Guided Tour of Tuscany
For a truly unique vacation, let Pedal and Sea Adventures introduce you
to a world of history, beauty and amazing culinary riches during our
bicycle tour of Tuscany. After exploring Florence—considered the
loveliest city in all of Italy—on your own, we’ll guide you
south through Chianti country enroute to Pienza. Along the way we will
pass through the charming towns of Greve, San Gimignano, Siena, and Montalcino—to
name just a few of the best known. Our itinerary provides ample opportunity
to explore the incredible places you will be encountering, and to taste
food and wine so savory and fresh that it will make you weak in the knees.
Tuscany will always be known for its gastronomic abundance and celebration
of life.
The medieval town of Siena is far too fascinating to see in just a single day, and so we’ll tarry for two days. We’ll also spend two days in Pienza so you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy a wonderful day of cycling or walking through Montalcino—and ending the day in a natural thermal bath. We believe our Tuscany bike tour has something for everyone!
Hiking and Cooking Tour of Tuscany
For a truly unique vacation let Pedal & Sea Adventures introduce
you to Tuscany: a world of history, beauty and gastronomic riches. This
is a tour that has something for everyone, be it the fitness enthusiast,
the history buff, or the food and wine connoisseur.
Since ancient times, Italy has been a center of artistic and culinary delights and nowhere is this more evident than in the regions of Tuscany and Umbria. Siena, San Gimingnano, Pienza and Assisi— all UNESCO World Heritage Sites— are just a few of the stops along our road of discovery. We have arranged the itinerary to allow time to explore the incredible areas you’ll see, and taste the local cuisine. The riches of the region will be apparent as you hike, explore and eat your way through some of Italy’s most beautiful and inspirational scenery and cities of art.
If you’ve been yearning to read the book on your shelf that your best friend recommended months ago... If you want to perfect your European siesta technique while lying next to a glorious Mediterranean pool... If you’re a die-hard sports enthusiast who longs to explore an historical countryside that beckoned to both St. Francis of Assisi and the Roman emperors of legend and fact... If you are a complicated soul who delights in variety and exploration... then this is your tour.
It could also be headlined as Our Tour, for this one is very close to our hearts. A tour designed specifically for people like us who possess a dichotomous nature in which opposites are not only welcomed, but nurtured. We delight in a luxurious meal supported a bevy of local wines, but we also feel that this meal can be lifted into the sublime if it’s been preceded by a day hiking through the hills, absorbing the ambiance. A hard day of physical exertion is every bit as rewarding as a day lounging pool side, lost in the deep colors of the Mediterranean.
Guided Tour of Sicily
Sicily is like a fabulous, venerable wine. The layers of history and culture
overlap and combine in so many intriguing ways on the island — just
like flavors in an unforgettable bottle. So many people and cultures
have passed through and colonized this land that history is in the very
air. Greek temples— better preserved than most in Greece— compete
for space between Pheonician ruins, while Norman fortresses and Baroque
cathedrals tell their own tales of fabulous wealth and power now lost
to time. And everywhere is the luxuriant landscape: the sea dazzles below
while rugged mountains tower above, crowding the skyline. And all long
the coast, sheer cliffs plunge into azure water.
But the smells may be what you remember most... the subtle scent of the orange blossoms, the pungent tang of eucalyptus woods... And—Dio mio!— the food! Sicilian cuisine combines the best Mediterranean traditions with a touch of North Africa. The freshest fish, the most alluring fruits and vegetables and of course, the unforgettable cannoli, made the proper way, with whipped ricotta. It's so delicious and comforting, yet exotic and inticing. We love dining at Sicily's table!
Self-Guided Bike Tour:
The Myths of Sicily
Sicily is a world unto itself; it offers so many different stories,
sights, and tastes that is would take a long time to see them all. So many
peoples have dominated this land and history has seeped into the landscape.
Everywhere you look: Greek temples better preserved than most of the examples
in Greece; Phoenician ruins;, Norman fortresses; and Baroque churches:
all testify to the layers of our civilisation. That should be enough to
impress anyone, but then there is the unforgettable landscape: sheer cliffs
dropping into the azure Mediterranean, the rugged mountains leaning against
the sky.
Luckily, with all the calories you'll be burning aboard your trusty steed, you can enjoy such delicacies with impunity. Have five for breakfast with nary a care!
Self-Guided Bike Tour: Historical
Tuscany
This tour is a trip through time, from the Etruscans tombs to Romans remains,
from Medieval hilltowns to renaissance basilicas. It also offer a great
diversity of landscapes, from the vineyard-covered hills of Chianti and
Brunello to the geometrical cypress-crested moulds of Crete.
Self-Guided Bike Tour: Hills Towns
of Umbria
This self guided bike tour allows you to visit the famous hill towns
of Umbria: Cortona, Perugia, Assisi, Spello, Spoleto, Todi and Orvieto.
And while this tour will show you the loveliest sights Umbria has to offer,
we’ve managed to keep the difficulty level low. We have chosen Terontola
as an arrival point becouse it is an important railway station with easy
connection to the whole of Europe.
Just added: Bike tour of Puglia
We love Italy, and we know we’re not alone. We love Amalfi, Naples, and Tuscany; Venice, Sicily, and Como. But what we love most of all is venturing off the beaten path... discovering ancient footpaths and isolated villages, seeing the Italy Hannibal knew, and tasting truly authentic food.
Puglia, possibly Italy’s least familiar region, is now being touted as the next Tuscany. Located on the Eastern Coast, deep in the heartland of Greek mythology, Apulia does have a distinctly Greek feel, but its ruins also feature Gothic and Byzantine architecture, among others. What better way to explore this mysterious region of olive groves and emerald waters than by bike?
You’ll cycle past castles both small and grand, and old stone trullo dwellings. You’ll swim in the Adriatic and Ionian Seas and view the Strait of Otranto. You’ll sleep in ancient masserias— fortified country homes renovated into elegant inns — and explore cities whose histories stretch back thousands of years. You may even imagine you’re no longer in Italy at all, but instead in some bewitching fairy tale.
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