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Info for the Garfagnana

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Information for Garfagnana

This page is a small bit of information for your stay in Garfagnana and at Agriturismo Braccicorti. To aid in planning your days and evenings while in the area. If you have any comments to make, please leave info on the comments page :

Where to Eat in Garfagnana

"For sure >Braccicorti : Mamma's cooking is to die for!"

Il Pozzo - Pieve Fosciana 

A local restaurant, which provided a great range of the local foods of the valley. The food is excellent as is the service. The food is all local Garfagnana recipies, all part of the Slow Food Scheme. to preserve the old ways of preparing food and serving food to maintain flavours. A good place to go all year round, with outside seating for warm summer nights. Highly Recommended

Il Triti  - Castelnuovo di Garfagnana

Located in Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, this is a good restaurant to combine with ones trip to the town here. The restaurant has a good varied menu, much along the same lines as Il Pozzo. The staff are friendly here and service is good. A more modern restaurant.... good and recommended

La Vecchia Lanterna - Castelnuovo di Garfagnana

A good place to go to all year round again, with outside seating for the summer. The menu, unlike others is mostly seafood based which makes a good change from the others of a strong lean to the meat. Here is fish is good and good sized portions are served. The seafood antipasto can keep most going on one course alone. There is the usual fritto misto which is good, langoustines, prawns etc, not too many locally caught fish on the menu though. However a good options and Recommended

 Il Castello – Castiglione di Garfagnana

Good for the summer and eating outside, reasonable food here, with a good selection of the various local dishes. Only good to eat outside as indoors is very stark!!!. Follow directions to Collemandina, pass this town and carry on  till road junction to Castiglione and other main directions to the right. Follow rd down for about 150m and restaurant is up on the left hand side of the road.

Il Casone- Casone

A bit more off the beaten track, as here one is up at 1300m in the Apennines. A welcoming place, and an old stopping point on the main crossing of the Apennines here. The hotel is big and from the outside, nothing amazing. But the food again is of a high standard and highly recommended. The menu is varied and full of local specialities and staples. Nice to go in the winter time and sit by the log fire and relax there. Plus order a hot chocolate that is so thick the spoon stands up straight in the cup !!

Buca dei Gracchi - Campocatino

For a relaxing day of a short walk in the Alpi Apuane, or a sleep on the hill side one must go to Campocatino for great views and a memorable location. Here combining a visit to the Hermitage of San Viviano and then lunch at the Buca. Here the restaurant is partly burried, and as you enter you are welcomed by Sylvia to a delightful place. The menu one again is local, and provided to your requirements. The antipasto is good as are the local home made pastas here. In season the fried Porcini Mushrooms are great ! Recommended to go , but can be expensive.

Villa della Rose  - Villa Collemandina :

 In the central square of the town, a small bar and restaurant here with very good quality food, a bit more expensive here but quality is very high and very good. Have a good menu, with strange additions …ie kangaroo !!! Good

Vecchio Mulino - Castelnuovo

A delightful place in Castelnuovo. A small Osteria, run by Andrea. As you walk in the shelves are stocked with local wines and meats and local produce, plus a 2 metre long Mortadella !! Here one eats mostly cold foods. You can sample local foods, meats, cheeses, and cakes and savoury tarts. It is a very special experience. One can combine a wine tasting here or Oil Tasting. Andrea, like Il Pozzo is part of the Italian Slow food scheme. Recommended

Places to Go to in Garfagnana :

The Grotta del Vento : The Wind Caves

A system of caves in the Alpi Apuane mountain that when the weather is right with the right pressure differences gets a wind blowing through the caves,  this is the name, the Wind caves., can do  a 1,2 or 3 hour tour here with English guide.  1 hour is about € 5 and you see the main formations, the 2 hour you go into a river lower down  in the system.

 Eremo di Callomini :

on the same road as the wind caves, an old hermitage and monastery good to look at and see the chapel there, also a bar and a place to eat here too.

Barga :

look at the old town here, know for its richness and amazing winding streets of the old town, it is good to see it. Great Views from the Cathedral at the top of the old town.

Campocatino :

A great old shepherds village in the Alpi Apuane, one of the quaintest places too see, good place for lunch here too and for drinks at the bar. But it is a great place up in the mountains, good walking to be done from here, bird watching ot just relax and gaze at the views. A must see in the Garfagnana

Vagli and the lake at Vagli :

A perfect old town nestled on the shores of this magical lake, good to see, and the lake itself is very impressive, great with the reflections of the mountains in the waters.

Pania del Corfino & Orecchiella Natural Park

One of the best places to see wildlife in this area and a great place for relatively easy walking. Here there is a visitors centre where you can gather more information and or enter the centre for a look at the gardens and some animals around the area that  they  have here, such  as bears, deer and boars etc. The walking is good and a good day out is too walk up to the top of the Pania del Corfino with  the best views down into  the Valley of the Garfagnana.

Verrucole Fortress

A very scenic location for a fortress, on the top of a small hill in the middle of the valley, great views from here of the mountains and one can sit and relax here and then have a drink at the bar below. No charge to enter, reasonable parts remain but they are still trying to put more back together.

Rd past gold to junction. Right through Villetta / Sillicagnana /  at San Romano pass through & rd up to Right with sign for Fortezza di Verrucole.

