The places of nature and spirit – a path linked to spirituality in unspoilt nature trails

Arrive in Genga in the afternoon. Welcome by our staff. Hotel accommodation. Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast. Visit the “Speleopantological Museum” with its rich collection of fossils, including the famous “Ichthyosaur”, dating back to about 150 million years ago. Stop at the adjacent Abbey of San Vittore alle Chiuse, a jewel of Romanesque art, nestled between the narrow Frasassi Gorge and the banks of the Sentino river. At the exit you can admire the famous Roman bridge on which stands a tower dating back to the thirteenth century. In the afternoon visit to the Frasassi Caves, spectacular underground world characterized by a succession of salt, tunnels and small crystallized lakes, which create a truly unique scenery of extraordinary beauty. The erosion of sulphurous water on the limestone rock has given rise to a huge underground kingdom, rich in stalactites and stalagmites, divided by environments with fairy-tale names: “The Great Wind Cave”, “The Giants”, “The Thirteenth Century Room”, “The Hall of Candles”, “The Hall of Infinity”… Time for the tasting and purchase of food and wine products typical of the area at the square of the ticket office Grotte. Return to the Hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast. Departure to discover the city of Sassoferrato, the ancient “Sentinum”, which recalls the historic “Battle of the Nations” of 295 BC, between the Galli Senoni-Etruscan-Umbrian-Samnites and the Romans. Sassoferrato has one of the most important archaeological sites in the region, with remains of ancient roads and public buildings. The finds can be admired in the Sentinate Archaeological Museum, housed in the Palazzo dei Priori, together with the “Perottiana Hall”, where a precious collection of sacred art has been set up. Visit of the medieval old town, with a lower part, the village, and a high, dominated by the castle and the remains of the fortress of Albornoz. Visit of the Abbey of Santa Croce dei Conti or of Tripozzo di Sassoferrato, with Greek cross plan and beautiful Romanesque-Lombard capitals inside, which houses the polyptych of Giovanni Antonio da Pesaro of the fifteenth century, portraying the “Madonna con il Bambino in Trono, Crocifissione e Santi”. In the afternoon continue to the Abbey of Fonte Avellana, Camaldolese hermitage whose structure dates back to the tenth century and which in the course of history hosted famous people, including San Pier Damiani and Dante Alighieri. Possibility to buy natural spirits and liqueurs produced by Camaldolese monks still according to ancient tradition and for sale at the store in front of the Abbey. Return to the Hotel. Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast. Departure for the Aula Verde of Valleremita to discover this unspoilt place transformed into a true “school” of nature. Going up the paths lined by tall trees you can see an unadorned and severe building: the Hermitage of Santa Maria di Valdisasso. Once inhabited by Benedictine nuns, it was abandoned and donated in the thirteenth century to a community of Franciscans: tradition says that Saint Francis stayed there. The Hermitage kept the famous Polyptych of Gentile da Fabriano, now replaced with a copy. Lunch with packed lunch during an excursion. End of services