Europe Travel, London, Paris, Provence : Hiking Vacation in Tuscany

Hiking Vacation in Tuscany

Florence is the center of Tuscany vacation activities. Many hiking tours start
with van transportation from Florence.
All Tuscany Photos by Len Delory

Guided Hiking Tours in Tuscany

A Hiking Vacation in Tuscany offers the exercise value of a hike to the medieval city with its hidden restaurant, wine cellar, traditional festival, and the view of the Tuscan hills. The hikes may not be suited for baby carriage age children but fit youngsters can easily handle the half-day treks to the hilltop villages.

Tuscany hilltop villages make a good day-hike

Tuscan Hiking Tours

A multi-day Tuscan Hiking tour might be ideal for hikers who want to escape the crowds and find an intimacy with the people in a Tuscan village.

Ancient Tuscan Villages

One such village is Castelmuzio, a prehistoric settlement once Celtic, then Tuscan, and later Roman. It is close enough to Florence for a day trip but far enough to the west to be out of the tourist track.

Tuscan Views

Wherever you look while hiking from Castelmuzio you will see the texture and color of a Tuscan landscape blessed by nature and nurtured by farmers. You hike beside fields of grapes and olive, sun flowers and wheat as they paint the Tuscan hills in a quilt of muted green, gold, and umber. Cedars line the roads and fields.

Tuscany Hiking Tour Advantages

On a multi-day Tuscan hiking tour a support vehicle is provided. A carefully planned hiking itinerary that takes hikers to the B&BS, village to village, hill town to hill town. Lodging is prearranged and meals provided.

Tuscany Hiking Tour Sample Itinerary

A sample trip could go like this. Your first day might start with a drive from Florence to the village of Castelmuzio where the main street still bears its Etruscan name, Via Degli Etruschi. The first hike could be a break-in short two miles through a valley and to the nearby village of Montisi, (Pop. 400) named for the Etruscan Goddess Isis and noted now for its teaching of the harpsichord. The following day will see a hike to a village of Petroio in the other direction, this one renown for the production of terracotta pottery. Each day the hikes become progressively longer but the support vehicle is always close at hand.

Moving Between Villages

After three days in Castelmuzio, the fourth day might be spent on a longer hike while the van moves the luggage to the next B&B in the village of Chiusure. A six mile hike follows to the Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore with a day-long visit and optional hikes in the hills around the abbey.

Montepulciano

The hiking could then move to the hilltop town of Montepulciano, famed for its cathedral and the Andrea della Robbia terracotta altar.

Guided Hikes

A guided Hiking Vacation in Tuscany can be made rewarding by the local information that the tour guides offer. They live in the area which stretches from north of Rome to Pisa.
The guides know the medieval villages, the chefs in the best restaurants, and the vintners. The guides know where to find the traditional festivals, the best wine cellars, and they know where to find that hilltop perch for the the best view of the hills of Tuscany.

A walk through the trails to the top of the hill can

provide a strenuous hike

Tuscany Hiking Tour Providers

Many tour providers base in Florence or Sienna for guided hikes with van support. See a partial list with contact info below.

Sample Tours

ww.boundlessjourneys.com
/europe/italy/a-taste-of-tuscany-and-umbria/
Elegant, eight day all inclusive wine, food,
and hiking tour, $4095 USD