TIVOLI THE VIA EMPOLITANA AND THE CASTLES OF ANIENE AND GIOVANZANO VALLEYS

Day one:

4 p.m. Meeting with the assistant, room allocation.

5 p.m. Free walk in the romantic park of Villa Gregoriana, where you can admire the Salto dell'Aniene, a spectacular artificial waterfall created when the river was diverted in the 19th century. Paths shaded by ancient trees, the remains of a Latin poet's villa, wild nature, caves carved by the water, steep rock walls, and at the top the Temple of the Sibyl dominating it all. A landscape immortalized in thousands of paintings, which you will love at first sight!

Free time before dinner

8 p.m. Dinner at a restaurant in the city center.

Day two:

9:30 a.m. After breakfast you will meet your guide for a visit to the UNESCO site of Hadrian's Villa. A grandiose, innovative, revolutionary Architecture, fruit of the genius of the great Emperor Hadrian who realized his ideal of Beauty here in the 2nd century AD. A majestic and immense Villa endowed with large spas, gardens enlivened by splendid fountains, triclinia, libraries, sumptuous buildings, places of worship, theatres.

Light lunch at a local restaurant.

4 p.m. Meeting with your guide to visit the UNESCO site of Villa d’Este. The symmetry, geometric rules, and perfection of the Italian garden are sometimes concealed by lush nature and centuries-old trees. We will reenact the glories of the Casata d'Este, the power games, the loves, the lavish banquets, and the unbridled passion for ancient works of art that made Cardinal Ippolito II, the last prince of the Renaissance.

For the rest of the afternoon time off for shopping and walking around the city center.

8 p.m. Dinner in a historic restaurant with a terrace overlooking the “Orrido Sublime”, loved by Romantic poets and artists doing their Grand Tour.

Day three:

9.30 a.m. After breakfast we set out for the Giovenzano Valley to discover two small villages. The first is Sambuci, whose city center is characterized by the great bulk of the Theodoli Castle, formerly belonging to the noble Astalli family. The beautiful Italian garden, now affectionately called by the locals, the “Villa,” has been municipal property since 1991, together with the castle itself. After visiting the castle, opened for us by the Proloco staff, we will move on to Ciciliano, where, in a cozy farmhouse, a delicious lunch made of local products awaits us.

In the afternoon we will meet the Associazione Articolo 9, which is very active in the area. We will listen to tales about the Equi, eternal enemies of the Romans, and visit a private land entrusted to the Association, where, under the strict control of the Archaeological Superintendence, new remains of Trebula Suffenàs, an ancient Roman town hall, discovered in a very curious way less than 80 years ago, are re-emerging. The medieval village of Ciciliano is nestled on two hills and dominates the Giovenzano Valley. Ciciliano also has its own castle, which looks more like a fortress and has been owned for five hundred years by the Theodoli family, another branch of the noble lineage that had properties in Sambuci and in the area.

8:30 p.m. Delicious dinner at a local restaurant in the city center of Tivoli.

Day 4:

9.30 a.m. After breakfast we will move to Castel Madama, in the middle Aniene Valley, just minutes from Tivoli. We will discover the connection of this place with Margaret of Austria also known as the “Madama” and how this link led the town to take on her name and its inhabitants to invent an anise laurel-scented bread, which we will be able to taste along with the excellent local extra virgin olive oil and other typical products. We will learn about the world of table olives processed here since ancient times and today the undisputed pride of local companies, which export the product all over the world. A tasting of authentic flavours, the pride and joy of the Castellans, who look forward to opening the doors of the village to anyone who wishes to listen and share the ancient stories and modern successes of their community.