Excursions & Tour

The & nbsp; Wine Route of the Pisan Hills & nbsp; crosses the provincial territory passing through vineyards and olive groves, woods and cultivated fields, historic villages and small localities; of very ancient origin.

It is an easily accessible itinerary that promotes the use of & nbsp; ecological means & nbsp; alternative to the car, such as the bicycle. In fact, only by traveling slowly will you have; the possibility to fully appreciate the beauty of the hills and local villages.

Along the way there are numerous opportunities to taste the & nbsp; products of excellence of the territory & nbsp; such as wine, oil, cheeses, honey. Gastronomic delights that & nbsp; Pisan cuisine & nbsp; has been able to transform into tasty recipes rich in flavor, traditional peasant dishes today also rediscovered by haute cuisine.

The Wine Route of the Pisan Hills is; a pleasant itinerary both & nbsp; to be covered by bicycle & nbsp; on foot or on horseback. In particular, it connects the wine production areas of the Valdera and the Lower Valdarno with the more Val di Cecina; close to the sea and the coast.

Thanks to the mild climate of the Tuscan countryside & egrave; an ideal excursion even in winter, but the best times to venture along its route are autumn and spring, when nature shows its most colors; beautiful.

Volterra & nbsp; was one of the most & ugrave; important cities Etruscans of Tuscany, the last to fall into the hands of the Romans. Even today in the city there are many testimonies of that period: the Porta dell & rsquo; Arco and Porta Diana but also most of the walls and the great & nbsp; Acropolis date back to that period.

The buildings of the & nbsp; historic center & nbsp; instead belong to the Middle Ages. In particular, the Cathedral, or the Duomo, built in 1120, is astonishing. Nearby there are also the Baptistery of San Giovanni, the Bell Tower and the ancient Palazzo dei Priori.
The largest part; high of the village, strategic position to control the territory, & egrave; occupied by the Medici Fortress consisting of two main fortifications connected by a walkway protected by walls: the Rocca Antica and the Rocca Nuova.

A & nbsp; trip to Volterra & nbsp; & egrave; the opportunity to immerse yourself in history and appreciate the harmony between the work of man and the work of nature. In fact, the Tuscan countryside extends all around the village, a breathtaking panorama that embraces cultivated fields, vineyards, isolated farms.

Volterra & egrave; known for the extraction and craftsmanship of alabaster. Gi & agrave; Etruscans and Romans used this stone to make small artifacts, jewels and objects of common use. Given its softness, the craftsmen must use very special sculptural techniques to be able to create the decorations and details well.

Tuscany & egrave; a region rich in local productions, some very famous and others less known. The Pisa area is no exception, it also boasts numerous agricultural products that are worth discovering and tasting in the area in which they are born.

From wine to extra virgin olive oil, from meats to vegetables: the & nbsp; Pisan cuisine & nbsp; knows how to enhance its products to transform them into tasty and healthy dishes.
Each traditional recipe has an ancient history and flavors. that make it inimitable. These are preparations & nbsp; handed down from generation to generation & nbsp; which often come in many different variations because & eacute; each family has its own recipe.
This & nbsp; great variety & agrave; of flavors & nbsp; & egrave; the true richness of Tuscan and Pisan cuisine.

On the hills there are vast vineyards and olive groves from which DOC and DOCG wines are obtained, highly appreciated throughout the region and which have begun to make themselves known even abroad.
The oil is not; from less, you can & ograve; enjoy on unsalted bread as an appetizer and & egrave; excellent as a condiment for meat, pasta and vegetables.
The proximity of Pisa and its province to the sea allows you to include among the typical local dishes also the & nbsp; fresh fish & nbsp; of the Mediterranean.

The & nbsp; Pisan hills & nbsp; are a natural environment of rare beauty, perfect to be explored during peaceful walks and through activities sports such as trekking, mountain biking and cycling.

Experiencing the Pisan hills means immersing yourself in nature, in a & nbsp; breathtaking panorama & nbsp; made up of small villages and vineyards.
For a total fusion with the hilly environment & egrave; You can contact the & nbsp; riding schools & nbsp; in the area that organize long horse rides. The paths suitable for this type of excursion are many, they cross the countryside far and wide, even reaching the sea. Along the & nbsp; local bridleways & nbsp; you can breathe the scents of wild herbs that grow wild alongside the paths: rosemary, thyme, sage.

