Toscana (Tuscany) is among Italy’s best-known and raved-about areas. There are some of Italy’s great cities: Firenze (Florence), Siena, Pisa, Lucca, San Gimignano, Arezzo … and the list goes on.
Beyond the great cities Toscana offers a rich variety of landscapes including the unique and iconic landscapes of the World Heritage-listed Val d’Orcia. Although the Chianti is a beautiful place to cycle - especially the unsurfaced strade bianche (‘white roads’) in the hills near Siena - there are other lesser-known areas like the Maremma near the coast and the Mugello and Val di Merse.
In this section
- an overview of the regional and national/international cycle routes in Toscana
- the Gran Tour della Maremma - a 405-kilometre circular signposted route in the south-west of the region
- the Grand Tour della Val di Merse - another signposted route on blissfully quiet roads in the hills to the west of Siena
- the Eroica - a race and cycling event for riders of vintage bikes, but also a 205-kilometre signposted route in the Chianti
- the Sentiero della Bonifica - a 62 kilometre traffic-free cycleway between Arezzo and Chiusi
- The Tuscan Coast - a series of articles describing an accessible tour along the coast with more challenging options
- The Heart of Toscana - a tour through central Toscana via Firenze, San Gimignano, Volterra, Siena, Pienza and the Val d’Orcia
also…
- a guide to useful websites and other resources
- campsites in Toscana
- an article about food and wine in Toscana.
Siena Duomo
Vineyards near San Gimignano
Countryside between Volterra and Siena
Featured tours in Toscana
Heart of Toscana
This tour takes you through through the heart of Toscana: the Chianti, the Crete Senese, and the Val d’Orcia. Great cycling between some of Italy’s great art cities. It links the UNESCO world-heritage listed cities of Firenze, Siena, San Gimignano, and Pienza, as well as the Val d’Orcia. It also takes you to Volterra another of the great Tuscan cities. There are lots of other places to see and visit in Toscana, but these would probably figure on most people’s must-see list.
Read more: Heart of Toscana: tour overview.
The Tuscan coast
A relaxed 317-kilometre tour following the coast of Toscana using a combination of quiet roads and cycleways. Taking you through coastal pinetas and the Bolgheri wine country. Very little climbing. A good way to start if you need a bit of a warm-up before tackling the more hillier terrain of inland Toscana and Lazio. Or you might use it as a chance to get some time at the beach - possibly on the island of Elba - before returning home. There’s also a more challenging option taking in the hilltop towns that overlook the coast.
Read more: Tuscan coast: tour overview.