From France to Rome passing through the Alps, and then still along the entire peninsula to Puglia, whose ports led to the Holy Land, a destination for pilgrims. The Francigena soon established itself as the main road connecting merchants, armies and of course pilgrims, between southern and northern Europe. A slow and meditative journey par excellence in the collective imagination, the Via Francigena gathers within itself a manifold wealth of cultural, historical and artistic treasures, surviving through the centuries and attracting many people every year.

A splendid route that crosses half continent and that reaches here, between Siena, the Val d’Elsa, the Val d’Orcia and the white roads of the Val d’Arbia. Reaching the Francigena from the Hotel Palazzo di Valli is very simple, and you can visit the official website to discover the routes, which can be traveled on foot, by bike, and even on horseback. La Francigena crosses the city of Siena, where in fact the Santa Maria della Scala was built, a current museum complex, and at the time a hospital for pilgrims. Great testimony is the great lane of the Pellegrinaio, a pictorial cycle of the fifteenth century that portrays the history of the hospital and the activities of welcoming pilgrims.

To discover the Sienese museum complex you can visit the official website.

 The via Francigena in Tuscany touches beautiful and hidden villages, thick woods and hills, from the Cisa Pass to Lucca, from San Gimignano to Monteriggioni, Siena, Buonconvento, San Quirico, Radicofani, for a total of fifteen stops, to discover the territory, its history, and its food and wine products.

Tuscany is a region rich in art and nature, beautifully expressed in some places in particular. We are talking about artistic parks. Hotel Palazzo di Valli is located a few steps from the historic center of Siena. The locations described here can be reached by car or by public transport. Travel times range from 40 minutes to 2 hours.

Among these you can visit the Chianti Sculpture Park, near Pievasciata, in the heart of one of the most beautiful geographical areas of Tuscany and very close to Siena. The park, which can be visited all year round, in addition to the numerous site-specific works of art created by artists selected from the five continents, offers a rich program of concerts during the months of July and August, in the stone frame of the park’s amphitheater. On the timetable and ticket prices refer to the official site of the Sculpture Park.

Another very famous site is the beautiful and bright Giardino dei Tarocchi, located in the village of Garavicchio, near Capalbio, in the province of Grosseto. Designed by the French-American artist Niki de Saint Phalle and built over seventeen years, it houses statues and monuments dedicated and inspired by the figures of the major arcana tarot. The same artist has lived in the park, built starting in 1979, and has carefully populated it with figures covered with mirrors, glass, colored ceramics, animated by a mechanical iron soul, self-propelled.

Absolutely to visit is also Enzo Pazzagli Art Park, located near the capital, Florence. Enzo Pazzagli had already set up in the 90s, the garden of his house in Settignano (FI), a permanent exhibition, but only in 2001 he found in Rovezzano (FI) an ideal terrain for his project. in three and a half years he transformed an uncultivated field into an immense meadow, in which he planted 300 cypresses, which form a living sculpture visible from above. On special occasions a hot air balloon is available to visitors.

Another beautiful park is the one created since 1997 by the Swiss artist Daniel Spoerri,   located on the slopes of Mount Amiata, in southern Tuscany, and which houses about 112 works by 55 different artists. The park can be visited from Easter until October.

 

 

Also in the province of Grosseto, between Boccheggiano and Massa Marittima, we find the enthralling Giardino dei Suoni, a hidden oasis developed around the house of the artist Paul Fuchs, where a series of sculptural works create a real concert of sounds for action of the wind. The preventive appointment is essential and can be done either by telephone or fax by contacting Gaby Fuchs Beisiegel at 0566-998221.

https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giardino_dei_Suoni http://www.irre.toscana.it/artamb/luoghi/schedeluoghi/schedasuoni.htm

 

Book your holiday at Hotel Palazzo di Valli and treat yourself to an unforgettable experience. Booking directly from our website you will get an immediate 15% discount on your stay.

During the cold winter months there are many destinations in Tuscany suitable for those who want to escape for a while from everyday stress, such as the countless spas scattered throughout the territory. In fact, Tuscany is the region with the highest number of spas Italy. The richest area of ​​spas is the around Siena, between Val d’Orcia, Crete Senesi and Mount Amiata.

Hotel Palazzo di Valli is located a few steps from the historic center of Siena. The spa towns can be reached by car or public transport. Travel times range from 40 minutes to 2 hours.

The free thermal baths of Petriolo are the most famous free baths in Tuscany and are located along the river Farma. As can still be seen from the ruins located near the thermal spring, Petriolo represents in history a rare case of “fortified baths”. In fact, the remains of the residual walls belong to the ancient “Castello di Petriolo” erected structure to defend the source.

In Val d’Orcia you can visit the magnificent village of Bagno Vignoni, famous for its characteristic Romanesque thermal bath at the center of the town square. Bathing in this pool is forbidden for reasons of decorum: to find an area where it is possible to dive into the water it is necessary to move under the mills’ park, where the cliff on which the village rises slopes towards the bed of the river Orcia. In a small area, among shrubs of Mediterranean scrub, there is a tank dug at the foot of the limestone wall. Here is collected the thermal water that flows from the town square.

A few steps from Bagno Vignoni and Monte Amiata there is also Bagni San Filippo, another small spa town that offers two types of therapeutic waters: the sulphurous ones that flow from the rocks of the Acqua Bianca ditch and those of the muddy pools of the so-called White Whale . The baths are free and can be reached by following a path in a wood. The Monte Amiata is an old volcano, it is the motor that still realizes its entire area of ​​hot springs (Saturnia, Bagno Vignoni, Bagni San Filippo) and in winter it offers the possibility to ski.

A legend tells that Jupiter, during a quarrel with Saturn, threw a lightning strike from the sky, striking the earth and thus giving rise to the baths of Saturnia (Grosseto), already known by the Romans and the Etruscans. The sulphurous waters that flow from the ground at a temperature of 37 degrees Celsius form waterfalls and are collected in natural pools dug into the rock and arranged in steps in which to immerse oneself in total relaxation.

The beautiful spas of Tuscany therefore offer those who want a little quiet the right solutions, a holiday in the heart of Italy. Book your holiday at Hotel Palazzo di Valli and treat yourself to an unforgettable experience. Booking directly from our website you will get an immediate 15% discount on your stay.