This great tour has a few more climbs than most but with big climbs come beautiful scenery. With this tour you will experience some of the most iconic scenery in the area and, as usual, some fabulous food and wine during your stay.
Starting out most days from your beautiful accommodation in Arezzo you will be cycling along quiet roads, stopping off for coffees and ice cream and sometimes lunch along the way in the some of the most beautiful lakeside towns and medieval cities that this part of the world is famous for. For your big day out you will be riding around the fabulous Lago Trasimeno, Italy's fourth largest lake.
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OVERVIEW ITINERARY
FULL ITINERARY
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ride 1 castiglion fiorentino
distance 50kms elevation gain 900 metres estimated moving time 2 hours estimated calories 1,500 road surface asphalt (not always in perfect condition)
ride 2 lago trasimeno (excursion day)
distance 73kms elevation gain 850 metres estimated moving time 3 hours estimated calories 2,000 road surface asphalt (not always in perfect condition) driving to destination time 1 hour 10 minutes each way
ride 3 alpe di poti, anghiari & scheggia
distance 65kms elevation gain 1,150 metres estimated moving time 3 hours estimated calories 2,000 road surface asphalt (not always in perfect condition)
DAY 1
Arrival day in Italy Collection from Italian airport Transfer to your retreat
DAY 2
Although it's the first ride of the tour it will be a stern test for those legs. We warm up gently for the first 20kms or so heading into the beautiful Tuscan town of Castiglion Fiorentino (some of which dates back to the 4th century). We'll stop off here for a quick coffee in readiness for our first big climb of the day. The effort is worth it though for some of the most iconic scenery imaginable during this fabulous morning ride. After a few picture stops we head into the little village of Palazzo del Pero for a well deserved pizza bringing us back a bit closer to home before our final ascent back towards Arezzo and on to the villa for a few hours of free time followed by dinner cooked by our in house chef.
DAY 3
Our big day out today so we will be setting off early to get to the beautiful Lago Trasimeno. This is where Tuscany spills over into Umbria. Italy's fourth-largest lake is a prime spot for us to get off the well-trodden trail for a few hours. Around this beautiful lake, we will be cycling through silver-green olive groves, vines and ancient woods of oak and cypress. Sunflower fields frame the castle-topped medieval towns of Castiglione del Lago and Passignano, where we will be stopping off for refreshments along the way and then lunch high on the hillside in a fabulous restaurant overlooking the lake. Back home for dinner.
DAY 4
With around 1,150 metres of climbing on our last day's ride it's a long day of ups and downs ahead. Our morning will commence with a gentle roll through the Arezzo suburbs. After around 8kms we hit the first of our three serious peaks today as we tackle the challenging Alpe Scopetone through Staggiano. On reaching the summit it's a steady 17kms downhill glide using the quiet old roads that pass through Palazzo del Pero (coffee stop) and Molin Nuovo. It’s then on through the farmer’s fields of Catigliano and Scoiano before we reach our second climb into the picture perfect Tuscan town of Anghiari for further refreshments and a photo stop. For our homeward leg of today's ride we shall be heading out of Anghiari via Tavernelle and on to the 8kms climb of Scheggia. With well over 45kms under our belts at the summit it's welcoming bar and restaurant are a great place to stop for a well deserved bite to eat after all our efforts. Any weary legs will appreciate the 15kms of winding downhill hairpin bends as we make our way through Chiassa-Tregozzano. Our final small climb back to our retreat in Arezzo will see us wind our way through the magnificent surroundings of the historic vineyards of San Fabiano, owned by the Count Borghini Baldovinetti. A final evening dinner at our beautiful retreat will give you plenty of opportunity to look back over the accomplishments and highlights of the tour with the rest of the group.
DAY 5
Departure day Collection from your retreat Transfer to your Italian airport
tuscany and umbria head for the sky arezzo - april to october