Others Places out of Garfagnana:

There are the cities to explore, such as Lucca and Pisa and Florence, all reasonably close to get too, once out of the valley they are all pretty close to get too. Even San Gimignano and Siena by direct routes can  be reached in under 3 hours. Lucca is very much under-estimated and is a good day out. Pisa, you can  now go up the Tower again which makes it all worthwhile, good market there on Saturday am.

Cinque Terre:

 A world heritage site, near La Spezia, a great coast line with 5 picturesque villages dotted along the coast, one can walk them &/or use trains and boats to get around from village to village.  Also places such as Portovenere Are good to see and worth the detour to have a look. Portovenere is on a peninsula and has great views and an excellent location.  

The Coast of Massa and Forte dei Marmi,:

 here there are miles and miles and beach  if you can  find a space, with the back drop  of the mountains behind. Good swimming here and warm water too. Good open beaches to be found just outside Viareggio in the direction of Pisa, to the left of the Port of Viareggio. Good drive to the coast from Castelnuovo di  Garfagnana via the Alpi Apuane mountains and small villages, in 45 min you are on the coast.

The Marble Quarries of Carrarra:

Great to look around and see how all the marble is cut and manufactured. Places to but souvenirs here too if you need to !!! Road from Castelnuovo to Coast at  Massa. Then signs to Carrara and Collonata. There are marble museums and old quarry’s you can look at, it is good to see and very imposing.

Other Information :

Shops in General:

Castelnuovo has the main supermarkets and  stores there.  Here there are supermarkets and the old town, with visitors centre and information in the old town. In the industrial area there is Conad a bigger supermarket & sports area such  as the open air pool and tennis club. Thursday morning is market day in Castelnuovo. Biggest store is Pianeta / Leclerc, a store of Conad supermarkets, big hyper market in Gallicano, one will pass it on the way to the villa if coming by road from Lucca.

Villetta, our local village has a good bar and pizzeria and some shops here for local produce and food for dinner attached to the side of the bars, fresh bread and meats, you can get it all from here at Il Grotto. This is  the village closest to Braccicorti. There is a butcher and 2 bars, and a small mini market. Both bars sell stamps and cigarettes.

For Big Supermarkets / Hyper Markets, which have a huge range of food, clothes etc etc. There are some further down the valley :

 1) Pianeta / Leclerc : Gallicano, on the road to Lucca near Barga, 20 min, a big food store with other sections of household goods, will pass this when coming from Lucca, if you want to stock up on way to your villa.

2) Esselunga: Ponte a Moriano: Food and Household Goods Hyper Market, at Turn off for Garfagnana from Lucca

3) Carrefour : Lucca and Pisa, this is the big French store that has a huge shop in Lucca and Pisa for all you shopping goods household items.

Things to look out for :

Lucca is famous for its Olive Oil Production, very good selection here of oils

Wine area  is that of the Colline Lucchese & Montecarlo, good local wines from just out of Lucca, there is a wine route that is signposted if you are travelling by car and wish to explore it.

Markets:

Wednesday am in Lucca, inside the walls of the old town, a selction of food and other goods.

Saturday am Pisa just out from the town on the road as it starts for Lucca.

Thursday AM is Castelnuovo Market. Castelnuovo has good local produce and cheeses such as Pecorino and other delights.

Florence, is good for leather products, jackets etc and hand made paper goods, good market here that is always running.

Things to Buy ( possibily !! ):

1)       Wine – Local wines are good from the Lucca and Pisa Hills then you have a hude selection of the southern Tuscan wines from Chianti, Montalcino and Montepulciano regions.

2)       Alcoholic Beverages – Limoncino, a lemon drink chilled as a sweet liqueur. Amaretto, a sweet almond liqueur. Grappa, available locally!!! Along with Mamma’s Blueberry Liqueur !!!

3)       Olive Oils – Lucca is famous for this so there is no problem there !!

4)       Balsamic Vinegar – from just over the mountains in Modena

5)       Local Produce is Garfagnana – Honeys which are great, various blends are available. Farro which is a spelt or buck wheat still produced in Garfagnana, great for salads and soups etc. Sun dried tomatoes. Chestnuts of some sort – flour / jam / pureč / whole ! This is a great local tradtion. Most of all another delicacy is the Mushroom – primarily the Porcini. Can be brought dried or fresh in season. Great for food and risotto etc.  Know stock cubes are good too, they make a porcini version !

Other Helpful things :

Post Boxes : Red boxes on walls in most places.

Stamps : can be bought at post office or any place called a Tabacci, with a black or blue sign outside with a white T in it, sell cigarettes etc and stamps, Enlgand is Inghilterra , stamp is francoboli.

Maps of the area can be bought here . 1:25000 or 1:50000 are available. Found in local shops or at Lodge.

Time difference : one hour ahead of UK, code for Uk from Italy is 0044 then number without 1st 0

Water. Is fresh in nearly all places in Garfagnana unless labelled. At lodges it is as fresh as it can be !!

Telephone calls: Best to buy a phone card from Tabacci for use in phone boxes. Mobile phone reception is pretty good all over the valley and mountain areas.

 

 

 

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Pontecosi - Pieve Fosciana - 55036
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