BIRTHDAY ITINERARY
ITINERARY:
Monday:
16:00pm
Arrival at the Castle
Castello di Fighine (Località Fighine 123 San Casciano dei Bagni Toscana 53040 Siena Italy). https://www.fighine.it/
Directions
From Florence & The North
Take the A1 motorway towards Roma. Exit the A1 motorway at Fabro.
Please note in both directions the exit is also for a service station. The exit serves both. If you enter the service station, you can’t then easily access the road for Fabro
Follow as from ***
From Rome
Join the ring road around Rome and follow signs for Nord / Firenze. Join the A1 motorway following signs for Firenze / Nord. Exit the A1 motorway at Fabro. Please note in both directions the exit is also for a service station. The exit serves both If you enter the service station, you can’t then easily access the road for Fabro
Follow as from ***
*** After the toll turn right following signs for Fabro/S. Casciano. Go straight on towards Fabro. You will go over a bridge over the motorway then further ahead, you will see a play park on your right, Take the right hand lane here at the junction and turn right following signs for Palazzone/Salci. Continue straight on. Then follow signs for Palazzone. After a few km turn right to Palazzone. You will come to the edge of Palazzone and see the white sign with Palazzone written on it. Go straight on following signs for Palazzone centro and Fighine on a brown sign. Immediately after that, turn left uphill following the brown sign for Fighine. Go straight on uphill. Keep right and further ahead you will pass a church on your left. Go uphill for 3.5km. You will see a white sign with Fighine on it. The last part of the road is a track road. Shortly afterwards you will see a small chapel on your right. Turn left here and you will see a driveway. There is an overflow car park at the bottom of the drive on your right. Go further up and you will see a wooden sign and a break in the hedge on your left. This is the entrance to the main car park. Park here and walk up to the large arched gateway. There will possibly be the concierge here to meet you. But if not, go further ahead and bear left. You will see a gate on your left and on the right of it, there is a bell. Ring the bell – it rings inside the custodian’s house (Antonella) so she will then come out to meet you.
Google map:
19:30pm
Dinner
Optional dinner (see poll message)
Friday:
Tuesday – Thursday:
Unscheduled
17:00 – 19:00
The Birthday
Canapes on the Upper Terrace Gardens.
19:00 – 22:00
The Birthday
Dinner at Castello di Fighine Restaurant
Saturday:
Unscheduled
Sunday:
Check out time is 10am
ACCOMMODATION:
VILLAS & APARTMENTS
Villa 1
Villa Melissa
Brad & Aaron, Iain & Giancarlo, Gary, Alan
Villa 2
Casa Janine
Motie & Peter, Mario & Richard, Jake
Villa 3
Casa Teatro
Mark & Steve, Wayne & Etienne, Stu & James
Villa 4
Casa Vittoria
Noelene & Wayne, Anne & Dean
Villa 5
Casa Rossa
Gloria, Scott & Sandy
Apartment 1
Piano Terra
Nev
Apartment 2
Primo Piano
Brendan
FOOD & WINE SHOPPING:
Closer places, however a bit smaller.
There will be plenty of smaller places in local towns.
RESTAURANTS:
La Fontanella.
5.3km / 10mins
Good food and good choices.
Trattoria La Pace.
10.2km / 17mins
Ristorante Daniela.
4.9km / 10mins
Madonna del Carmine.
2km / 5mins
Very local, inexpensive food. Very meat orientated.
Locanda Quattro Vesta.
4.8km / 10mins
Only open Friday to Sunday).
Restaurant Castello di Fighine.
PLACE OF VISIT:
To help you get the most out of your visit with us, we have put together a list of places of interest that are accessible by car, whether you choose a full day, half day or just a few hours, get out and do a bit of sight seeing.
