Do you know Maremma? It is a large region of Tuscany too often ignored. It is nevertheless a very diverse territory, with many attractive assets: the low part of Maremma offers long crystalline beaches and also wonderful promontories where the Etruscans settled .

The high part of Maremma (Alta Maremma) offers marvelous landscapes, superb forests, and many typical villages and hamlets. A very rich fauna and flora attract nature lovers and numerous natural parks and reserves covering nearly 40,000 hectares have been created wildlife.

 Maremma is the cradle of geothermal energy, and if you hike in the Biancane Park (http://www.turismomonterotondomarittimo.it/biancane.php) , you will be amazed by the fumaroles, steam vapors, emanations of various gasses from the soil . In the 19th century, François de Larderel exploited these vapors to extract boric acid, used at that time as a food preservative and exported all over Europe. In the 20th century the pressure of these vapors was used to produce electricity and even today more than 20% of the electricity used in Tuscany comes from this region. A very interesting museum located in Larderello tells the whole story.

The Maremma is also rich in typical villages, such as Suvereto, Castelnuovo di Val di Cecina, Massa Maritima, and so many more to be discovered! Typical traditional trattorias and osterias are offering delicious food,based on local products: chestnuts, olive oil, game, pecorino cheese...and also delectable wine! (a cheese made with sheep’s milk)

For those looking for an off the beaten track experience, the Maremma is a really great place where to spend holidays!

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