10 things to do in Tuscany when it rains

Think about Tuscany’s potential: starting with the Uffizi Gallery and continuing with the Accademia Gallery in Florence (here’s how to book), there is plenty of choice. If you want to get off the beaten path, you can pick from the list of the most original museums! Every town in Tuscany, even the smallest ones, has a great museum that’s worth visiting.

Not only permanent art exhibitions: in a to do list for rainy days in Tuscany you should also add visiting a temporary exhibit! From the beautiful Palazzo Strozzi in Florence to Palazzo Blu in Pisa, you’ll find a big range of ancient and contemporary art.

From the sea to the mountains, there are plenty of itineraries for anyone who wants to combine culture, nature and the authentic taste of Tuscany, which is a region renowned for its prosperity in food and wine products, still made as the traditions requires. You can choose among a plethora of guided tastings but let's start from the Tuscan wine. In early autumn you can witness a grape harvest and in November you can taste the new wine, especially at the food festivals and wine events, called "sagre" in Italian.

From Chianti to Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, the choice is up to you!

Few people know that Chianti Classico is not only the name of Chianti wine, but also the name of one of the best extra-virgin olive oils in Tuscany. The extra virgin olive oil (dop designation of quality) is also produced in Lucca, in the hills surrounding Siena and in the Mount Amiata area. The new oil can be tasted in autumn and you can visit an olive press. If the weather is not too bad, you can visit the olive groves, too. Anyway, you will surely find olive oil tastings at the autumn food festivals, like Amiatautunno, all around Abbadia San Salvatore, Arcidosso, Castel del Piano, Castell’Azzara, Castiglion d’Orcia, Piancastagnaio, Roccalbegna e Santa Fiora.

A fun way to spend a rainy day is taking a cooking class. Tuscany is the realm of good and genuine food, with countless traditional dishes (here are 50 local specialties and where to find them). There's a wide range of cooking and wine courses for enthusiasts and professionals, as well as food photography and table design classes.

Florence boasts a big covered market called Mercato Centrale, in San Lorenzo neighbourhood, not far from the train station. There you can taste all the Tuscan specialities - from meat to fish, from soupe to desserts - but also pizza, fried vegetables and Asian food, for all tastes. The market’s renewed space of 3000 square meters offers 500 seats and hosts restaurants, cafés, the Chianti Classico shop and even a cooking school. 

You can visit another Mercato centrale in Tuscany: in Livorno, at the Vettovaglie Market, you can eat the cacciucco. This "Central Market" is a landmark for the city’s food scene. It was built in 1894 with an eclectic style and is one of the largest indoor markets in Europe. The almost 200 shops are arranged in rows and inserted in the different pavilions, where just about everything is sold, from vegetables to dried beans, meat, fish, coffee, bread and eggs of all kinds and for all tastes.

Tuscany is the land of artisans with "golden hands": with their skills they are able to create unique objects made of creativity and tradition. There are tons of possibilities, here are some ideas for your itinerary in the world of handicraft. Not far from Florence, you can learn about the ceramic of Montelupo, or the terracotta tiles and vases of Impruneta; In the Casentino area you can discover the wrought-iron and the wool products, leather items around Pisa, alabaster in Volterra, crystal articles around Siena and clay in Asciano. And what about the fabric in Prato? Its high quality production is used in many different fields, from couture to interior design and footwear.

Why not take advantage of a grey day to relax at the spa? Almost everywhere in Tuscany you can find great spas and natural hot springs. Tuscany has the highest number of thermal centres in Italy. During the winter, there’s no better way to spend a day (or more!) than getting pampered in a spa. Here are some ideas to inspire your spa trips. If you're looking for indoor spas you could go to Terme San Giovanni (Rapolano Terme) in the Crete Senesi area, or Fonteverde (San Casciano Bagni) in the rolling hills of Val d'Orcia. In this area you can also find the Bagno Vignoni hot springs, near the via Francigena. 

If you love to dance and have fun with your friends after the sunset, especially along the Tuscan coast, you will find many clubs that can entertain you with some electronic music. The Versilia area, for example, is the perfect destination to enjoy the night with some of the most famous discos in Tuscany. Resort towns like Forte dei Marmi and Viareggio, but also art towns like Florence or even the wild Maremma can offer you many occasions of partying. 

You can enjoy a spectacular visual show with the stars, planets and the whole sky, without owning a telescope. This is possible thanks to the many planetaria in Tuscany. One of them is in Florence in Via Giusti, 29, where meetings are held with both adults and children, featuring special lessons for school students. During your visit you can watch the reproduction of the movement of the different celestial bodies, see the position of the stars and many other curiosities.

There is also a planetarium in Marina di Carrara, another one into the Museum of Natural History of Livorno, as well as in Pisa at the school “Leonardo Fibonacci” and in Prato, Pistoia and Siena.

Going to a ballet, listening to live music, enjoying performances are the most exciting activities for culture lovers, no matter the age or the nationality. That's why in Tuscany you can see a play and listen to concerts in many places, going from small concert halls to big theatres, especially in art towns. 

If you prefer opera in Florence, Pisa, Siena and other towns, you'll be able to listen to beautiful music in very special locations.