Castiglione D'Orcia, Val d'Orcia, Tuscany, Italy

Castiglione d'Orcia is a small Tuscan town located about 22 km southeast of Montalcino and 17 km south of Pienza, in the Val d'Orcia, famous for its landscapes characterized by the presence of cones, valleys and other interesting geological features called biancane and calanchi. You can visit nice old town, as well as the interesting fortress Rocca di Tentennano located on the top of the hill where Castiglione d'Orcia was established.

Parking in Castiglione d'Orcia

We park the car on the southern side of the town, in a small parking lot located next to the old town (P1; GPS: 43.0035806, 11.6164319). Another parking lot is also available on the western side of the town (P2, GPS: 43.0051931, 11.6150239).

Pieve dei Santi Stefano e Degna

Walking along the Viale Guglielmo Marconi street we find the town-council building, then we go downstairs and approach the interesting church of Pieve dei Santi Stefano e Degna built in the sixteenth century in the place where there was an older temple with a Roman origin (A; 43.0050831, 11.6168317). This is a typical example of Siena Renaissance architecture from the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries. Inside there are some frescoes from the Siena school from the beginning of the 16th century and a large table from 1531 with Madonna with a child and saints created by Giovanni di Bartolo.

Piazza il Vecchietta

Going farther winding and sometimes steep streets, we reach interesting square - Piazza il Vecchietta, in the shape of a triangle constituting the center of the town (B; GPS: 43.005808, 11.616189). The name of the square comes from the name of the Castilian painter and sculptor Lorenzo di Pietro called Il Vecchietta, who was born in Castiglione d'Orcia. In the middle of the square there is a well from the early seventeenth century. The surface of the square is not asphalt, but a plain pavement of rough stones.

Rocca di Tentennano

At the top of the hill you can find the 13th-century fortress Rocca di Tentennano (C; GPS: 43.005335, 11.615508). It is an impressive building that has always played an important strategic role in controlling the southern border of the Siena state. The building may be visited throughout the week from 10:30 to 13:30 and from 14:30 to 18:30.

Bagni San Filippo

About 20 km south-east of Castiglione d'Orcia there are very interesting hot springs of Bagni San Filippo with numerous pools and beautiful white limestone rocks, which reminded us a little bit of the famous Turkish Pamukkale (of course on a different scale). These healing sources can be found in the forest nearby the town of Bagni San Filippo - the car can be parked along the road (P3; GPS: 42.928839, 11.702522), then you should go along the path to nearby sources.