Siena horse race

The world wide famous Siena horse race, the Palio! Book this amazing experience among our day trips from Florence offers and live in the Middle Ages for a day! It’s not a BBC documentary or a movie on tv: choose your favorite “contrada” (Contradas are districts which had, in the ancient times, their own government, coat of arms, names, sometimes noble titles, emblems and colours, official representatives, patron Saints etc.) and your flag, then enjoy one of the most celebrated events in Italy.

Welcome to Siena! The horse race called “Palio di Siena” is held in the breathtaking Piazza del Campo twice a year, on July 2nd and on August 16th to celebrate respectively the Madonna di Provenzano and the Madonna dell’Assunta (the protector of Siena).  So many remarkable moments make up the days in which the Palio is held, but the ones that come immediately before the race are the most memorable.

The people from each district take part to the festivities, and so will you. Each Contrada is like a large family and strong feelings of belonging and kinship exist within its members, therefore, the most exciting instants, obviously in addition to the race itself, are those which take place slightly before the big event. The “Prova Generale” (the trial run), is the second to last run of the “barberi” (the Sienese name for a horse) before the true Palio, and brings good luck to the team that wins.

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