Welcome to the Renaissance

No trip to Tuscany is complete without two things: lots of art and oodles of great food and wine. Welcome to the Renaissance knows how to provide both. Having spent a few summers in this very region, delving deeply into the art and food previously mentioned, I can assure you that these folks know just what they are talking about.

The company is owned by two Renaissance art instructors; Sam Hilt and Pam Mercer. Their trips focus on the art, history, culture and religion that provided the driving force for the 15-century artistic renaissance of Florence and Tuscany.

The company offers trips focusing on the artistic legacy of Tuscan and Umbria. “Medieval Magic: Sienna and Tuscan Hill Towns,” is a great introduction to the gothic and medieval influences that later inspired the Florentine artists. “The Marriage of Heaven and Earth,” their Florence tour, includes visits to the world famous Uffizi and this month’s Museum of the Month, the Bargello, two of Florence’s most spectacular museums. For those travelers with their own creative desires, the company also offers “The Marriage of Landscape and Spirit,” a watercolor workshop in the hills above Sienna.

New this year is their customized wine excursions; four different one-day trips, each focusing on a different region of Tuscany and its distinguished wines: Chianti, Vernaccia, Brunello di Montalcino, and Rosso di Montepulciano. 

It is hard not to admire a company that is very focused and expertly equipped to provide in-depth and specialized knowledge of a particular culture and the historical circumstances that inspired it. Welcome to the Renaissance does these things abundantly well.