Experiences that tell the story of the territories: the slow tourism of Pesaro 2024. All the events.

Pesaro 2024 presents a new dossier project that enriches the calendar of the year as Capital: It is 'Off-piste: Slow Tourism', located in the 'mobile nature' of culture section, implemented by CSV Marche ETS Centro Servizi per il Volontariato. An experimental approach to the concept of a tourist guide that starts from the story and experience of those who live in the area, placing a very 'human' subject at the center: memories and stories. This is the guiding idea of ​​the decidedly exciting project already started in recent months within '50×50 Capitals squared' and that he will have his next appointment Sunday 14 April in Cagli.

Through a network of community guides who tell the story of the Pesaro hinterland by mixing history and stories, 'Off-piste: Slow Tourism' creates new paths where nature and art become tools to discover the Province and leave traces in the hearts and bodies of people. With a single evocative final objective: to shed light on the small communities of our land through new itineraries capable of uniting past, present and future. 'Off-piste: Slow Tourism' is divided into two programs: 'Hidden Castles' e 'The breath of the walking stones-villages'.

Present at the conference were: Daniele Vimini deputy mayor and councilor for Beauty of the Municipality of Pesaro, Silvano Straccini general director Pesaro 2024; for CSV Marche, the president Simone Bucchi and the project coordinator Roberto Paoletti; the art historian Alessandra Mindoli curator of 'Hidden Castles', Stefano Marzani president of La Grinda Terre Alte Non-profit community social cooperative, the director and theater trainer Alice Toccacieli of the 'Luoghi Comuni' association.

Silvano Straccini opened by underlining the importance of this project which, after a long work of cultural cocreation, sees its official presentation today but which had already started in some events of the '50×50 Capitals squared' calendar. And which has a particular characteristic: the involvement of the territory of our province and therefore the story of the communities is an indispensable patrimonial element for the writing of this project. Slow Tourism is therefore present in the 50×50 calendar because its vocation is that of the actual discovery of a very vast territory due to its variety, with original contents and places designed specifically for Pesaro 2024. The facet and richness of the proposal are broad and paths will be created which will also be documented digitally within the Pesaro 2024 website.

Thus Daniele Vimini: I thank the partners involved who have been engaged for many years on projects that concern 'the high lands' to be discovered and rediscovered, also touching on various unknown places, perhaps abandoned and with the need to be discovered also thanks to word of mouth. All without distorting the idea of ​​'slow tourism' but with a strong element of organization to guarantee its replicability. It is a project that is closely linked to 50×50 Capitals squared, which started by identifying different areas to characterize the province. A winning project for several reasons: because it crosses the history of art, productive and natural histories and asks the various areas to be an element of connection with the neighboring regions – and this is already an objective achieved -, and above all because it not only strengthens the planning of the municipalities but creates the conditions under which an event can be replicable, and demonstrate that that element can be achieved by also giving it an economic value. With two objectives; the long story beyond 2024 and the desire to strengthen internal tourism - a priority target - to create strong awareness in the inhabitants of these places and generate a real 'community heritage' which will be the basis for a more authentic experience also of the tourist arriving from outside.

Simone Bucchi: With Pesaro Capital of Culture we have an extensive collaboration underway in VolontarX for Pesaro2024, with the management of the platform and the training of volunteers, in the Circol'azioni project, with promotion and dissemination activities on the themes of the UN Agenda 2030, and also as part of '50X50 Capitali squared', with territorial animation work aimed at associations. For us it is a very important commitment and we are seeing a significant response from the associations, in terms of availability, but also of contents, which enrich the overall cultural journey. Specifically for the 'Off track - Slow tourism' project, what we propose are 'experiences' in which there is a lot involved: rediscovery of the territory, in particular of the small communities in the hinterland, nature, memory, stories, expressions and artistic performances , time to share together.

Hidden castles

It wants to propose itineraries in unusual and lesser-known places in the province and was born from an idea by art historian Alessandra Mindoli. After moving from Ascoli to Tavullia in 2016, he began to discover the province of Pesaro and Urbino and surveyed more than 50 places including fortified villages and abandoned or sparsely inhabited castles, of significant cultural importance and singular environmental beauty, mapped over the years thanks to painstaking research and testimonies from the population. Many of the sites border Umbria, Tuscany and Romagna with a mix of traditions, history and culture that makes them unique and fascinating. Among those surveyed, Mindoli has selected around twenty villages on the basis of precise criteria: cultural and historical value, easy accessibility by car and shuttles, low population growth.

