Italy Travel Planning: Don't Forget the Little Places on Your Vacation

Yes, Rome, Florence and Venice are the stars in Italy's vacation line-up, but the villages between can make your holiday sizzle. In Tuscany alone you'll find Cortona, the towers of San Gimignano, the etruscan Volterra, "hidden Tuscany's" Garfagnana (pictured on the left), little Pienza and the wine towns of Montalcino and Montepulciano. In fact, wine villages often attract the best cooks and artisans, so a drive around the Chianti Classico can be memorable as well. (See these places on a Map of Tuscany.)