Molise & Abruzzo 10-Day Tour

Free Airport pick up (Rome , Bari or Naples).

Drive from the aiport towards Molise and onwards to Montenero di Bisaccia. There you will be dropped at your accommodations, Agriturismo Il Quadrifoglio surrounded by the beautiful vineyards of Cantina Terresacre. Once you’re settled there will be a briefing on your tour followed by a Welcome Dinner.

Different option for accommodations will be provided if the Agriturismo Il Quadrifoglio is not avaliable.

Morning

We’ll leave for Agnone, the center for important archaeological vestiges of the old Oscan-Samnite civilization. Agnone is sometimes called “the Athens of the Sannio” due to the large number of ancient ruins of the Samnitic culture.

Agnone also lays claim to the most important ancient Molise document: the so-called “Oscan Tablet” (“Tabula Osca”), a bronze inscription written in the Oscan alphabet that dates from the 3rd century BC and now kept in the British Museum.
We will vist the Marinelli Bell Foundry. The Pontificia Fonderia Marinelli is an ancient faundry for bells which has been operating in Agnone for nearly a millennium. It ranks as one of the oldest companies in the world, where the Marinelli family has run the foundry for the last 1000 years.

After the foundry we’ll visit the The “Francesco Gerbasi” Museum of Copper, one of the last places where you can learn about the ancient art of copper making.

The final visit of the day will be the Di Nucci Cheese Makers renown for their aged Caciocavallo di Agnone. The visit will include the chance to taste some of these beautful cheeses for yourself.

Lunch :La Panonda where you be treated to some of the best cuisine the local area has to offer.

Afternoon

After a drive back the days there will be some free time to relax.

Dinner & gelato.

Morning

In the morning we’ll drive to Pietrabbondante, a city whose’s earliest known inhabitants were the Samnites that became part of the Roman colony located in Sannio, as documented by Pliny the Elder. The Romans called the town “Bovianum Vetus”. Although little is known about its beginnings. It became a center of vital importance – when the Romans conquered the Samnites, Pietrabbondante became a place of reference for checking the Alto Molise.

In Upper Molise, amidst cyclopean boulders of stone (the ‘Morge’), at the foot of Mount Caraceno lies Pietrabbondante, a village that has been able to preserve the traces of its most ancient history, giving life to a true place of the soul, with an original narrative and a cultural heritage of immense value. In Pietrabbondante, in fact, there are still the remains of the Samnite fortifications on Mount Caraceno and, immediately downstream, a vast archaeological area rich in artifacts, buildings and remains. In this place, the Samnites built a cultural complex consisting of an amphitheatre (the only one of its kind in Italy), a temple and two buildings on either side of it. 

A guide will take us around this amazing town rich in history. We will get a guided tour of  the Archaeological Site . The archaeological area is located within the UNESCO MAB Reserve Collemeluccio-Montedimezzo, characterized by an important faunal biodiversity and a peculiar silvopastoral system.

Lunch will be at Taverna dei Sanniti who offer traditional cuisine from locally sourced producers.

Afternoon

Cooking Class & Wine Tasting with Scott Braden of Vine & Soul

Morning

After breakfast we are off to Termoli to buy the fish that will be use for our cooking class.

Afternoon

We will take a short drive to Larino, a city of approximately 8,100 inhabitants. The city of Larino has been continuously inhabited for millennia. Originally settled by the Samnite and Frentani tribes of Southern Italy, the city came under the control of the Oscan civilization. In 217 BC, the Romans defeated Hannibal here, and it was later incorporated into the Roman Empire.

We will visit the Roman Amphitheater with a dedicated guide. The elliptical amphitheater was built in the 1st century AD by a prominent citizen of Larino who had made his fortune in far away Rome. The arena could comfortably seat 12,000 spectators.

After we’ll head over to Palazzo Zappone which was probably originally built as a Norman castle.

Visit the Civic Museum and Larino’s Cathedral, which is considered to be one of the finest in Italy.

Dinner.

A short ferry ride from Termoli are the Islands of Tremiti known for its beautiful clear aquamarine / turquoise  waters.

The day will be spent relaxing & sunbathing on Tremiti Island.  For those who wish there is the opportunity to visit by boat the caves surrounding the islands  and go for a swim at no extra charge. 

Lunch.

We will also visit the Island of San Nicola.

After a day of sun and sea we’ll catch the ferry back to Termoli.

Morning

After breakfast we will drive to Chieti  & to your accommodations  where we will stay for the remainder of the trip.  ( La Casa di Achille / B&B La Casita / B&B Torre dei Monaci).

Afternoon

After lunch we will stroll the old streets of  Chieti . According to mythological legends, the city was founded in 1181 B.C. by the Homeric Greek hero Achilles and was named in honour of his mother, Thetis.

Chieti lies on a crest to the left of the Pescara river, with its unmistakable profile with the high belltower of San Giustino against the sky, a few km away from the Adriatic Sea, with the Majella and Gran Sasso in the background. It was a Roman town called Teate, and an important medieval centre, with Roman and medieval ruins side by side today.

To get a glimps of Chieti’s ancient soul we will take a stroll into the intricate alleyways of the historical center. 

Dinner.