Alongside the castles, ecclesiastical buildings, mills and historic villas appear. These are ideal destinations for slow and eco-sustainable tourism, now much loved especially following the pandemic, particularly appreciated by tourists from Northern Europe but also by natives who often do not have in-depth knowledge of the area in which they live. Part of the program includes the possibility of visiting these places on the occasion of the Pesaro 2024 '50×50 Capitals squared' project weeks for a total of 12 stages from January to October. A collaboration with the Italian Touring Club is also envisaged for the valorisation of the project routes.

CALENDAR GENNAI-OCTOBER 2024

28 January Montefabbri – Vallefoglia
25 February Montevecchio – Midnight and Casa Sponge – Montesecco – Pergola
14 April Sanctuary of Santa Maria delle Stelle – Cagli
12 May Torricella – Fossombrone
9 June Piagnano – Sassocorvaro Auditore
14 June Pieve di Carpegna
14 July Montebello – Terre Roveresche
28 July Monastery – Piandimeleto
4 August Castel Della Pieve – Mercatello Sul Metauro
1 September Farneto – Montelabbate
6 October Montefiorentino – Frontino
20 October Convent of Monte Illuminato – Lunano

The breath of stones – villages on the move

Curated by La Macina Terre Alte - Non-profit community social cooperative in collaboration with the cultural association 'Luoghi Comuni', the program turns the spotlight on territories far from the clamor of large tourist destinations starting from the premise of 'listening' to the beauty that surrounds. 'The breath of stones – villages on the move' connects the local communities of the Pesaro hinterland through a series of excursions and walks which find the connecting thread between the communities themselves and the tourists in the stories of the inhabitants' memories. Community narratives bring visitors closer to places - churches, castles, palaces, entire villages or, sometimes simple ruins - where the protagonists are silence, peace and nature. The stones that have seen generations of men and women over the centuries will be reached on foot along ancient paths, accompanied by hiking guides, local storytellers, environmental educators and actors. When possible, some excursions are included in the calendar of the '50×50 Capitals squared' project thanks to the availability of the Municipalities and Third Sector entities involved. To document the work done, video and audio contributions will be made at the end of the program.

MAY-NOVEMBER 2024 CALENDAR

Saturday 25 May Piandimeleto
Cavoleto: noble palace of the Cosmi counts; two small medieval squares, located at different altitudes; fresco from the Raphaelesque school of the 16th century, inside a small oratory.
Saturday 15 June Carpegna
Church of Santa Maria della Misericordia in Castacciaro: inside it houses the Museum of the Villages which documents the rural environment, the activities and peasant life of the fifteen villages of Carpegna.
Saturday 29 June Cagli
Pieia: dovecote tower house; Fondarca arch; King's stone. Church of San Michele Arcangelo in Cerreto: (Pianello di Cagli valley): fragments of frescoes
Wednesday 7 August Borgo Pace
Palazzo Mucci: elegant residence from the 1600s which hosted the exile Luciano Bonaparte; church of San Floriano which houses a large canvas attributed to Raffaellin del Colle. Figgiano: Romanesque church of Santa Lucia, decorated with frescoes from the 1300s. Castel de Fabbri: ghost town (external church of San Bartolomeo and feudal tower)
Saturday 21 September Sassocorvaro Auditore
Castelnuovo: ghost town, reachable along a road paved with river pebbles inside the woods; ruins of the church of San Biagio; medieval houses and ancient cemetery.
Saturday 5 October Frontino
Ponte Vecchio mill: bottaccio, tower and bread museum
Friday 11 October San Lorenzo in Campo
Montalfoglio Castle: well-preserved medieval village where time seems to have stopped. From here you can observe the Cesano valley
Sunday 3 November Acqualagna
Pietralata al Furlo Castle: built on an almost inaccessible rocky spur located on the slopes of Mount Pietralata

All initiatives have free entry; times and methods of participation on the Pesaro 2024 website www.pesaro2024.it and CSV Marche ETS Volunteer Service Center www.csvmarche.it