I am a real city girl or so I thought. After 20 years of living in downtown Florence, the noise and air pollution got to me and we moved out to the countryside.
We actually bought a tiny 1/2 of a country house to restore. Did I tell you I am NOT FRANCES MAYES? The restoration nightmare stories can wait for later, but what is nice, is that the tiny village we live outside of is really lovely.
Certaldo Alto is the old city where the famous writer Boccaccio came from. His most famous book was the Decameron, a collection of ten stories ( deca means 10) based at the time when the cities were being destroyed during the plague. The village has remained pretty much untouched.
Certaldo Alto on the crest of the hill- from the back side
From the newer Certaldo at the bottom of the hill, with the statue of Boccaccio in the center,you can take the funiculare up to the top. Buy a round-trip ticket, there is a machine above but not a ticket taker. The ride is fun, letting you look over the town and all the way to San Gimignano in the distance.
It is a short ride up. When you get out, you will go through the doors to the ramp which leads you into the main part of town. It is so breathtaking, made all in red brick from the pavement to the buildings. Be sure to bring a camera as it is filled with incredible photo opportunities.
At the top of the village is City Hall. Covered with ceramic family crests made by Della Robbia, it is a museum as well.
The Bar Boccaccio makes the wildest decorated cappuccino’s and other coffee drinks, as well as serving food and has tables outside. The chef Roberta has one f
sitting at the outside tables with our fancy cappuccino’s and studying up on Certaldo
a local artist has painted the front of her home
there are several yearly festivals the costumes and street artists are incredible
In June we have the Cena with Boccaccio, a dinner in the streets for about 300 people, dinner and a show, about 40 euro and you keep your locally made clay plates.
July is Mercantia,a street artist festival. You pay a ticket to enter the old village and then move around town, enjoying the various artists performing and stands with local crafts for sale.
October is Boccacesca, a food festival
peaceful quiet corners to relax and people watch
Boccaccio’s portrait inside the musuem, go to the roof terrace for the 360 view of the valley
the red onion of certaldo is so famous it is on the stem of the city
You will find sauces, salami and jams made with the red onion for sale around town and lots of dishes cooked with them of course. It is a mild red onion and part of the Slow Food presidio to be protected.
The Palazzo Giannozzi houses a lovely ceramic shop. Be sure to look up in their workshops, as the ceilings are the original affrescos.Personally, I adore local art as a memory of my trip. While you are there, if you are lucky you will be able to see the Nail Museum, opened by the late “Beppe Chiodo’, a private collection of old iron nails and many interesting objects he has collected.
I have written about several of the places to eat in Certaldo, A Casa Tua,in the lower village one of the BEST pastry shops, JAM, and another article on my favorite five. But there are so many reasons to come and explore.
Market day is Wednesday. Saturday there is another smaller market in Piazza Boccaccio.
For more on where to eat and stay nearby,
There is a new group #visitcertaldo, who have a FB page with information on what is going on. I recently was invited to their first blogger event and we toured town with Professor Massimo Tosi,
who has illustrated a lovely book on Certaldo.His illustrations and maps are fascinating and are for sale in the small gift shop in Certaldo Alto.
Don’t miss the museums in town. The buildings themselves are well preserved and covered in affrescos, and inside are some Etruscan artifacts, religious relics and more.
inside the church I found a affresco with San Lorenzo, you can see the grate he was “roasted” on behind him
Certaldo is a great place to use for a base for sight-seeing, by train you can get to Siena and Florence and an easy drive to San Gimignano, Chianti, Monteriggioni and Volterra.
Download my Free guide on Thatch. you need to download the thatch app and then save the guide.
If you want to do a day trip on an ebike in the area, contact my friend Manuele of Semifonte Bike Tours.
This looks gorgeous! I would love to get lost down these narrow streets with my camera. Thanks for sharing. I added Certaldo to my Italian list. 🙂
Love your pictures! I was in Lucca in September, but was unable to get to Siena or San Gimignano, which I deeply regret. Perhaps on another trip. Was Certaldo one of the cities written about by James Shaw in An Italian Journey? Love your website, Judy. Keep the pictures and the comments coming!
Thank you so much for the “tour”…of course, I don’t need to say…what a lovely spot! And…of course, we now want to visit! And have a meal at I Latini!
Hi Judy–My husband and I have visited Certaldo a few times since 2003 and I remember riding up on the funiculare and having a wonderful seafood lunch (featuring raw prawns) in the restaurant there–we fell in love with the little town–which isn’t so little now! But we are planning another stay next year. Thanks for the new info and excellent pictures!
Aloha!