Agriturismo Montagna Verde

The agriturismo is located in Apella di Licciana Nardi (province of Massa), surrounded by the centuries-old chestnut trees of the Appennino Tosco-Emiliano National Park. The rooms are in an historic watchtower built in 1000 and renovated in 1995 by Mario Maffei. The project continued with the redevelopment of the village of Apella, which now houses a hotel comprising carefully restored characteristic medieval stone houses, using reclaimed local materials.

The attentive, painstaking renovation project led to the creation of colourful rooms (bedrooms, apartments, tasting room, honey workshop, restaurant) that combine the relaxed and characteristic atmosphere of historic buildings with the functionality and comfort of modern accommodation, to ensure guests experience all-round well-being.

The tasting room and restaurant, with its zero-km menu, are the ideal place to enjoy delicious, traditional Lunigiana cuisine (pasta cooked in chestnut leaves accompanied by locally produced ricotta, pecorino with home-produced Lunigiana honey, crostini baked in the wood oven with porcini mushrooms or with delicious lardo di Colonnata, herb, leek and potato quiches, focaccia with onions, homemade pasta, delicious game, lamb cooked on hearth tiles, fillet of beef, Cinta Senese pork, cakes, blueberry mousse and many other tasty traditional dishes), accompanied by wines from growers in the local area and the rest of Tuscany.

In the summer, guests can enjoy the pool-terrace (25 x 5 meters) with a view of the Apuan Alps, completely surrounded by the green landscape of the surrounding mountains. In autumn, the myriad of colours creates an impressive and memorable backdrop, and visitors can witness the metato in operation (every October this special wood oven is lit for the traditional drying of chestnuts), and breathes in the aroma of roasted chestnuts spreading through the village. The biopark and educational farm are perfect for those interested in finding out about the biodiversity of the area and to getting to know the farm’s animals, such as donkeys, sheep and cows, as well as the organic gardens where herbs for medicinal and culinary purposes are produced.

The agriturismo is part of a trail of great historical and cultural interest lying on the ancient route of the Via del sale (or Strata Lizanae), that linked the Via Francigena to the Appenines. In the past, it was a busy road for pilgrims and merchants, who stopped to eat and sleep in the homes of Apella and its tower. This explains the wealth of the town, which today is home to the Casa Museo dei Nardi, the house that was the birthplace, in the nineteenth century, of Biagio and Anacarsi Nardi (Risorgimento patriots who played a leading role in the uprisings in Modena. Anacarsi also took part in the Bandiera brothers’ expedition, in which he was killed). The house has been restored by the Parco dell’Appennino to become a Visitors’ Centre, now run by the agriturismo.

The agriturismo is also the Park’s Visitors’ Centre, as well as an educational farm  - with guided trails among organic vegetable gardens, the garden of forgotten fruits, medicinal as well as aromatic and culinary herbs, and the farm’s animals. The Park in which the farm is situated is a real natural oasis, and is also home to wild animals such as boar, deer, roe deer and many species of birds. Nature lovers can go on excursions (with or without guides) along the trails in the Park, as far as the pure waters of the River Taponecco, ride along mountain bike trails or have a lovely walk looking for porcini mushrooms or wild berries.

Lunigiana, from the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines to the sea, is a land waiting to be discovered, and the ideal place for a quality holiday in harmony with nature. Along the Via Francigena, for centuries, pilgrims, merchants and armies have left their marks in forts and castles, Romanesque churches, medieval towns and stately homes. Come on an exciting journey through history and hospitality. Summer and winter sports facilities (Prato Spilla, for example, is less than 15 km away), spa baths (Equi Terme with its caves is about a 40-minute drive by car), hiking and caving, alongside folklore and local traditions are the ingredients that give something extra to the tourist attractions of this strip of land between the mountains and the sea, between Cinque Terre in Liguria and Tuscany’s cities of art, immersed in an unspoilt natural landscape. Among the most interesting sites in terms of culture, history and food and wine, it is worth remembering Licciana Nardi, Bagnone, Filetto, Malgrate, which are as striking for their castles and walled towns as well as for their characteristic shops selling local crafts and food. Then there is Filattiera with its church, the Pieve di Sorano, and Pontremoli with its beautiful Castello di Piagnaro, which houses statue-steles, prehistoric statue-menhirs, the symbol of Lunigiana and evidence of the presence of the Ligurian Apuani. Nor should we forget Terrarossa, Aulla, and Fosdinovo with its Castello Malaspina. A few kilometres away, you can visit the Golfo dei Poeti, with Lerici and Portovenere and the famous Cinque Terre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Finally, thanks to its strategic location, visitors can easily reach Forte dei Marmi, Viareggio and Versilia as well as Florence, Genoa and Pisa.