SOUTH
Civita di Bagnoregio – 58km / 1hr
Lago di Bolsena – 49km / 54mins
Viterbo – 92km / 1:13mins
Duomo di Orvieto – 43km / 43mins
Rome – 180km / 2:16mins
NORTH
Vineyards in Montalcino – 63km / 1:12mins
Montepulciano – 43km / 52mins
Perugia – 60km / 1:15mins
Siena – 118km / 1:25mins
Volterra – 160km
Pienza – 48km / 57mins
Florence – 153km / 1:48mins
Monteriggioni – 124km
Pisa – 229km / 2:50mins
Città della Pieve – 40km /42mins
POSSIBLE DAY TRIPS:
Siena & Montalcino
Visit Siena in the morning where you can have lunch (108km / 1:08mins) then on to Montalcino and the surrounding vineyards on the way home. (62km / 1:10mins from the castle), famous for Brunello di Montalcino wine.
Perugia, Castiglione & Montepulciano
Visit Perugia, known for its defensive walls around the historic center (60km / 1:15mins) then on to Castiglione del Lago on the way back followed by vineyards in Montepulciano.
Maybe add a trip to see Pienza (A wonderful small town)
Orvieto, Civita di Bagnoregio &
Lago di Bolsena or Viterbo
Head south and visit to Orvieto, and see the wonderful cathedral (43km /45mins). Drive to Civita di Bagnoregio (24km 34min). Beautiful town perched on a hill.
Drive back home via Lago di Bolsena (65km 1:15) or head down to Viterbo (29km / 38mins) . A well preserved medieval town. Back home from Viterbo (92km / 1:12mins)
Viterbo & Lago di Bolsena
Alternative to the above. Drive to Viterbo then visit lago di Bolsena on the way back.
Florence
This will be a long day; nearly 2hr drive from the Castle. Start early! This is well worth a long day trip if you will not set foot in Tuscany again.
Wine tours
Visit Montalcino and Montepulciano.
Small towns
Visit towns such as Pienza, Montalcino and Montepulciano, Civita di Bagnoregio.
Lakes
Both Lago di Bolsena and Lago Trasimeno are worth visiting. I’m sure there will be a sunbathing area via Lago di Bolsena.
Spa
There are a multitude of baths and spas in the area. The closest being in San Casciano dei bagni.
ACTIVITIES:
Tuscan wine and cuisine, charming villages to discover, Scenic nature walks, Mountain bike adventures, Horseback rides, Cooking classes, Wine tasting, Spa days, Hot air ballooning, Shopping, Day trips and lots more restaurants.
Experience the best outdoor activities during your unforgettable stay in Fighine.
THE EVENT
I have booked Castello di Fighine (pictured above) between Monday the 30th of June through to Sunday the 6th of July and I would like to invite you, as guests, to celebrate mine and Jake’s birthday. I’ve taken care of the accommodation for the entire week so consider this my treat and we are looking forward to seeing you all!
LOCATION:
The estate includes a majestic 11th century castle (not part of our accommodation booking) and we have the large estate to ourselves for this period! The estate sits at the southern tip of Tuscany, very close to the Lazian and Umbrian borders. Here is a link to the property: https://www.fighine.it
The idea will be for us all to hang out for the week, coming together as we want, split off as we'd like or just hang by the two pools….very casual. On my birthday (4th of July), I will be arranging an afternoon and dinner for us all to celebrate together, so please don’t schedule anything for that afternoon/ evening.
The site has a Michelin star restaurant called Castello di Fighine (bookings required) for those looking for some dining luxury! (www.fighine.it/Restaurant.html).
The local town is called San Casciano dei Bagni and is only 5kms away. It has many restaurants and also a luxury spa (www.fonteverdespa.com).
I suggest groups of us rent cars in order for us to explore the region at leisure.
ACCOMMODATION:
There will be 26 of us split across 5 villas and 2 apartments, which are all in close proximity within the estate. The accommodation/rooming will be allocated in advance. Each of the villas have self-catering options. This will enable you to stock up with wonderful food and drink from the local supermarkets, markets and wineries throughout the week. The two apartments do not have kitchen facilities. I’m sure everyone will be hosting and mixing to ensure the apartments don’t go hungry. 😊
For those of you unable to switch off from being connected the property has wifi with a speed of 30Mbps.
Please note check-in time is no earlier than 4pm and check-out time is 10am.
