Sara Tuscany Tours

PASSION. TASTE. FUN

Volterra Tour

Tour duration

1,5 hours

Availability

All year

Best time to do this

April to November

About this tour.

A guided tour of Volterra, the ancient Etruscan Velathri, founded more than 2500 yeas ago. A long history that can be breathe in every corner of its historical centre. and

We are in the heart of Tuscany, about 40 km from the sea and 70 km from Florence and Pisa. The city is located on top of a hill, location that give a breathtaking view from its 250 meters above sea level. can be reached thanks to state roads of great beauty and charm which wind through the Tuscan hills, those same hills that are represented on the magazines and media around the world.

The city still preserves numerous ancient remains: some examples of the Etruscan civilization, dates back around 3000 years ago, a strong presence of Roman remains and especially the medieval ones.

Volterra indeed, offers beautiful architectural glimpses traceable back to the 1200/1300 era, among which the oldest government palace in Tuscany, Palazzo dei Priori, dating back to 1208, overlooks the homonymous square, chosen even as movie set of Twilight saga. A story that has led many tourists in search of the locations of Bella and Edward.

A place rich in history and tradition, definitely worth a guided tour with a local licensed tuor guide!

What does the tour include?

1 hour and a half guided tour of the city of Volterra, entrance to he Cathedral and Baptistery (based on opening hours).

What will we do?

An hour and a half tour that will take you to discover all the historical ages which characterized Volterra. We will explore the medieval architecture, soaring views all around the hill where the city is located and we will analyze together what are the most significant remains of its ancient origin.

Starting from Viale dei Ponti we will pause to admire the view over the Val di Cecina and the boraciferous fumaroles area, an important and ancient heritage of this zone, and then reach the main square, called „dei Priori“, which also hosts the medieval palace with the homonymous name and famous for being the oldest government palace in Tuscany.

We will contnue the tour visiting the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta and the ennexed Baptistery of San Giovanni, two architectures that are evidence of the influence of the Pisan culture. 1200. Crossing the medieval quarters full of “scapitozzate” (capped) towers, we will reach the remains of the Roman theater and we will visit the oldest alabaster working activity in Volterra, a material that has long been a source of income and trade for the city. The tour will end with a visit to the Medici fortress, an austere stronghold placed on the highest point of Volterra hill. In this same place the archoelogical site of Volterra, where three layers of civilization overlap.