![]() Climb up to the top of the hill, where the ruins of an earlier 11th-century village (known as the ville morte, or dead city) offers sublime views. A medieval town crawls up the base of a craggy hill, distinguished by steep cobbled streets and stone mansions once occupied by the powerful lords of Les Baux. You can explore two villages in one at this charmer in French Provence. Les Baux-de-Provence, Franceīest for: Haunting ruins, models of chivalry, and dazzling contemporary art. The settlement (population: about 100) still thrives off its link to the chateau, with shops selling local honey and restaurants with vistas of the castle’s delicate spires. Though the monumental castle is large enough to qualify as a village itself, a small hamlet just outside the gates grew up to house the landmark’s epic staff. A recently expanded trail network is open for horseback riding, hiking, or biking. To one side of the chateau is a 13,000-acre forest once flush with wild boars and now filled with deer. Inside the 440-room palace, world class tapestries adorn the walls, including a series of 12 representing the months of the year. One of the king’s advisors was Leonardo da Vinci, who inspired the castle’s double-helix staircase and likely talked his majesty out of diverting the Loire River to form a moat around the chateau. The massive project-a royal hunting lodge-was initiated in 1519 under Francois I and took 12 years to complete. Chambord, Franceīest for: Castles plucked from fairytales and glimpses of how French royalty lived.įew villages are distinguished more by a single architectural masterwork than Chambord, which is also the name of the largest chateau in the Loire Valley, a French Renaissance confection that’s now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Sip and swirl it at an atmospheric tasting center where terraces overlook the surrounding vineyard-strewn hills. Today, the village draws both history buffs and oenophiles with its citrusy white wine, Vernaccia di San Gimignano. ![]() A small civic museum with masterworks by Fra Filippo Lippi and other Italian Renaissance artists is another testament to the town’s prosperity.Īfter 1353, waves of plague and famine battered San Gimignano, leading to both its decline and paving the way for its eventual preservation. Tucked under the towers in this UNESCO World Heritage site, the Sant’ Agostino church contains a 15th-century fresco displaying the travails of Saint Augustine. Climb the tallest of the 12 that remain, the 177-foot-high Torre Grossa, and it’s easy to picture how residents might have stood at its apex and dumped scalding water on invaders. Initially built as defensive anchors in wars with neighboring villages, the towers became symbols of wealth and prestige, with affluent citizens of San Gimignano competing to see who could erect the highest structure. At one point there were more than 70 torres, some soaring to nearly 200 feet. In medieval times, prominent families of this Tuscan hill town went on a brick tower-building spree. Best for: Drinking in medieval skyscrapers and white wine. ![]()
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