villa tramontalba
a base for exploreres

Volterra is a small town just a quick drive away from the Villa, but it’s definitelly worth a visit. 

It’s small but mighty 🙂 !

 

Things to do: 

Visit Piazza dei Priori. Dominated by the imposing Palazzo dei Priori with its stunning clocktower, is the ideal starting point for discovering Volterra’s top attractions. See the Palazzo dei Priori, too. Volterra is home to the oldest municipal building in all of Tuscany, which is very remarkable given that this is a region known for its numerous historic structures. Once on top of the Palazzo, you can enjoy stunning views.

 

Another thing you can do is dive into the history of Alabaster. Alabaster has a long history in Volterra, and if you’re dedicated to shop during your trip, you can pick up beautiful pieces here. Do you want to learn about the carftmanship? Visit the Museum of Alabaster!

 

Explore the Roman Theatre. Dating back 2000 years, the Roman Amphitheater in Volterra is worth a quick peak! You can also find the remains of a Roman Forum and a part of the Roman Baths.

 

Looking for a unique Tuscan museum? Visit the Guarnacci Etruscan Museum. Considering that this one has thousands of Etruscan urns, it’s hard to imagine finding another museum quite like it!

 

You should definitelly visit to the Duomo. The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, also known as Volterra’s Duomo, dates to the 12th century, though it was built on the site of a previous church that was destroyed in an earthquake. As you walk inside, be sure to look up–the gilded ceiling is gorgeous, and quite different from the typical Tuscan Duomo interior!

 

Without a doubt, one of the best things to do in Volterra is simply to get lost in it: with a dizzying maze of tiny streets and alleys set inside towering town walls that mean you can’t get too far away from your intended destination, exploring Volterra on foot is an absolute blast.

 

Explore the Pinacoteca. While world-famous museums like the Uffizi are absolutely magnificent, there’s another kind of charm to exploring some of Tuscany’s smaller museums: with far fewer crowds, we often find ourselves slowing down to enjoy the art. Volterra’s Pinacoteca, housed in Palazzo Minucci-Solaini, focuses on local artists from the 14th to 17th centuries.

 

One of the facinating hilltop towns, is their fantastic views, and Volterra is no exception. Standing on the edges of town, you can enjoy absolutely magnificent views of Tuscan countryside.

 

 

 

Readers of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series might have heard (or better said, read about) of Volterra from these books. Reading New Moon, the second of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series, you might  have noticed the details which resemble Volterra. The clocktower on the Palazzo dei Priori is mentioned as Bella races to find Edward in the square, and the Piazza dei Priori is mentioned several times, starting when Alice gives Bella directions to find the square. Stephenie Meyer reportedly initially planned to house the Volturi in a fictional Tuscan hilltop town, but changed her mind when she saw that Volterra was everything she was looking for. Fast forward to the movie adaptation of New Moon featuring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, and you’ll see that the movie was shot in Tuscany but not in Volterra.. Twilight’s movie franchise instead filmed in Montepulciano! The biggest difference between Volterra and Twilight series? Neither Volterra nor Montepulciano have a fountain in the square, which, in the book and movie, played a role in the climax when Bella ran through it.