If you’re up for a bit of a hike (or a bus ride), San Miniato sits above Piazzale Michelangelo and has some of the best views over Florence, without the crowds. The church itself is one of the oldest in the city, boasting a distinct Romanesque style and a peaceful, yet slightly eerie, crypt worth exploring. It’s also where Florence’s first martyr, Saint Minias, is said to be buried.

If you're looking for a nice hiking spot not too far from the city, look no further than Monte de San Pedro, a beautiful outdoor location for a hike and/or picnic while taking in the beautiful views over the city and the ocean.

Italian skiing was born in Sauze d’Oulx. Here in 1897 Adolf Kind, a Swiss engineer, made his first appearance on skis and then taught locals how to organise the first competitions. Sauze d’Oulx – which once hosted the Olympic Winter Games - is a village with a delightful little centre of traditional stone and wood built buildings. The area of Sauze d’Oulx is also famous because of its eco-system: close to it, in the Gran Bosco (Great Forest), live 21 species of mammals, including deer, roe-bucks, chamois and wolves, more than 70 species of nesting birds and 600 types of flora. Via Lattea consists of five Piedmontese resorts: Sestriere, Sauze d’Oulx, Sansicario, Cesana, Claviere, and Montgenevre in France. It offers 203 skiing-connected runs (52 blue, 111 red and 40 black), for a total linear extent of 400 km. There are 78 lifts that range from an altitude of 1,350m in Cesana to 2,800m at Mount Motta, a peak that gives a magnificent view of the surrounding mountains, allowing skiers to appreciate the vastness and beauty of the area. There are also two snowparks, one in Sauze d’Oulx and one in Séstriere. You have the possibility to purchase a one day ticket, a multi-day pass (e.g. a 2-day card) or a weekly card, according to your needs. Don't worry about the equipment because in Sauze d’Oulx there are many ski rental shops where you can get anything you need! Downhill skiing, snowboarding and cross-country are the main disciplines taught in all the ski schools of Via Lattea, but there are also instructors who specialise in telemark skiing. Moreover, some instructors are experts in teaching children and the disabled. Here are two schools in Sauze d’Oulx: Sauze Sportinia www.scuolascisauzesportinia.com +39 0122 850218 Sauze Project www.sauzedoulxproject.it +39 0122 850654

Museum Spakenburg is a modern museum about the past of the town of Bunschoten. The museum is housed in eight different buildings and is both an indoor and an outdoor museum. It is situated on both sides of the Watersteeg, one of the historical alleyways in Spakenburg. There is a museum cafe. The museum complex comprises various homes, a small shop, a farm with a haystack, and a smokehouse. All in all, its grounds are 1,500 square meters. There are ten exhibitions in addition to several permanent exhibitions and a few temporary ones. In short, Museum Spakenburg is not a collection of old items, but a location where living history can be experienced.