Volterra and San Gimignano Shore Excursion from Livorno Port

You will be met by the ship on the time agreed upon; we will head to Volterra first, driving along the coastal Aurelia road, one of the oldest italian road for about 30 miles. About halfway we may stop at Bolgheri, an enchanting hamlet near the coast (optional). After Bolgheri we will drive inland through the beautiful Tuscany's countryside, you will have a lot of photo opportunity on this section of the trip (1 hour drive from the port).

Volterra has an extremely old history, that date back to the Iron Age; he was then one of the main city of the Etruscan confederation, a civilization who was predominant in Tuscany between 800 B.C. and the beginning of the Christian Era; he was then a roman colony, and a powerful City State in the Middle Age. You may visit the very interesting Guarnacci museum about the Etruscan people. You will see a unique place where many layers of history overlap. We will spend about 2 hours here.

After Volterra, we will head to San Gimignano (40 min drive), a unique small village, Unesco's world heritage site, still encircled by the ancient rampart, that retain all the original medieval features, like the many towers, homes of wealthy merchant families, a true voyage in the past! Here you will have the opportunity to taste the world champion gelato (1 hour stay here). In San Gimignano you can visit La Collegiata, the main church that hosts frescoes by some of the most prominent Middle Age artists. We can add then a stop to one of the oldest estate in this area to sample wines and olive oil (optional). The drive back to the port will be about 1.5 hrs long.