Walking Holiday in Tuscany, Italy

During your walking holiday at Hotel Prategiano you will discover a natural landscape with miles of well-signed paths. Most of the treks follow easy-to-walk trails. Some are on gravel roads, some through thick vegetation and some over fields without proper paths. We recommend waterproof trekking shoes for crossing small rivers.

Some examples of hiking tours include:
Trekking "Le Roste"
7 km, height 400 meters downhill, Approximately 3 hours, highest hike point: 750 m, degree of difficulty: medium. On this unique route you will be walking downhill along paths used by miners in former centuries. Travelling through uncultivated meadows and chestnut and oak tree forests, eventually you will come upon an ancient mine. A unique and bizarre landscape of "red cliffs" waits at the end of the tour. These cliffs are the remains of copper manufacturing during the 19th century. Here, the copper-rich rocks from the nearby mines piled up. Using an electric-chemical process, the copper was washed out of the minerals. After many years the rain has transformed these residues into real and very suggestive sculptures.

Trekking "Le Cornate & Poggio Mutti"
Start of the walking tour: Gerfalco, distance: 8 km, height 500 meters, duration 3 hours, highest point: 1060 m, degree of difficulty: medium. After visiting the picturesque medieval village of Gerfalco you will walk up a small path to the ridge of the "Cornate". In former centuries, these mountain slopes were populated and cultivated. Over the years, plants and rare animals have re-claimed the landscape and a new ecological balance has been established. During most of the trip you will have a nice view of the coast and the island of Elba. You will pass by a former famous marble quarry that provided the marble for the Cathedral of Siena. After a few hours of hiking it is possible to join our 3-course picnic lunch (with the horseback riders) close to the ruins of the a 12th century silver mine. In the afternoon you have the option of climbing the "Poggio Mutti", where you will find many entrances to former mines and natural caves hidden in thick evergreen bushes. Even the Etruscan people extracted minerals here. Evidence of these extractions has been mixed with others.

Walking tour "Around the Poggio of Montieri"
distance 8 km, height: 200 meters, duration 3 hours, highest point: 900 m, degree of difficulty: easy. This path circles the mountain of Montieri. There are numerous panoramic views of Tuscany's hills and valleys. The beginning features a chestnut forest, and later you will pass through pine forests and more open areas. With a little luck, you can see birds of prey flying around the slopes. Wild boar, deer, rabbits, badgers, porcupines, and foxes also live here.

Trekking "Montemurlo"
distance 10 km, height 400 meters, duration 4 hours, highest point: 840 m, degree of difficulty: medium. From Montieri, this trek leads downhill to the chapel "Madonna dei Castani", which played an important role in the social development of Montieri. In the valley, the landscape changes from woods to meadows, which are used for herding. Next, you will hike uphill to "Monte Murlo". The peak offers a splendid panorama of Montieri and the surrounding valley.