One of the most interesting thing you can do in Tuscany is a castle chianti bike tour, visiting the ancient medieval buildings and villages.
Tuscany has a high number of castles, fortified farm houses and fortified Abbeys, and
this allows to create different a itinerary to visits this historic attractions.

You will immerse in an atmosphere far away from the other type of attraction, in fact the sublime tuscany castles will transmit you peaceful and some hidden inside their ancient history.

-PIEVE DI SPALTENNA, in Gaiole in Chianti
old fortified parish church
-VERTINE
A fortified hill-top village

 

-SAN DONATOIN PERANO
This village is first mentioned in an act dated 995, then probably as a castle in 1033 and, more certainly, in 1136. It has currently the look of a large villa of the 17 C. However, where the plaster has fallen away, you can see mediaeval stone walls, which testify its origin as a castle.

 

-VILLA VISTARENNI
a great 17 C villa that arose on the location of an old 11 C village.

-TORNANO CASTLE
It’s a huge stone building, with a slightly trapezoidal ground plan, scarp wall at the base and several original arched apertures.
At the top of one side, there are the remains of probable machicolations.
On the south side, you can find a fragment of the walls that enclosed the village.

 
-MONTE SAN MARCELLINO VILLAGE
Beautiful is the high medieval tower of Morelline constructed in beautiful stonework. This is the church of San Marcellino in Avane, one of the oldest parish churches of the Chianti area, although it was rebuilt several time over the centuries.

 

-CACCHIANO
This castle that was owned by a line of the ubiquitous Ricasoli family at least from the beginning of the 13 C, and was incorporated into Florentine territory in 1203.

 

-GAIOLE
It was mentioned as an important market centre of the area as early as the 11 C in the documents of Badia a Coltibuono and the State Archives of Florence.
Nowaday Gaiole is a village spread out along a valley bottom, distinguished by the Massellone torrent that passes through it, spanned by a number of large and small bridges.
Today the village attends with some mediaeval buildings in the upper part of the village, among which is a stone tower that probably used to be a mill.

 

-BADIA A COLTIBUONO
Built by Geremia dei Firidolfi between the end of the 8 C and the beginning of the 9 C.
It did not have an easy life and was completely impoverished by 1037, when the descendants decided to restore it and transform it into an abbey and entrust it to the Vallombrosan movement.

 

-MELETO CASTLE
Surrounded by centuries-old trees, unknown is its origin.
It was probably built at the end of the 12 C by a line of the Ricasoli family.

 

-STARDA, a picturesque village in a magnificent position.

 

-MONTECASTELLI
The castle of the Ricasoli family, nowadays many ruins in the wood and a tall stone wall with beautiful corbels remain.

 
-BROLIO CASTLE
The castle of Brolio is situated in the center of the area of Chianti that belongs to the province of Siena.
This magnificent building has a Longobard origin, and its position was strategical for the control of this area of Chianti.
Interesting to see is the Chapel inside

 

You can organize a self-guided tour writing a map of the order of the castles of Chianti.

It is better calculate the distance you are ready to ride, because the castle are not near each other.

You will bike along the countryside tuscany roads, so consider to do this trip with someone else.

Biking along the “Road of Castles” allow you to join the “Wine Road” too: you can combine the visit of castles to the ride along the Chianti wineyards LINK WINE ROAD IN MTB

Visit also the CHIANTI MEDIEVAL VILLAGES (LINK)