BAGNO VIGNONI ITINERARY - ONE WEEK

THE ONE WEEK TRIP INCLUDES:

• 5 nights in Bagno Vignoni at charming Loggiato B&B, near Pienza, in a picturesque Medievalhamlet. The inn is beautifully furnished with classic Tuscan furniture.
• All meals as indicated in the itinerary.
• Small groups: 4 to 12 people. 
• 3 hands-on cooking courses in “La Cucina Povera Toscana” – Tuscan country cooking (6-9 hours of instruction).
• Optional Spa treatments and Ayurvedic massage (60 EURO to be paid directly at Spa)
• Wine tastings in Montepulciano and La Loggiato Wine Bar in Bagno Vignoni.
• 4 guided excursions to Siena, Montepulciano (famous for its Red wine “Vino Nobile di Montepulciano”), Pienza (famous for its perfect Renaissance architecture and “Peccorino” sheep cheese).
• All transportation (to and from Cortona).

SAMPLE ITINERARY:

DAY 1 (SUN) – Arrival in Cortona and transfer to Bagno Vignoni
We will pick you up at 2 PM at the train station in Cortona and transfer you to Bagno Vignoni.  After settling in, your hosts will show you around the residence and explain some of the history!  Then you can either relax or take a walk around the enchanting hamlet that is surrounded with beautiful views of warm vineyards and olive groves. For dinner you will experience your first Tuscan meal prepared by the chef at the Loggiato enoteca (wine bar).

DAY 2 (MON)  – Cooking course followed by wine-tasting in Montepulciano
Your day will begin at a leisurely pace soaking in the mysterious and fascinating Bagno Vignoni. The cooking course will take place between 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM where you will learn some dishes that make up the first part of an Italian menu: antipasti and “primi piatti” (first courses). The course will culminate with lunch. Then you will go to Montepulciano to visit a wine cellar and partake in a wine-tasting.

DAY 3 (TUE)  – Cooking course followed by a visit to Borgo di Montichello
Early morning on your own terms with another cooking course from 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM where you will learn dishes that make up the second half of an Italian menu: “contorni and primi piatti” (side and second courses). The course will culminate with lunch. Then you will go to the ancient hamlet of Montichello which is fantastic spot for taking photos. You will have dinner at the enoteca “La Porta” in Montichello.

DAY 4 (WED) – A day of wellness with spa treatments and massage         
Today is the day you will fully immerse yourself into what it means to be pampered and actually what made Bagno Vignoni such an attractive destination in the first place. You will spend the day at the pool which has the natural healing waters. And there you will have the option to get Shiatsu massage, ayurvedic massage, reflexology and more. In the evening at 6:30 PM you will go to Siena and at 8 PM near Siena’s Piazza del Campo for dinner and experience this famous piazza at sunset and after dinner.

DAY 5 (THR) –Pienza
You will set off at 10 AM for Pienza to go visit a “pecorino” (sheep) cheese-making factory and   experience the extraordinarily charming town of Pienza.  Pienza owes its beauty and fame to Enea Silvio Piccolomini born in Corsignano on 18 October 1405 and elevated to Pope in 1458 taking the name Pius II. During the course of his Papacy, he changed the ancient Castello di Corsignano (first mentioned in 828) into a Papal residence in the Renaissance style, planned and constructed under the supervision of Bernardo Gambarelli called il Rossellino, a student of Leon Battista Alberti, and renamed it Pienza ("Pius").  Your will have lunch at about 1 PM in Pienza. After returning to Bagno Vignoni, you will begin your third cooking course at approximately 5:30 PM followed by dinner at 8 PM, all at the Loggiato wine enoteca-bar.

DAY 6 (FRI) – Departure   
Enjoy your final breakfast in Bagno Vignoni before heading back to Cortona.