Cascine park by bike

Among the most famous parks in Florence, undoubtedly we find the Parco delle Cascine a natural oasis in the heart of the city with its 160 hectares is the largest public park in Florence and the green lung that has always been the favorite place for Florentines to do outdoor activities.

The construction of the park dates back to 1563 as an agricultural estate owned by Cosimo I dè Medici, in practice it was a hunting estate and a farm specializing in cattle breeding and cheese production for the Medici family, hence the name Cascine deriving from the ancient "cascio" (cheese) place where cows were kept for milking.

Getting to the Cascine is convenient, the park is located a short distance from the center of Florence, you can reach the park by various means and clearly by bike through the increasingly numerous bike paths.

The Park is the ideal place for cycling and one of the favorite places for parents to teach their children to go cycling thanks to the large spaces and most of the pedestrian avenues.

The Cascine extend for a total length of 3.5 km from the Ponte alla Vittoria to the Ponte all'Indiano, the park is accessible by bike in total safety, you can do the path along the Arno or pass in the inner part along the large avenues.

If you want to take a longer walk we recommend an easy bike path along the Arno that combines the Cascine Park with the Renai Park in Signa.

The wide bike path has a length of about 11 km on a dirt road suitable for children <, being completely flat and without cars. It is possible to ride on any bike model without any particular difficulty.

Curiosity: la Pyramid , which was a glacier where food was stored.

The Park housed a Zoo where the main attraction was Canapone, a dromedary unfortunately died in the flood of 1966. The zoo closed in the 80s, but the only name Canapone evokes emotions in the Florentines.

The benches in the park were also scenery in the legendary movie "Caruso Pascoski" by Francesco Nuti .

Every Florentine has a story to tell set in the Cascine, because the link between the park and the city has always been indissoluble.