Although the landscape is pretty enough and quintessential Tuscan, this is a poor WHS. It has hills, olive trees and rows of cypresses. And there are still a lot of monumental farms around, although most of them seem to have been turned into Bed&Breakfasts.

My choice of sites to visit in this valley was limited because it was a Monday, the day that almost all sites in Italy that have paid access shut down. So no castles, monasteries, baths or mills for me. I just drove around a bit, taking some lesser roads, on my way to Orvieto (on the Tentative List, see separate review).

My first stop was at Castiglione d'Orcia. This town looks glued to the rocky hill where it's built at. There are some nice old stone houses, and narrow streets to lose your way in. Closeby is Rocca d'Orcia, one of the most characteristic fortresses that adorn the hills in the Val d'Orcia.

Along the way, there are also frequent signs pointing out the pilgrim's way Via Francigena. I think I encountered one pilgrim: an older man with walking sticks, braving the cold wind but well covered up in rain gear.