daunted

Ciao! We likely haven't met before due to our different locations however I have been a member since 2007, when I migrated to Australia. I'm still here and living my best life although making plans to do some travelling with my new Aussie husband! 😁
We plan on visiting around May next year, for a month and instead of doing the whole tourist 'thing' we would like to find ourselves a base and live amongst the locals, hopefully experiencing the 'real' Italy.
We are thinking perhaps the Tuscany region. Montepulciano has particularly caught our eye.
Does anyone have any advice/recommendations regarding long stay accommodation, housesits and/or house swaps within the area? Infact any advice is very welcome. Grazie! 😁

philat98

Have you looked at the FB groups for Tuscany? I suspect you will find folks with properties to rent out. The southern Tuscan and north Umbrian area is all good.

Lorna at Vicenza

Hi. Yes, as Philat said there are lots of FB groups for various Italian regions. If you write to us again next year we can give you tips on what to pack. Medicines like paracetamol are very expensive here and some smart-casual clothes are a must for visiting churches ...... no bare shoulders and no shorts. Don't know if you love it or hate it but you won't find any Vegemite here

daunted

Thanks for your replies...I will certainly check out Facebook...as for Vegemite- disgusting stuff 🤣

brits1

Hi we visited Florence last July, we had Pisa as our base as we wanted a short bus drive to the beaches (we did not want to hire a car) Pisa was a delight, not a busy as Florence and has excellent train links to the major tourist spots and also a short taxi drive from the airport, whilst there we met an Aussie -Italian decent family the younger members (20’s/30’s) visiting for the first time, they chose Pisa as it was a much cheaper option than staying in Florence. Good luck I love Italy (I am a “geek” when it comes to anything to do with the Romans lol but seeing the renaissance building/statues was fab)

C.2s

Ahh...the dream to experience the real authentic Italy... I think that it would be realistic to imagine that you will meet many Italians who are lovely, friendly people...and a few who are not (like any group of people anywhere).But it's worth noting that tourism is really, really important everywhere and that therefore most Italians won't get that invested in developing friendships with you if you are staying a month because they are very, very familiar with millions of tourists visiting every year... and it's not unusual for people to spend a month or more.
​​​​​If you want somewhere not touristy then you would have to go somewhere further south like Molise... but it's not an easy place to get to.
Montepulciano itself Is actually quite popular with foreigners. I think that I heard there were over 1 million visits there a few years ago...preCovid. Not sure what it is now, but it's fair to say there are lots of shops and restaurants that cater for tourists... which is okay if you like that but I am not sure that is what you are looking for. It's not Venice, but neither is it 'off the beaten track'. What Brits1 said about Pisa is sort of true... it's quieter than Florence... but it's on the main tourist route for bus tours because of the Leaning Tower (obviously). I prefer Siena... but again I don't think it sounds like what you are looking for.

​​​​​Montepulciano is in the valley called Valdichiana. Which is nice, but is busy because the main north/south motorway runs along the valley bottom and there's quite a lot of development. It's really close to the top of the ridge that drops down into the next valley, Val d'Orcia. It's only a few minutes drive. Val d'Orcia Is a UNESCO world heritage landscape and it's incredibly beautiful (well known as the setting for the dream/paradise scenes in the film The Gladiator). Part of the reason that it's on the UNESCO list is that it's been more isolated historically, and, although it's becoming more popular it's still rural'ish. I'd suggest looking at smaller towns in that area. You could still visit Montepulciano, and other places such as Terme di Saturnia. May Is the perfect time to visit this part of Italy.

philat98

I have had a few holiday lets in southern Tuscany and I dont think it is much more touristic than the Yorkshire dales. I like Grosseto and the surrounding area. An Italian from Salerno once told me that Campania represented the only authentic Italy.

C.2s

Ha ha ... well I will find out soon once I move to the Yorkshire Dales, won't I! Both places are lovely then I am not expecting to be living in a version of the Dales that I have seen in All Creatures Great _, Small after a month, where all my neighbours invite me around their house on a Sunday for roast beef and Yorkshire pudding... I'm expecting to always remain an outsider ... and a southerner!

I agree it's possible that Grosseto Is a bit more authentic/less touristy... but less pretty. Another potential area for the OP to consider is the Maremma ...