Italian courses in Arezzo, Italy

Arezzo is a historic Tuscan city of about 100,000 people, far from the main tourist routes, so Italian is what you hear in the street, the shops and the cafes. The sloping Piazza Grande, lined with medieval houses and the Vasari loggia, is the heart of the old town and the setting of the Giostra del Saracino. The Basilica of San Francesco holds Piero della Francesca's frescoes of the Legend of the True Cross, one of the great works of the Italian Renaissance, and Arezzo was the birthplace of Petrarch and of the artist and writer Giorgio Vasari. It is also known for its antiques market, held on the first Sunday of every month and the Saturday before. The centre is compact and walkable, and Florence is about an hour away by train, with Cortona, Siena and the Tuscan hills nearby.

Arezzo has hot summers, often above 30 °C in July and August, and cool winters, with daytime highs of around 8-10 °C in January; spring and autumn are the most pleasant seasons for exploring the city and the surrounding hills. The Giostra del Saracino, a medieval jousting tournament between the city's four quarters, is held twice a year, in June and in September, and fills Piazza Grande. Cultura Italiana Arezzo has a break around Christmas and New Year, so check the start dates before you book.

Getting there: Arezzo is on the main Florence-Rome railway line (Florence is about an hour away); the nearest airports are Florence and Pisa, and Rome is about two hours by train.