Can I tick off this site? A philosophical question I’m sure every World Heritage traveller has asked themselves at some point. For myself and Val d’Orcia, I would say technically yes although with some heavy asterisks. On a coach tour from Rome, we first stopped in Montepulciano, which is outside the core zone but offers a view of the idyllic Tuscan countryside. Well, it should but it was foggy when I visited so no luck there. From there we went to lunch, again outside the inscribed area, and finally to Pienza. The drive there certainly passed through Val d’Orcia and there were some good views from the coach (see picture attached) but I would always prefer to set foot in the site where possible. Finally, we had 30 minutes to explore Pienza at our own pace, which in my case was fast to see as much as possible. The fog had cleared so there were views of the countryside aplenty and just being in Pienza is a double tick. That being said, wandering around Pienza gives a good sense of why Pienza is inscribed but less so Val d’Orcia. Can I claim to have appreciated a site based on seeing it from afar, be it in a coach or from a hilltop vista? I don’t really think so and I would certainly like to return one day to visit San Quirico d’ Orcia, Montalcino, and the rest. The problem is there is just too much to see and do in Italy I fear it may be years before I can justify coming back to the same spot.