Itinerary Include flights Leave this field blank Expand all Volterra to Volterra Day 1 Arrive in Volterra Arrive at your 4 star hotel just outside Volterra's mediaeval gates, where you have time to relax in the pool before dinner. (Staying at Park Hotel Le Fonti, Half Board) Meals included: Dinner Day 2 Volterra to Casole D'Elsa There's a short transfer (30 mins) this morning to the start of your walk. Forest trails lead east through the Berignone Nature Reserve where you may be lucky enough to see wild boar, deer and fox. As you leave the forest, the ridge opens up giving wonderful valley views out towards Casole d'Elsa where you'll spend the next two nights. (Staying at Hotel Terre di Casole) Meals included: Breakfast Day 3 At Casole D'Elsa Casole d'Elsa is a picture perfect Etruscan village atop a panoramic ridge. From the vermillion hued 14th century castle, views stretch as far as Monte Amiata in the south of Tuscany. A leisurely lunch maybe in the medieval piazza, before visiting the small but intact amphitheatre and Etruscan tombs. (Staying at Hotel Terre di Casole) Meals included: Breakfast Day 4 Casole D'Elsa to Colle Di Val D'Elsa Today's walk takes you down to the valley floor passing fields of sunflowers and orchid-sprinkled paths, before coming to the small hamlet of Quartaia, a good lunch stop. Continue through the woods along the famous pilgrims' path, the Via Francigena, where the fossils in the stones beneath your feet bear witness to the time when this area was covered by the sea. A final easy stroll takes you along the milky-blue, limestone-rich River Elsa and to your stunning 4 star hotel, a beautifully converted 12th century Benedictine abbey with garden and pool. (Staying at Relais della Rovere, Half Board) Meals included: Breakfast Dinner Day 5 At Colle Di Val D'Elsa Take the local bus to Siena (30 mins) or Florence (1 hour). Or stroll into impressive Colle di Val d'Elsa, a fascinating town of two halves with a lift linking the lovely new piazza with the medieval upper town. (Staying at Relais della Rovere, Half Board) Meals included: Breakfast Dinner Day 6 Colle Di Val D'Elsa to San Gimignano Today you follow in pilgrims' footsteps along the Via Francigena. Bright with sunflowers and fragrant apple orchards, this historic path skirts tiny hamlets and lonely chapels towards the lazy Foci river. You may like to make a short detour to take in a wine tasting at Montauto, before retracing your steps to rejoin the Via Francigena up to San Gimignano. There's time for a swim in the pool before dinner. (Staying at Relais Santa Chiara, Breakfast only) Meals included: Breakfast Day 7 At San Gimignano Visit San Gimignano's mystical towers this morning built by warring neighbours in the 12th century to outdo one another! Or for a longer day out, hop on a local bus to Siena (30 mins), a perfectly preserved medieval gem with a stunning striped 14th century Gothic cathedral and beautiful square. (Staying at Relais Santa Chiara, Breakfast only) Meals included: Breakfast Day 8 San Gimignano to Volterra A short taxi ride (10 mins) from your hotel takes you to the start of the walk in Caggio, at the Castelvecchio Nature Reserve. From here you follow a woodland trail dotted with rock roses and wild strawberry plants to reach a panoramic strada bianca, where hawks soar overhead. With open views across cypress-studded ochre fields to Monte Voltraio, you pass through Sensano and Ulignano, historic hamlets with 16th century villas. Perhaps picnic by the era Valley before ascending an ancient mule track back to Volterra. (Staying at Park Hotel Le Fonti, Half Board) Meals included: Breakfast Dinner Day 9 Leave Volterra Meals included: Breakfast
Italy No visa required for British passport holders. Please note in Italy it is compulsory to carry ID with you at all times. For further Brexit travel advice please visit https://www.abta.com/tips-and-advice/brexit-advice-for-travellers
Hotels Our carefully picked hotels, all with pools, are full of contrasts, from a 4 star recently renovated, elegant boutique hotel just outside the mediaeval town of Casole d'Elsa to the refined elegance of the 4 star Relais della Rovere in Colle di Val d'Elsa, a magnificently restored 12th century abbey. Chianti is synonymous with excellent food and wine and evening meals are a celebration of the local cuisine. Perhaps try pappardelle alla lepre (fresh ribbons of pasta with a hare sauce) or bruschetta (toasted bread rubbed with garlic and olive oil, topped with sun-ripened tomatoes), all washed down by a glass or two of full-bodied Chianti!
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