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The Parco Naturale delle Maremma, with its range of hills descending towards the sea to reach the sandy beaches and cliffs, was established in 1975 and spreads from the mouth of the Ombrone river till it reaches Talamone, along 25 km of the breathtaking Tuscan coastline surrounded by marshland, pinewood forests, tilled land and pastures. The pines come right down on the beach, and in places into the sea itself, their smooth, bleached trunks creating the impression of a tropical island.
The park, also known as the Parco dell'Uccellina, was established thanks to the Opera Nazionale Combattenti in 1918. Istrian refugees were the original inhabitants as land was confiscated by the State. These settlers were able to cultivate the lands and retain the untouched, natural identity of the area. Even today, free-ranging horses and oxen populate the prairies and the beautiful beaches are a haven for wildlife and people alike
The uncontaminated nature of the beaches at Marina di Alberese and the vast Tuscan countryside are the main draw to the area. The special history of the town and area also set the place apart.
History Alberese is first documented in the XIth century. When the Benedictine Abbey of Santa Maria Alborense was founded, first called the San Rabano, the town grew around it. A crisis of the monastic order led to the Abbey falling into disrepair and its long history closes with the passage of the Knights of Malta.
In 1470, Beuccio Capacci who was prior of the order, built a fortified building which remains today. Called the “Villa Fattoria Granducale”, it overlooks the town. At the end of the 1500's, rule of the town was placed under the Medici family. The arrival of the Corsini in 1740 marked a decline in the town over a period of 100 years. In 1839, Leopoldo II of Lorraine purchased the estate and began to re-develop the lands. Most of the area had turned to marshland and much work was undergone to improve the equipment and introduce new methods of cultivation to the area.
The First World War broke out and the holdings of the Lorraine were confiscated and passed to the State. Finally, in 1926, Alberese was ceded to the Opera Nazionale Combattenti (the Military Veterans' association) which, during the fascist period, finished the reclamation work. The town was revived and dividing into lots and building farms which were then assigned to families of share-croppers, the most of whom came from the Veneto region. In 1977, this association was abolished and the lands were purchased by the Region of Tuscany, which, still today, administers them.
Once known as the Monastery of Santa Maria ad Alberese, the Abbey of San Rabano stands in the Maremma Natural Park. The Monastery of San Rabano is one of the most interesting medieval monuments in Maremma. A Benedictine Abbey originally named Santa Maria Alborese, this order ruled the surrounding area for over five centuries. Eventually, the Benedictine Order passed it on to the Malta Knights. In 1926 it was assigned to the Opera Nazionale Combattenti, an organization which recovered the lands from the marshes, and today it is state property.
Walking and trekking in Tuscany | From Alberese to San Rabano and from Alberese to San Rabano |
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Tuscany is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Known for its enchanting landscapes, its fantastic and genuine food and beautiful towns as Florence, Pisa, Lucca and Siena.
Podere Santa Pia is an enchanting Tuscan farmhouse, nestled in the vineyards and olive groves of the rolling Maremma hills. This privileged location offers a spectacular vista over the charming medieval town of Cinigiano and the entire Ombrone Valley. It is the perfect place for your relaxing holiday with your friends and family. The property consists of 4 large bedrooms furnished in a classic Tuscan style and 2 bathroom with shower, a big full-equipment kitchen with a fireplace and a big living room and dining room. With its original kitchen and the wood burning pizza oven, Podere Santa Pia offers an upbeat atmosphere. The farmhouse has been renovated and provided with all modern comforts (satellite TV, Wi-Fi Internet access, washing machine, dishwasher, and so on), with an eye to preserve the typical and charming elements of these rural lodgings. There you have, then, cosy and warm rooms with traditional terracotta-tiled floors, stone walls and wood-beamed ceilings. And the kitchen, furnished for pleasant meals with traditional Tuscan dishes (bread soup or "ribollita", tomato soup, "fettunta", Florentine-style steak, stewed wild boar, cinta senese cured meat, and other Tuscan specialities).
The impressive garden (9000 square mt.) allows you to enjoy a relaxing holiday and is perfect for taking time out and lounging about while sipping on a glass of local wines, Montecucco DOC and Brunello DOC.
Sitting in the garden, one can enjoy our dawns and dusks, with their jubilee of colours ranging from dark yellow to pink, orange and red. In this scenario, it is often possible to observe the flight of pheasants, falcons and buzzards, great tits, chaffinches and sparrows.
This is an enchanting place far from noise, ideal to regenerate body and mind, where one has the opportunity enjoy pleasant walks or rides on mountain bike. The summer breeze that caresses Podere Santa Pia guarantees "cool" holidays even in the hottest weather.
