From sea kayaking around the islands to hiking around the Monte Amiata mountains, Tuscany is the perfect playground for active adventurers looking for outdoor vacation experiences. This autumn, The Florentine ventured to little-known areas of Tuscany for a taste of these unforgettable activities, courtesy of Toscana Promozione Turistica’s cool new campaign Tuscany Adventure Times.
Article 1: Seven islands for several adventures – Capraia and Pianosa
Legend has it that the seven islands comprising the Tuscan Archipelago were birthed when Aphrodite mislaid her pearl necklace in the Mediterranean. Goddess of love aside, Elba, Capraia, Pianosa, Giglio, Montecristo, Gorgona and Giannutri shimmer with astonishing nature, mind-blowing geology and myriad activities for outdoor adventures. Read more…
Article 2: Adventure in Montecatini Terme and Valdinievole
If Florence and Tuscany inspire you, just imagine the creative and physical regeneration to be had when walking in the footsteps of Leonardo da Vinci. The cooler breezes of Fall warrant exploration by foot or bike through dream-like landscapes where wind rustling the trees plays company to your wandering thoughts. Plan your next adventure off the beaten track just beyond the cities of Prato and Pistoia, in the magical land of the Valdinievole, the area that extends between Pistoia and Lucca and that includes Montecatini Terme and the Fucecchio wetlands. Read more…
Article 3: Into the wild, into the open – Monte Amiata
The Val d’Orcia has earned a steadfast place in the collective imagination as the typical – if not ideal – Tuscan landscape, its gentle, rolling hills shifting in colour and surface with every change of season, its myriad of hamlets, churches, trails offering a resounding welcome to all visitors who dare to venture outside the major cities. The nearby Monte Amiata might be a different story all together. Read more…
Article 4: High jinks in the highlands: Abetone and Doganaccia
Hiking, mountain biking, zip-lining: all these activities are as plentiful as anything you might find when the snow blankets the ground around Abetone and Doganaccia. Read more…
Article 5: Adventure sports in the Pisa area
Article 6: Lunigiana – the land of a thousand castles
Article 7: Exploring Pratomagno and the Casentino
Article 8: Coastal cycling from Bolgheri to Baratti
“The tall straight cypresses in double row run from San Guido to Bolgheri” was how nineteenth-century local writer Giosuè Carducci described this legendarily poetic avenue. While the image of those towering, age-old green guardians still linger in the collective imagination today, Bolgheri and the entire Etruscan Coast is shifting beyond the picturesque into adventurous action.
Article 9: Hiking and biking in the Val di Cecina
It’s a Saturday morning when we set off from our hotel in Volterra. As we wander through the city’s cobblestoned streets, we find ourselves in the beautiful piazza dei Priori with its city hall, before making our way to the bus that awaits us at the belvedere. Looking out over the Val di Cecina, surrounded by this cradle of civilization, at once Etruscan and Roman, Medieval and Renaissance, our gaze stretches all the way to the sea.
Article 10: Chianti, gravel paradise
In Chianti, cycling equals gravel because of the ubiquitous dirt tracks. L’Eroica, the best-known historic cycling event in the world, has made pedalling through verdant vineyards a must for bikers.
Article 11: Land and water in the Mugello
An absence of big cities and an abundance of green seems to generate a hush over the whole area of the Mugello, an area of Tuscany located northeast of Florence. The mountains and rivers offer a natural playground for outdoor-sports enthusiasts who can trek, paddle, climb, bike or ride through the area.
