Fly and Drive in Abruzzo: a Dream Journey between Sun, History and Flavors

Traveling to Abruzzo!
Leaving is an exciting time for many travellers. It marks the beginning of an adventure. Today you will start to be part of a community, which will give you a’ rewarding travel experience. You will have the opportunity to transform a simple trip into an opportunity for personal growth, cultural enrichment, Globest welcomes you to ROME. After collecting your rental car, you will depart in the direction of Abruzzo to reach your hotel in the Montesilvano area for an overnight stay.

Between medieval villages and unique flavours.
After breakfast at the hotel you can leave for Loreto Aprutino, a medieval village surrounded by olive groves. Here you will visit its characteristic historic center: the Chiola Castle, the colorful churches, a bell tower decorated with glazed terracottas of various colors and over five hundred pieces of Abruzzo majolica produced between the 16th and 19th centuries. Optional excursion In the late morning you can visit an ancient oil mill to smell the intense scent of the oil, you will discover the magic of its production… a journey into the heart of the earth. Free time for lunch. In the afternoon, another possible stop is Atri, an elegant town full of works of art, such as the Cathedral, the Palace of the Dukes…and the Domenico Martella viewpoint which will offer you a magnificent panorama of the gullies surrounding the city and the Gran Sasso massif. Return to the hotel for an overnight stay.

The Trabocchi Coast
After breakfast, you can leave for Lanciano, a splendid medieval city on the Adriatic coast and visit its historic centre, divided into 4 ancient neighborhoods that stand on three hills, a landscape that dominates the entire Adriatic coast. You will be able to travel along the panoramic road that runs along one of the most beautiful stretches of coast in Italy: The Trabocchi coast, an alternation of beaches and splendid cliffs, with buildings called Trabocchi, made of wood, stilts that extend from the beach to the sea and support a large net in which fish are caught: “fishing machines”, as Gabriele D’Annunzio defined them, today mostly restaurants with real fish cuisine. For lunch we recommend you stop in a trebuchet (trabucco visit included) and then continue to Ortona, a splendid town overlooking the sea where we recommend you visit its picturesque historic centre. Return to the hotel for an overnight stay.

Among characteristic villages and ancient monuments
After breakfast, you can leave for Chieti, also known as “the Terrace of Abruzzo” and considered one of the oldest cities in Italy and visit the ancient historic center with its labyrinth of cobbled streets, full of ancient monuments, historic shops, stately buildings, churches and squares. In the afternoon you can continue to the abbey of Santa Maria Arabona, a jewel of Cistercian architecture from the end of the 12th century and the Abbey of San Clemente di Casauria (subject to opening), a Benedictine complex, whose foundation dates back to 871. Route to Sulmona, hotel accommodation for overnight stay.

Live Ancient legends
After breakfast, you can set off in the direction of Aquila, a city with a thousand facets, born, according to legend, from the union of 99 castles in Abruzzo. In the beginning there were 100 castles, but in the end one retreated and so 99 squares with 99 churches and 99 fountains were founded. Visit to the historic center which preserves splendid monuments, even if devastated by the 2009 earthquake.
Free time for lunch. In the afternoon we recommend you stop in Bominaco to visit the Benedictine Abbey of Santa Maria Assunta, a splendid testimony of the Abruzzo Romanesque and the small oratory of San Pellegrino (12th century), entirely decorated with extraordinary frescoes. Return to the hotel for an overnight stay.

Immerse yourself in nature
After breakfast, you can set off to discover the Abruzzo National Park, one of the oldest national parks in Italy. In this oasis of nature and peaks, some very precious animal species and plant species recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Sites have found protection. You can visit Pescocostanzo and its historic center, characterized by ancient noble palaces and beautiful basilicas. Continue in the direction of Pescasseroli, the main city of the Park. You can have lunch along the way. In the afternoon, once you reach the town, we recommend taking a walk in the historic center characterized by narrow streets, stately buildings and artisans’ workshops and perhaps even visiting the Natural Museum which will introduce you to the park through dioramas, models, light panels, thematic exhibitions and projections of nature films. Return to the hotel for an overnight stay.

A dive into timeless beauty a stone’s throw from Rome
After breakfast, you can leave for Sulmona, Ovid’s hometown, famous for the production of sugared almonds. Visit to the historic center: the Cathedral of San Panfilo, the Casa Santa della SS. Annunziata (external), of the Confetti Museum (entrance to date free). After lunch in Sulmona you can leave for Tivoli, a privileged holiday destination for rich Romans who built their villas here, first of all Emperor Hadrian himself. Visit to the Villa d’Este which will leave you stunned by the beauty of its rooms and its magnificent garden, which includes an impressive concentration of fountains, caves, water features, waterfalls and caves immersed in lush nature (entrance included). In the late afternoon, departure for Rome, hotel accommodation in the Rome region for overnight stay.

Goodbye Abruzzo!
After breakfast, route to the airport for delivery of the car and boarding formalities. On this day back, nostalgia for the places visited and enthusiasm for returning home mix. Today a chapter closes and a new one opens, you are part of our Community, you will bring with you the promise of new, even more extraordinary future adventures. Happy homecoming.