This land of well-preserved medieval villages, ancient myths and legends once ruled by the House of Malaspina, Lunigiana – approximately 2 hours’ drive from The Mall Firenze and 3 from The Mall Sanremo – has plenty to offer at any time of year. Here are the highlights.

MARBLE QUARRIES
This area supplies the beautiful Carrara marble known all over the world and used by the greatest artists throughout history. Don’t miss the chance to visit a quarry and admire the incredible lunar landscape.

MALASPINA CASTLE OF FOSDINOVO
Lunigiana’s most famous fortress. A highly dramatic entrance to the pretty village of Fosdinovo, perfectly sited on its rocky spur.

FILETTO
An authentic medieval village dating back to the 6th-7th century. The nearby chestnut forest is said to have inspired Dante’s notorious “dark forest” in the Divine Comedy.

PIEVE DI SORANO – FILATTIERA
A beautiful 12th-century Romanesque church on what was once the ancient St Francis’ Way. The most amazing feature is the masonry, made of pebbles from the Magra river.

PONTREMOLI
The Tuscan capital of Lunigiana, originally the legendary Apua, the ancient centre of the Ligurian-Apuan civilisation. An obligatory visit is to the wonderful Museo delle Statue Stele with its fascinating and mysterious prehistoric stelae found all over Lunigiana, sculpted between 1000 BC and the 6th century AD. Although the town retains some traces of the medieval period, Pontremoli’s golden age was the Baroque, of which there are magnificent examples such as Villa Dosi Delfini and Palazzo Ruschi Pavesi.

EQUI TERME CAVES
Narrow tunnels, stalactites and stalagmites with a guided tour of the caves, near a spa village with spectacular views.

BRUNELLA FORTRESS – AULLA
A magnificent Renaissance fortification, the most impressive military site in the region and now home to the Lunigiana Natural History Museum.

(cover photo Federico Di Dio)