Certaldo is a small cozy town, which has preserved its medieval image until now. Located in the water gap of the Elsa river, Certaldo is a compact, well-protected fortress even today.
Those who prefer quiet recreation will see the true value of Certaldo, as this place is not very popular with tourists. One should add here “strange as it may seem,” because there are a lot of options for pleasant vacation in this beautiful and cozy town. Tourists can be accommodated at a hotel (for example, Hotel Osteria del Vicario or Hotel Il Castello are waiting for their customers), or at a traditional Tuscan guest home.
Lovers of literature will definitely enjoy visiting Certaldo. The case is that Certaldo is a hometown of Giovanni Boccaccio, a famous writer of the Italian Renaissance. It's not a surprise that the main town attraction is the House of Bocaccio, where a museum and a learning center are located.
Tourists will also draw their attention to the Vicariale Palace (Palazzo del Vicario). Now it is used as a town hall. The building was almost fully built with bricks, which is very unusual for Italian monumental constructions.
Another ancient palace which dates back to the XIV century, Palazzo Strozzi Ridolfi, today houses a small hotel and a restaurant.
You can't help admiring the most ancient church in the town, Tommaso e Prospero, which was constructed in the XIII century. It still keeps late Gothic frescoes. If you want to honor Bocaccio's memory, you should visit the Church of San Jacopo e Filippo, where the outstanding writer of the Renaissance was buried.
Should you get tired of the routine small town lifestyle, you can easily change the surroundings. Certaldo's location gives an opportunity to go sightseeing to such well-known tourism destinations as Volterra, San Giminiano, Siena, Florence.