Tuscan farmhouses | Podere Santa Pia |
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Vulci, Castello della Badia |
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Talamone, La rocca senese (sec. XVI)
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Abbey of Sant' Antimo
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Talamone |
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The Maremma
Vieuw from Podere Santa Pia up to the coast and Isola Grigio
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Principina a Mare
The Ombrone River located along the coast of Maremma Grossetana, where it flows into the Tyrrhenian Sea in Principina a Mare.
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The Maremma is outstanding for its many protected natural areas that offer the chance to appreciate its wide variety of animals, insects and birds, trees, shrubs and flowers and to enjoy its special light and scenic beauty.The Nature Reserves aren't separate from the rest of the territory, but are symbolic of an integral whole. The Maremma affirms a way of life in harmony with nature and the rhythm of the seasons.
The Parco Naturale della Maremma encompasses the Monti dell'Uccellina, running parallel to the coastline from Principina a Mare to Talamone and was one of the first protected areas instituted in Italy.
Today the Province of Grosseto can boast of 13 Nature Reserves, an additional 8 which include Reserves for Repopulation, Biogenetics, Protection and Comprehensive Protection, plus the various oasis of the WWF. In all, there are almost 40,000 hectares of nature reserves stretching from north to south. They provide a complex and detailed vision of the wealth of the Maremma's natural heritage in all of its diversity from coast to inland, wet zones and mountain crests.
The numerous routes indicated within the parks enable the visitor to perceive the vastness of the preservation project and the botanical, zoological and geological wealth, differentiation, and beauty offered.
Maremma's natural heritage | www.parco-maremma.it
The most beautiful regions in Tuscany | Parco Naturale della Maremma
Tuscany | The Tuscan Archipelago
Talamone, a picturesque and solitary fishing village,stands on a little promontory, dominated by an ancient Sienese fortress, to the extreme south of the Monti dell'Uccellina. In antiquity Talamone was an Etruscan port.
At the top of the rocky hill you can see a wonderful view, following the coast line of Osa, you see right up until the promontory of Argentario (about 30 minutes by car) with its jagged coast, its coves with crystal clear sea.
A zone that will leave a lasting charm and certainly unforgettable, also appart from it being interesting, this a very popular destination for skin diving as in the depths of the sea there are beauliful sealife views (for more information: The Argentario Coast Diving Centre).
Near to Talamone is the spa of Osa. Here, a spring of suphureous water with a temperature of 32°C is exploited for the therapeutic purposes. The virtues of the waters of Osa have been renowned since time beyond recall. They were in use in Roman times and remains of buildings equipped for thermal cures have been excaved in the zone known as Bagno dell'Osa as well as in the Le Tombe district.
According to a legend handed down from classical literature the eponym of this town was Telamone, the son of Eaco, who landed here with the Argonauts by coming back from Colchide. The Grecian hero died here and was buried under the promontory.
An important archaeological discovery made on the Talamonaccio hill concerns some fragments of Etruscan sculpture, which dates back roughly to 150 b. C. and in which is represented the final act of the Edipo’s curse during the war of Seven years against Thebes. This subject represented for the Etruscans the end of their history.
The local beach of Talamone has become a very popular area to practice the sport of Kitesurfing. Among the monuments of interest is the fortress which stands out from the promontory, overlooking the entire village, the Chiesa della Madonna delle Grazie and the Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta?
The name of Alberese first appears in the XIth century, when the Benedictine Abbey of Santa Maria Alborense was founded, subsequently called San Rabano and destined to dominate the history of the entire area for the fifty years which followed. With the crisis of the monastic order, the Abbey fell into decline, and its long history closes with the passage of the Knights of Malta. In 1470, Beuccio Capacci, prior of the order, had a fortified building constructed which today is the Villa Fattoria Granducale which overlooks the town.
At the end of the 1500's, rule passed to the Medici family, up until the coming of the Corsini, in 1740, who, in 100 years, reduced the town to quite desperate conditions. It was then that, in 1839, Leopoldo II of Lorraine decided to purchase the Alberese estate and to undertake the work of reclaiming and developing the lands which had now become marshland, of improving the equipment and introducing new methods of cultivation. This, until the First World War broke out and following which, the holdings of the Lorraine, administered by the duke Pietro Lante della Rovere, were confiscated and passed to the State. Finally, in 1926, Alberese was ceded to the Opera Nazionale Combattenti (the Military Veterans association) which, during the fascist period, finished the reclamation work, dividing the land into lots and building farms which were then assigned to families of share-croppers, the most of whom came from the Veneto region. In 1977, this association was abolished and the lands were purchased by the Region of Tuscany, which, still today, administers them.
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