Tuscany’s Best Hotels

A Renaissance-era estate overlooking Chianti’s rolling vineyards and terraced olive groves, two miles from the market town of Greve.

Whimsical details (lampshades fashioned from iron baskets, straw-brush curtain tassels), which add rustic flair to the 12 chic rooms.

The new Limonaia suite, on the first floor, has a private 215-square-foot veranda.

Exquisitely restored 17th-century stone villa on a 25-acre vineyard just outside Arezzo.

Excellent amenities, including wine tastings, cooking classes, and—coming in October—treatments at the 2,500-square-foot spa.

For the best value, check into a Classic room in the main villa, with views of the horse-chestnut-tree–covered hillside.

A hilltop hamlet dating from the 1800’s alongside a medieval castle in Tuscany’s winery-filled Brunello region.

Weekend culinary classes taught by chef Heinz Beck, from Rome’s Michelin three-starred La Pergola restaurant.

Designed by Federico Forquet, the Double and Classic rooms top our list—they’re a generous 432 and 540 square feet, respectively.

Only a five-minute drive from lively Lucca, the 13th- century building was once the private residence of a Luccan nobleman.

With hunting prints on the walls, striped fabrics, and tartan carpets, the property is more English country house than hotel.

The refurbished second-floor suites have antique furnishings and vintage parquet floors (room No. 126 has a coffered wood ceiling).

Great Value

A turreted villa with Art Nouveau touches and views of the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the town of Castagneto Carducci, in Alta Maremma.

A pitch-perfect mix of antique furnishings and neo-Baroque accents such as beaded lamps enlivens the seven fashionable rooms.

Second-floor bedrooms are slightly larger and overlook forested hills and vineyards.

• Florence-based agency Communicart has a roster of 100 Tuscan villas, including the six-bedroom Fattoria di Prenzano (from $6,200 a week), an 11th-century country house. Well-connected owner Veronica Ficcarelli goes out of her way to book drivers, chefs, and cultural experts for her clients.
• Celebrities, royal families, and CEO’s turn to Windows on Italy, run by Salvatore Ferragamo’s son Leonardo, for the area’s most exclusive (and extravagant) properties. Book the six-bedroom Villa Le Rose ($64,500 a week), a frescoed Renaissance residence with marble baths and four-poster beds, owned by Leonardo Ferragamo himself.
• Owned by the Caire di Lauzet and Besana families, Dream & Charme isn’t your average rental agency: potential clients are vetted through a rigorous process, and most properties aren’t even advertised, including a five-bedroom villa (from $3,688 a week) with a botanical garden, on the island of Elba.—Valerie Waterhouse