The direct contact with the animal and the & nbsp; total immersion in the natural environment & nbsp; make horseback riding on the Pisan hills a truly unique and exciting experience.
Also on horseback & egrave; possible to visit in the most beautiful way; the natural reserves of the area such as the & nbsp; Tombolo di Cecina & nbsp; and retrace the course of the Cecina river passing through valleys, woods and canyons.
Do not miss the opportunity; to explore & nbsp; small historic villages & nbsp; such as Miemo, a real pearl of the area immersed in the Pisan countryside.

Characterized by rolling hills and abundant streams of water, the & nbsp; Val di Cecina & nbsp; has an incredible landscape value and also boasts numerous testimonies of harmony between man and nature.
In fact, on its territory there are many small & nbsp; villages of Etruscan-Roman origin & nbsp; or of medieval origin that seem to have grown spontaneously on the top of the hills.

A few km from Riparbella & egrave; It is possible to visit Miemo, Montecatini Val di Cecina, Volterra, Castellina Marittima, Montegemoli and many others.

The first are very well-kept & nbsp; medieval villages & nbsp; located in an isolated position in the heart of the Pisan countryside just a few km away from each other. The town of & nbsp; Volterra & nbsp; does not need any introduction, & egrave; one of the most popular tourist destinations visits of the valley and of Tuscany in general. Spectacular the & nbsp; historical center & nbsp; with medieval buildings and Etruscan archaeological remains. The activities alabaster extraction and processing unite Volterra to & nbsp; Castellina Marittima.
Finally & nbsp; Montegemoli & nbsp; & egrave; a delightful oval-shaped village which partly preserves the ancient medieval castle.

Visiting these historic villages of the Val di Cecina represents the unmissable opportunity; to immerse yourself in the culture of the area and above all to taste the local gastronomy.

The mild climate and the great variety; of paths make the Val di Cecina a particularly ideal area for cycling and cycle tourism. Moving just a few km you have the possibility; to ride first & nbsp; among green hills, cultivated fields, vineyards & nbsp; and then along the coast admiring the colors of the sea.

Most of the itineraries include gentle ups and downs on secondary roads or dirt roads that are not affected by car traffic. At each curve you can & ograve; admire a magnificent panorama of the countryside and small local villages.

The & nbsp; cycle tourism in Val di Cecina & nbsp; has already & agrave; conquered many fans. The position of the valley is; ideal for visiting many farms on the pedals that produce wine, oil, honey, cheeses and organize tastings and previews open to the public.

The most popular routes frequented are those that allow you to cross the villages more & ugrave; beautiful of the valley such as Volterra, Pomarance, Lajatico, Montecatini, Bibbona, Monteverdi and Riparbella.
Given the low traffic present on the roads of the area, the Val di Cecina & egrave; also perfect for bike rides with children. Families can ride in complete safety both on the coast and in the surrounding countryside along low-difficulty routes, suitable even for the most advanced; small.

The & nbsp; Costa degli Etruschi & nbsp; includes the entire coast and the immediate hinterland that extends between Livorno and Piombino.

The area is so & igrave; known precisely because & eacute; closely linked with the history and evolution of the Etruscan people. The Etruscans inhabited and exploited the territory in various ways from the 9th century BC. until the Roman invasion and then their progressive disappearance. Their ancient presence is; however still testified by numerous & nbsp; archaeological finds and necropolis & nbsp; scattered along the coast.
Very famous are the archaeological sites of & nbsp; Baratti and Populonia.

The coast of the Etruscan Coast offers unique emotions: there are wild sand dunes that have never known the hand of man and thick pine forests of Mediterranean scrub perfect for trekking, mountain biking and horseback riding .

The & nbsp; sea & nbsp; that bathes it & egrave; clear, crystalline, in many points it remains low for several meters from the shore and is; therefore also ideal for children’s games. In the evening, when the sun sinks into its waters, it is tinged with red, pink and orange: a truly unmissable spectacle that can be enjoyed; admire & nbsp; from the panoramic square of Piombino & nbsp; or from the medieval fortress of Populonia.
Impossible not to be enchanted by so much beauty, so much history, so much nature and so much tradition that characterizes the Etruscan Coast.