✅ CONFIRMED — Ristorante La Loggetta · Piazza della Repubblica 3, Cortona · 12:15 PM reservation
Key Reminders
Lunch confirmed: La Loggetta · Piazza della Repubblica 3 · 12:15 PM
TOP Festival (Territorio, Origini, Prodotti): walk starts 3:00 PM from Piazza Garibaldi
Festival route: Piazza Signorelli → Cortona DOC wine tastings → Piazza della Repubblica (spirits, cocktails, live music) — Under the Tuscan Sun 30th anniversary theme
Evening: pool + PIZZA NIGHT at villa — pizza oven fires up ~7:00 PM
No pre-booked walking tour — free morning, self-guided exploration of centro
Today's Schedule
10:00 AM
Drive or walk from the villa to Cortona historic centre (10–15 minutes). Park at Piazza Signorelli or the car parks below the walls (Via Guelfa, Via Sant'Agostino). 5–10 minute walk up to the MAEC. ZTL enforcement in the historic centre — use the car parks below the walls.
10:10 AM
MAEC — Museo dell'Accademia Etrusca e della Città di Cortona (~€10): begin with the Etruscan Lampadario (Room 6, ground floor) — a 5th-century BC bronze chandelier unique in the ancient world. Continue through the Etruscan collection (bucchero, funerary urns, jewellery), Egyptian antiquities, and the Signorelli paintings. Open Monday–Sunday in tourist season. Allow 1 hour 30 minutes.
11:40 AM
Diocesan Museum / Museo Diocesano (~€5, Wed–Sun — CLOSED Monday & Tuesday): Fra Angelico's Annunciation (ca. 1430) displayed in the former oratory of the Gesù. The painting is lit naturally and displayed at eye level with no barriers. Also: Luca Signorelli panels, Pietro Lorenzetti's triptych, and a Duccio altarpiece fragment. Allow 45 minutes.
12:30 PM
Piazza della Repubblica and town centre: the main square, Palazzo del Comune, and the view south toward Lake Trasimeno. Browse the local food shops — Cortona Syrah, local honey, truffles from the Valdichiana. 20 minutes.
2:20 PM
Basilica di Santa Margherita (free): 20-minute uphill walk from Piazza della Repubblica (or 3-minute drive to the adjacent car park). 14th-century Gothic-Romanesque basilica containing the mummified body of Saint Margaret of Cortona. Panoramic terrace with views over the Val di Chiana and Lake Trasimeno. Allow 30 minutes.
2:55 PM
Town walls and medieval circuit walk: follow the wall promenade for views and a sense of Cortona's position. The views from the north wall toward Monte Amiata are excellent in clear September weather. 30–40 minutes.
3:35 PM
Enoteca or bar in Piazza della Repubblica: wine, coffee, or afternoon gelato. The enoteca on Via Nazionale stocks Cortona DOC Syrah, Bramasole (the estate from Frances Mayes' Under the Tuscan Sun ), and local Valdichiana whites. 30 minutes.
4:00 PM
Return to villa at leisure.
Logistics
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Parking
Piazza Garibaldi car park (paid) or Via Guelfa. Short walk to Piazza della Repubblica.
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ZTL
ZTL restrictions in Piazza Signorelli area — park outside the walls and walk in.
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Restrooms
MAEC (museum entrance); Diocesan Museum; cafés on Piazza della Repubblica.