La Verna, Tuscany

Overview

Discover La Verna: Private Tours, Experiences & Custom Travel

Most visitors to Tuscany never find their way to La Verna, and that is exactly its gift. Set on the slopes of Monte Penna in the Casentino, east of Florence, this Franciscan sanctuary sits more than a thousand meters up, wrapped in the quiet of the Foreste Casentinesi National Park. The road climbs through chestnut and beech until the stone walls appear above the trees, perched on a cliff that seems to hang in the air.

In 1213, Count Orlando of Chiusi gave this mountain to Saint Francis as a place of retreat. Eleven years later, during a period of fasting and prayer, Francis received the stigmata here, and La Verna became one of the holiest places in the Christian world. Dante would later describe it as the harsh rock between the Tiber and the Arno.

Walk the covered corridor to the Chapel of the Stigmata, step down into the rock crevices where Francis slept, and stand beneath the Sasso Spicco, a massive overhanging boulder that has hung in place for centuries. Inside the basilica, the glazed terracottas by Andrea della Robbia glow in soft blue and white, among the finest he ever made. Every afternoon, the friars process to the chapel in a tradition that has continued for nearly six hundred years.

Come early, before the day visitors arrive, and walk the forest paths where the only sounds are birdsong and the bells. Pair La Verna with the medieval villages of the Casentino, the monastery of Camaldoli nearby, or a slow lunch of tortelli di patate, the local dish of the valley. It is a day for the soul as much as for the eyes.

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La Verna in pictures

Gallery

A few frames from our own trips. The rest are in the gallery below.

Carved stone reliefs at the Chiesa degli Angeli, La Verna

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Map

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Private & Small Group Tours in La Verna

Days out with people who know the way

Private Assisi and La Verna Day Trip

Assisi is one of Italyâ€™s most important religious centres and a pilgrimage site for many Franciscans. This is the town that St. Francis made so famous and his legacy lives on and is felt all over Italy today.

Private

8 hours

Photo Gallery

Castiglion Fiorentino

Viareggio

Volterra

Arezzo

Bagno Vignoni

Barga

Carrara

Castiglion Fiorentino

Chianciano Terme

Chianti

Cortona

Elba Island

Fiesole

Florence

La Verna

Livorno

Lucca

Maremma

Montalcino

Montecatini

Montepulciano

Monteriggioni

Monticchiello

Pienza

Pietrasanta

Pisa

Porto Santo Stefano

San Gimignano

San Miniato

Saturnia

Siena

Terme di San Filippo

Val D'Orcia

Viareggio

3 Beds 3 Baths 6

Air Conditioning +11 more

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Popular Transfer Routes in La Verna

The rides our guests ask for most, with a driver who knows the way.

Italy Vacation Specialists provides licensed private transfer services throughout Italy, including La Verna and surrounding areas. With over 20 years of experience, our professional English-speaking drivers offer both Business Class and Luxury Class vehicles for airport transfers, city-to-city rides, and full-day chauffeur services. All vehicles are fully insured, well-maintained, and operated by vetted local drivers who know the roads, traffic patterns, and best routes across the region.

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In their words

Stories That Stay With You

Here's what our guests share about their unforgettable journeys

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