When I first set out for the city of Grosseto in early spring, it was a part of Tuscany I'd never visited or heard of, even though I've called Italy home for five years. Despite the world's obsession with Tuscany as a holiday destination, and Florence and Siena just an hour away, Grosseto – with its historical city centre, wild nature reserve and beaches on its doorstep – seems to have been left off the tourist map, visited by few travellers – or even by Italians.

However, this once-snubbed Tuscan city now suddenly finds itself in the spotlight as 2024's European Green Pioneer of Smart Tourism, selected ahead of 40 cities in a European Commission award recognising small, non-traditional, emerging sustainable tourism destinations in Europe. The award aims to create a network of destinations sharing best practices for responsible tourism, acting as exemplars for other European cities and towns.