Festivals and spectacular sporting events abound in Tuscany throughout the year. There are festivals celebrating medieval history, theater, the harvest and local foods. Many towns have their own special festivals celebrating local historical events or competitions between the town’s contrade or neighborhoods. And in a country obsessed with biking, Tuscany is home to a number of cycling races as well as one of the most unique bike events in the world, L’Eroica, which was founded in the small Tuscan town of Gaiole to celebrate classic cycling on the unpaved “white roads” of the countryside.
Our favorite events include:
Il Palio di Siena
Held July 2nd & August 16th each year, Il Palio is considered the most spectacular and unique horse race in the world.
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Il Palio di Siena is one of the most colorful and unique horse races in the world. Held every summer on July 2 and August 16, the race is run by bareback riders around the beautiful main piazza – the Campo – of Siena. The Palio has for centuries been the focal point of the intense rivalries among the 17 contrade – or wards – of Siena, with 10 of them chosen to compete in each race. Although the race itself lasts only 90 seconds or so, the pageantry and festivities leading up to the race last for days, with parades through the streets, practices by the drummers and flag throwers of each contrade, practice runs the day before the race, and the magical contrade dinners the night before the race that take place on huge long tables set up in the streets. Also worth visiting are the contrade museums, which display the banners – the “palios”, for which the race is named – won over the centuries. So even if you don’t attend the race itself, being in Siena in the weeks leading up to the race is one of the most special moments you’ll have in Italy.
L’Eroica
Held the first weekend in October, L’Eroica is the original, and most important, international vintage biking event.
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L’Eroica or “the Heroes” takes place on the first Sunday of October each year in Gaiole. Italy has long had a reputation as a great cycling nation and all you have to do is drive the roads of Tuscany to see how popular the sport is there. But few people outside the cycling world know that Gaiole in Chianti is the epicenter of the “new” sport of classic cycling. In 1997, in reaction to the scandals rocking professional cycling, Giancarlo Brocci, a resident of Gaiole, decided to organize a cycling event for his friends that emphasized classic (i.e., pre-1987) bikes and riding on the “strada bianchi” – the unpaved “white roads” still common throughout Tuscany. That event has evolved into L’Eroica which is the most important classic biking event in the world and has spawned similar events in California, Japan, South Africa, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, as well as other locations in Italy. The event now draws 5,000 riders and countless fans to Chianti every Fall for a series of rides along courses ranging from 32km to 209km, half of which must be on white roads. The atmosphere in Gaiole leading up to the event is terrific, with a marketplace of vendors selling every kind of cycling gear imaginable and all the restaurants and cafes adding extra seating and rolling out the red carpet. Gaiole now has a year-round L’Eroica shop, which is one of the best retail spaces we have seen. And Brolio now has a year-round Eroica cafe, located on the road leading to Castello di Brolio, which is the site of the pre-dawn, lantern-lit start to the race. Even if you don’t bike, L’Eroica is an event not to be missed. www.eroicagaiole.com
Mercantia
Held in mid-July, the Mercantia is one of the most amazing street theatre and arts festivals in the world.
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This summer, the stunning Tuscan hilltop town of Certaldo Alto – reached by a funicular railway – will host the 32nd edition of the Mercantia from July 10-14. With over 80 shows every day, the squares and streets of this medieval town overflow with theater troupes, street artists, contemporary art, artisans, installations, and lots of people! The festival runs from early in the day to very late in the evening – our favorite time to go is at night – and presents an astounding variety of performers and artists. Our most memorable performance was the dance troupe that performed on the castle’s walls suspended more than 30 feet in the air. Apart from the official program, in the true spirit of street theatre, there are informal performances that pop up in every nook and cranny of the town. The festival is very popular, but the crowds are all part of what is a really unique event. www.mercantiacertaldo.it.
Radda 1527
Held in June or July in the medieval hilltop village of Radda, this is a weekend-long Renaissance-era festival.
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This weekend-long Renaissance-era festival featuring a communal al fresco dinner in the central piazza of Radda with music, dance, and more. Radda 1527 is a celebration of Renaissance-era Tuscany that commemorates a visit to Radda by a great Italian military hero from Florence. The people of the town dress in historical costumes and put on an amazing array of events, from falconry displays to wonderful shows to the crowning event – a dinner in the town square for hundreds, with great food and entertainment. Local craftsmen sell their wares throughout the charming hilltop town, and simply wandering the streets during the weekend is itself a wonderful show.
Antique market in Arezzo
Held the first weekend of every month, the Arezzo Antique Market is the largest antique markets in all of Italy.
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every month of the year, rain or shine. The variety of wares is astounding, the setting is magical, and if you are like us, you will enjoy the hunt to bring home the perfect one-of-a kind souvenir. Arezzo is one of twelve Estruscan cities conquered by the Romans and its street are filled with history, art and shops. Note: Many of the antique furnishings at L’Aiaccia were discovered at this market.