Tuscany’s Via Francigena

7 Days | From £1694pp

Italy ( Best airport: Florence/Pisa)

Riding along the Via Francigena feels like traveling back in time, offering a unique opportunity to explore this historic route at a slow, ancient rhythm. It winds through some of the most culturally, historically, and environmentally significant landscapes in Tuscany.

Since the early Middle Ages (476–1000 AD), the Via Francigena has served as a vital route for pilgrims journeying from central and northern Europe to Rome, the heart of Christianity and the seat of the Papacy.

The Riding

What is known today as the Via Francigena is the 1800 km route taken by Archbishop Sigerico in the year 990 to return to Canterbury from Rome after meeting Pope John XV. It is important to know that in addition to the Sigerico route there are many paths, variations, used by pilgrims, merchants, soldiers for convenience, climatic conditions, for minor destinations, or to reduce the distances and difficulties of their journeys.

The gaits are obviously walk, trot and canter, but Sergio always adapts them to the riders. Please indicate your riding level upon booking.

Level of Riding and Fitness

This trail is for riders of medium experience upwards. You must be confident and in control riding outside an arena. A reasonable level of current riding fitness is required as you’ll be spending 4-5 hours in the saddle each day.

Guides and Group Size

Sergio is your host for this holiday and will be your guide. Incredibly knowledgeable about the region’s history, he will make this trip truly unforgettable.

2-6 Riders & maximum weight 90kg

Any questions?

The Horses

You will be riding beautiful quarter horse, english thoroughbreds, arabian, anglo-arab and Sicilian.

Tack and Riding Equipment

English trekking and western saddles.

Accommodation and Dining

For the stay of our guests, the Agriturismo La Selva, within the estate, offers various types of accommodation. In ancient and typical Tuscan farmhouses, welcoming and comfortable rooms are available apartments, all with private bathrooms and fully furnished. After returning from a day of trekking on horseback, the swimming pool with garden is available to our guests.

You will also enjoy delicious Italian cuisine and have the chance to taste the local wines.

Get a free Tuscany’s Via Francigena mini-brochure in PDF format.

Trail Booking Conditions

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Gallery

Itinerary

Day 1 Check-in. At dinner you will meet your guides, who will explain the program to you.

Day 2 Meeting of the riders at the equestrian center at about 9.30 and departure to reach Monteriggioni. In the first part, the route crosses Pian del Lago, where until the mid-18th century there was a lake (or rather a swamp) called Verano which was completely reclaimed by the Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo. This stretch of the Via Francigena will lead us to the Castello Della Chiocciola with its cylindrical tower which contains a beautiful ‘spiral’ staircase and then to the Castello di Monteriggioni built between 1214 and 1219. After the lunch stop and still on the Via Francigena, we meet Abbadia Isola. “Abbadia” stands for abbey, while “Isola” because it stood on the marshy Lake Verano. After Castel Pietraio we reach the stopping point of this first day.

Day 3 Departure from the horse stop point to reach the territory of San Gimignano in the Montauto area. This route develops around the Val d’Elsa, a beautiful part of Tuscany between Siena and Florence. Its origins seem to date back to the Etruscan era (9th century BC), but it is thanks to the Via Francigena that the Valdelsa became an important social, political, and economic center. We will stop for lunch along one of the Francigena paths just like medieval travellers.

Day 4 Today we will ride along the paths of the Montagnola Senese, one of the most interesting areas in southern Tuscany from a naturalistic point of view. It is a hilly area with reliefs of about 500 – 600 m which has been populated since Etruscan and Roman times but has preserved its naturalness. We will see the ruins of the Nagli Chapel from the Romanesque era, the Marmoraia fortified village dating back to the early Middle Ages with its Pieve, and the Borgo di Scorgiano.

Day 5 This part of the journey will take us back to the equestrian center following the paths of the Montagnola Senese, but for a few hours we will leave the Middle Ages to enter the 1900s. We reach Casa Giubileo which is located on Montemaggio. This is a place to “not forget” because, during the Second World War, it was the scene on March 28, 1944, of one of the most dramatic episodes of the struggle for liberation. In this place we will find hospitality and we can, for those who wish, visit the Rooms of Memory.

Day 6 We travel along the Via Francigena to reach the Hermitage of Lecceto built between 1189 and 1223. The church, known since 1223, was rebuilt in 1317 and enlarged in 1344. Continuing, we reach the Hermitage of San Leonardo al Lago. news of the presence of a hermit community dates to the year 1112, but its existence seems to date back before the 12th century. Along the way we will find La Piramide, an obelisk in memory of the reclamation of Pian del Lago. After the lunch stop at the fortified village of La Villa, an official stopping point on the Francigena, we return to the equestrian center leaving the Castello della Chiocciola behind us. In the afternoon there will be a tasting of typical Tuscan wines.

Day 7 Breakfast and departure to airport