Our guides will meet you at Pisa International airport and will transfer you to your hotel in Lucca.  After a refreshing lunch, we’ll get fitted on our bikes and head off for a warm-up ride to get comfortable for the week ahead. From the centre of Lucca, in a few minutes we will reach some of the most beautiful hills around Lucca, surrounded by age-old olive groves and vineyards. We’ll stop in one of the best-known local enotecas and with glass in hand, we’ll toast to the week ahead. Back to the hotel we’ll get ready for a five-star dinner at one of the finest restaurants in town.

Meals: Dinner

Cycling: distance 35 km, elevation 400 meters

Pick-up location: Pisa International Airport

Our adventure along the ‘Road to Valour’ is about to begin! We’ll set off on peaceful roads through miles of vineyards and olive groves to our first destination, San Miniato. The first part of our route is pretty flat before we take on some gentle slopes that will take us to San Miniato, a medieval town halfway between Pisa and Florence, where we will admire the beautiful cathedral and the Matilde Tower famous for its asymmetrical clock. We’ll stop for lunch at the best winery in the area and we’ll savour flavoursome wines and taste the delicious white truffles that have made this town famous all over Italy. Then off to our hotel where we’ll have some time on our own. After an aperitivo we’ll be ready for a delicious dinner.

Meals: Dinner

Cycling: distance 70 km, elevation 600 meters

After relishing a relaxing Italian breakfast, we’ll start our ride pedalling along beautiful tranquil roads alongside olive groves and vineyards. We’ll stop at Ponte a Ema, where we’ll visit the Gino Bartali Cycling Museum, a real must-see for cycling enthusiasts. Back on our bikes, we’ll work our way across the rolling breath-taking countryside to the best enoteca in the area where we’ll relish a delicious lunch. Back on our bikes, we’ll meet a series of gradual slopes as we approach our destination Grassina, an ancient tiny village that still maintains its feeling of remote authenticity. After a gourmet dinner at one of our favourite restaurants, we’ll stroll through century-old streets and squares which will bring us back to a time long gone.

Meals: Dinner

Cycling: distance 61 km, elevation 950 meters

In the morning we’ll start our ride pedalling some of the quieter alternative roads across beautiful countryside, before ascending a gentle climb 4 km long. Then we’ll ride downhill passing through lovely little villages. Along the way we’ll stop for lunch in an elegant country retreat to savour some local delicacies. We’ll continue cycling through pastures and stunning green farmland to Arezzo, which was once an important Etruscan town. We’ll head to our hotel for a rejuvenating massage and spend the afternoon relaxing or sightseeing before we’ll reconvene for dinner alongside locals at the most renowned restaurant in Piazza Grande, the most beautiful square in town surrounded by marvellous old buildings.

Meals: Dinner

Cycling: distance 80 km, elevation 1.150 meters

A gourmet breakfast prepares us for a challenging ride that will lead us along stunning roads featuring legendary climbs that have defined the history of the Giro d’Italia. We’ll surmount the high mountain pass of the Scopetone, climb along its soaring peaks then we’ll zoom downhill to enchanting hamlets surrounded by meadows of wildflowers crossing the border between Tuscany and Umbria. Along our route we’ll pass through Città di Castello to soak up some art and history. We’ll stop for a wine and sample some of the local delicacies. Back on our bikes we’ll pedal to Umbertide, famous for its stunning fortress. Once at our hotel we’ll visit the Terontola train station where Gino Bartali secretly exchanged documents in order to help the Jews. This evening we’ll savour a gourmet dinner in the centre of Cortona.

Meals: Dinner

Cycling: distance 60 km, elevation 900 meters

Following a relaxed Italian breakfast, we’ll hit the road to explore this enchanting area in Umbria, also known as the green heart of Italy.  We’ll ride across stunning rolling countryside and stop for lunch at the most prestigious winery in the area. We’ll continue our ride through some of the tiniest lovely villages that punctuate a unique landscape. The last 20 kms of our ride will take us to our final destination, the medieval town of Assisi, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000. Here we’ll marvel at its medieval masterpieces like the Basilica of San Francesco with its stunning frescoes by Giotto. Our friend, the Mayor of Assisi, will come and show us the tunnels underneath the basilica where the Jews used to hide. Then, after having soaked up all this art and history, we’ll celebrate the end of this week together with an unforgettable dinner.

Meals: Dinner

Cycling: distance 50 km, elevation 400 meters

Our final breakfast is followed by goodbyes with our guides before they see you off to your next destination.

Meals: Breakfast

Drop-off: Perugia Airport/Train Station or Pisa International Airport/Train Station