CERTALDO AND ITS ONIONS: This is a charming medieval town famous for being the birthplace of Giovanni Boccaccio but more especially famous for its red onions. This vegetable is so closely linked to the territory that it has been inserted into the coat of arms of the Town Hall and it is recognized by Slow Food (Presidio Slow Food).

It has a purple reddish colour and a particular sweet taste; the red onion of Certaldo was even mentioned in one of the stories of the Decameron (10, VI Day): “Certaldo, as perhaps you have already heard, is a castle in Val d’Elsa situated in our contado, which, as small as it is, has been populated by wealthy noblemen in which, such were the good pastures to be found there that a friar of San Antonio had the tradition of going there every year to collect the offerings, his name was FrateCipolla, perhaps not less for the name as for another devotion of his, that that territory produced onions that were famous in all of Tuscany”.. ( about 25 km far from Borgo Filicardo)

VILLA CARUSO A BELLOSGUARDO: The fifth century Villa di Bellosguardo, located in the hills of Ponte a Signa, owes its name to its spectacular position. Built in the fifth century, in 1906 it became the property of the famous tenor Enrico Caruso. One of his biographies recounts that the purchase was made following a walk in the company of his beloved Ada Giachetti, when they were both struck by the magnificent view and the monumental panoramic park.

An ideal place for art, music and concerts, Villa Caruso is continually animated by exhibitions, conventions and cultural activities. From February 25, 2012, the Enrico Caruso Museum has been open to the public thanks to the donations of mementoes by the Enrico Caruso Association- Centro StudiCarusiani di Milano. A visit to the beautiful park, mentioned in the guidebook “Historical Parks and Villas” allows us to understand why the famous tenor Enrico Caruso decided to take up residence in in the hills of Bellosguardo. (about20 km far from Borgo Filicardo).

LE TERME DI GAMBASSI: This is a charming little town rich in history and traditions situated on the viaFrancigena. Considered “a passing through way” by the Etruscans, as well as being a centre of historical and panoramic interest, Gambassi is famous for its Spa where you can enjoy the benefits of the salt water of Pillo while taking a pleasant break. (20 km far from Borgo Filicardo).

VILLA MEDICEA DI ARTIMINO: it is also called LA FERDINANDA or VILLA OF THE HUNDRED CHIMNEYS, lies on a clearing opposite thesmall medieval villageof Artimino, part of the locality of Carmignano (Prato). The villa was built at the request of the Archduke Ferdinando 1 of the Medici. The story goes that during one of his frequent hunting trips on Monte Albano, he stopped on this very clearing, in the company of the alas elderly architect Bernardo Buontalenti, and being struck by the charm of the place, expressed the wish to build a villa for himself and his court in that very place.

The villa was built in just four years, from 1596 to 1600 and it is a masterpiece of the maturity of the famous architect; it represents the stylistic peak of the other Medici villas and it marks the end of the season, completing the regional system of the Medici estates. The unmistakable shape, crowned by numerous chimneys, dominates the surrounding area. Even without the mediation of a real and proper park, the building immerges itself directly into an environment that is part woodland, part agricultural through its great geometrical might.
(22 km far from Borgo Filicardo).

VINCI AND THE INVENTIONS OF LEONARDO: A pretty town that hosts the MUSEO LEONARDIANO, a permanent exhibition that follows the history of the artist-engineer through his machines and the digital reconstruction of his designs.

At a short distance from Vinci, in the locality of Anchiano, you may find the birthplace home of Leonardo. This house dating from the XV century is home to a museum dedicated to the artistic evolution of Leonardo through a virtual journey which offers you the possibility of gaining in the depth knowledge of every detail of his works and affords us a surprising meeting with the Genius. (27 km far from Borgo Filicardo).

VILLA MEDICEA DI POGGIO A CAIANO: This villa,also called VILLA AMBRA, was commissioned by Lorenzo the Magnificent and built following a design by Giuliano da Sangallo on the slopes of Monte Albano, in a beautiful position, inside a vast agricultural property, situated between Florence, Prato and Pistoia. Declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 2013,built high on one portico, and open on every side onto the garden and surrounding countryside, the villa mirrors the humanistic tendencies of an architecture that takes its inspiration from the past.

The construction, which began around 1485, was interrupted by the death of Lorenzo in 1492. The construction began again at the request of Pope Leone X, Lorenzo’s son, and was finished in the second half of the fifteenth century. The drawingroom, called after Leone X, is splendidly decorated with allegorical wall paintings, celebrating the Medici family, carried out by Andrea Del Sarto, Pontormo, Franciabigio, Alessandro Allori. Since June 2007, on the second floor of the villa, there is the Museum of Still Life, where about 200 paintings from the Medici collection are on display. (28 km far from Borgo Filicardo).

STRADA DEL CUOIO : The tanning district of Santa Croce sull’Arno, also known as the leather district, is an industrial leather working district of Tuscany which comprises the localities of Bientina, Castelfranco di Sotto, Montopoli in Val d’Arno and Santa Maria a Monte in the province of Pisa, and Fucecchio in the province of Florence.

In this area there are numerous businesses specialized in the working of leather and there are many outlets where you can find excellent products (shoes,bags and accessories) of high quality. (30 km far from Borgo Filicardo).