Prato: Holiday apartments between the Textile Museum, art and Apennine nature

Prato is a destination where textile history, contemporary art and the Apennine landscape become visible in a variety of institutions and along diverse routes. Between important collections, historic buildings, natural areas and regional trails, a multifaceted picture of the city and its surroundings emerges.

Culture

The Museo del Tessuto in Prato, at the heart of one of Europe’s most important textile districts, preserves more than 9,000 objects. These include textiles dating from the early Christian period to the 20th century. The museum is housed in the restored former Ex Cimatoria Campolmi, a monumental example of industrial archaeology.

The Centro per l’arte contemporanea Luigi Pecci was Italy’s first purpose-built museum institution for 20th- and 21st-century art. The Museo di Palazzo Pretorio displays works by Filippo Lippi, Donatello, Filippino Lippi, Soffici, Yves Klein, Pistoletto and Lipchitz. Palazzo Pretorio is a palace in the vicinity of the Province of Prato. The Museo di Palazzo Pretorio is housed in a medieval building; its oldest brick section preserves the original structure of a tower house from the 13th century.

The Museo dell’Opera del Duomo also combines its departments into a tour around a Romanesque cloister. The Sala dei Corali e dei Parati contains four choir books embellished with fine miniatures and a precious collection of sacred vestments donated to the Pieve di Santo Stefano around 1590. The Museo Ardengo Soffici presents more than fifty works of art from public and private collections and showcases Soffici’s work from 1904 through the 1960s.

The Museo e Centro di documentazione della Deportazione e Resistenza organises guided tours, film and documentary screenings, workshops for researching historical sources, and educational tours. The Museo Italiano di Scienze Planetarie offers a different approach with 17 interactive multimedia stations.

The vicinity of the Province of Prato is also home to Palazzo Banci Buonamici, Geppi Naldini Palace and Fiorelli Palace; all three are palaces. The Antica fiera di Carmignano takes place every year during the first days of October in Carmignano and presents dried figs from Carmignano in traditional wicker baskets.

Nature

The Riserva Naturale Acquerino Cantagallo is a protected nature reserve in the Apennines covering an area of 1,867 hectares. It includes beech and chestnut forests, conifer stands, meadows and monumental trees. The Riserva Naturale Acquerino Cantagallo is home to red deer, fallow deer, roe deer, wild boar, wolves and wildcats.

The Via della Lana e della Seta runs through the Bisenzio River Park towards Calvana; visitors can see Calvana cattle and free-roaming horses there. Further landscape destinations are located in various regional areas: La Cupola is a summit in the vicinity of the Province of Prato, while Parmolaio is a mountain in the wider regional surroundings of the Province of Prato. Parco delle Cascine di Tavola is a park in the vicinity of the Province of Prato; Parco Sandro Pertini is also a park there.

Routes

The Tuscan section of the Ciclovia del Sole is approximately 155 kilometres long and passes through the Riserva Naturale Acquerino-Cantagallo, Montemurlo and Prato. The Via della Lana e della Seta is an approximately 130-kilometre route connecting Prato and Bologna. It begins in Piazza Duomo in Prato and runs over six stages; the first three pass through Prato, Vaiano and Vernio.

Included services, price components, and booking and cancellation conditions should also be clearly stated. This makes it possible to assess accommodation based on your own travel dates and priorities. Check the details of the respective offers before booking.

Other destinations

Other destinations in the regional overview include Poggio A Caiano, Fornacelle, Artimino and Colle.

For the overarching travel overview: Tuscany.