extended periods—still exudes old-world charm, even though it's been completely updated to suit 21st-century tastes. Public rooms filled with lovely brocaded furniture provide the perfect place to have an aperitivo. Guest rooms have high ceilings, large windows with damask drapes, and hard-wood floors; bathrooms are surprisingly large. La Terrazza, the top-floor restaurant, has views of the sea and a creative young chef whose innovative, tasty food makes a stay here even more worthwhile.

Horseback trail rides through Tuscany's cowboy country are an integral part of the experience at this family-run country inn, where your hosts can arrange picnics, suggest itineraries, and organize weeklong tours. But nonriders don't have to mope at the bar—this agriturismo also has a pool and idyllic views. Rooms are plainly decorated with modern wooden wardrobes and desks; most are carpeted; some are enlivened by wood-beam ceilings.

Cortona might tempt you to step back in time and stay there awhile, and the spacious, beamed, richly furnished rooms in this 15th-century town-center palazzo provide the perfect hideaway. Many rooms and the terrace take in sweeping views of tile roofs and the valley below, and the stage-set streets and squares of the medieval town are just outside the door.

The atmosphere here is welcoming, hospitable, and enthusiastic, and the staff goes out of their way to ensure a fine stay; rooms in the back look out onto the lush grounds or the countryside in the distance. When it's warm, breakfast is served in the flower-filled garden with a view, providing a gorgeous start to the day.

The grounds of this former Etruscan settlement—a series of low-slung medieval stone buildings with barrel-tile roofs—feature cobbled paths and cypress trees; the interior has unfussy rooms with terra-cotta tile floors, attractive woodwork, and elegant but comfortable furnishings. The fire-lit reading room with a bar is particularly inviting.

Inspired by the beach resorts of the Greek isles, La Guardia is a minimalist retreat with sweeping sea views and plenty of wicker lamps, seagrass accents, and wooden furniture. Aperitivi on the terrace are a large part of this hotel's appeal, as is the Mediterranean menu conceived by chef Milena Andretto and prepared using only island-sourced ingredients.

On a quiet street in the upper part of town, these unpretentious lodgings are given sparkle by the welcoming and friendly service of the owners, Roberto and Vittoria Giardinelli. Rooms are a bit kitschy and filled with family knickknacks, but each has a private, modern bathroom. Your lively hosts are on hand to serve breakfast in the morning and an honor bar is available to all guests. There's also a quiet garden terrace for lazy afternoons.