The best cycling routes around Felino

During the Appennino bike tour, a short detour is necessary to enter the historic center of the town. But it is absolutely worth it.

A must-see when passing through Calestano

Felino Castle is located in the hills between the Parma and Baganza rivers in Emilia, a manor surrounded by a wide, deep moat and defended by imposing bastions. You will enter an elegant and charming atmosphere in the interior rooms and enchanting outdoor spaces, where summer events can be held, illuminated by the vibrant light of torches and the romantic glow of the moon. The main courtyard is accessed via a bridge over a wide moat. The bridge, now fixed but a drawbridge until the 19th century, was the castle's last defense against invaders. The dark bronze door, once opened, reveals a bright, luminous courtyard overlooked by porticoes and galleries that, over time, have replaced the ancient accesses to the patrol walkways. The high walls, defensive towers, and mighty keep are surrounded by a lawn whose position and shape resemble a terrace overlooking the hills and the plains stretching below the castle. Today, after over twenty years of careful restoration, it can be admired in all its splendor. Its nighttime illumination is so evocative and powerful that it can be seen from kilometers away. SOURCE: https://castelliemiliaromagna.it/it/s/felino/6005-castello_di_felino/ HISTORY of the castle and other information; https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castello_di_Felino

The Governor's Palace is a Baroque and Neoclassical building located on the entire north side of Parma's central Piazza Garibaldi. The palace was originally built on the north side of Piazza Nuova (now Piazza Garibaldi) between 1283 and 1285 as the "Merchants' Palace," following the demolition of pre-existing dwellings. In late Romanesque style, it consisted of two separate buildings, separated in the center by the narrow Borgo di San Marco, which no longer exists. Entirely clad in brick, it rose above a portico on the ground floor and featured two rows of mullioned windows on the first floor; the façade was crowned by battlements at the top. Having lost its original mercantile function, the building soon became the seat of the Captain of the city and, later, of the Governor, the Civil Auditor, and other municipal magistrates. However, its architectural structure remained unchanged for centuries. Following the collapse of the towering Civic Tower on January 27, 1606, which also caused the destruction of the Town Hall, the need arose to renovate the Governor's Palace. Initially, the building was unified by enclosing the Borgo di San Marco with a vault. A tower was erected on top of this vault in 1673, designed by Piacenza engineer Gian Battista Barattieri. This tower assumed the former functions of the destroyed Civic Tower, retaining the original bell known as the "third bell," dating back to 1453, which remained intact over the centuries until it was replaced with a copy in 1998. In 1760, the court architect Ennemond Alexandre Petitot was commissioned to redesign the square; the Governor's Palace was thus renovated in elegant neoclassical style, with the addition of typical decorative elements. The central niche was also opened to house the statue of the Crowned Virgin, sculpted by Jean-Baptiste Boudard. In 1829, Duchess Maria Luigia commissioned Lorenzo Ferrari and Luigi Pazzoni to create the large sundials on the façade. In the 1920s, the interior and rear of the building underwent a major renovation in the Rationalist style, which preserved only some of the original interior decorations. The entire building, home to several municipal offices until the end of the 20th century, underwent a complete restoration between 2000 and 2009, transforming it into today's "Place of Modern and Contemporary Art": inaugurated in January 2010 with the Nove100 exhibition, it hosts temporary exhibitions of mostly contemporary art. SOURCE and further information https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palazzo_del_Governatore_(Parma)

The Parma Hills are beautiful!

Convenient cycle path along the bridge that allows you to safely cross the stream.

⚠️ Pay attention to the signs in case of bad weather.

Locality of San Michele Tiorre Language Follow Edit The Church of San Michele is a Catholic place of worship with Baroque architecture, located at Piazza Pontirol Battisti 7 in San Michele Tiorre, a hamlet of Felino, in the province and diocese of Parma. It is the seat of a parish within the pastoral area of the Pedemontana. HISTORY: The original chapel was built before the 11th century and dedicated, together with the entire Cinghio Valley, to the Archangel Michael by the Benedictines of the Abbey of San Benedetto in Polirone, to whom it was donated by Pope Paschal II in 1105 and confirmed by the Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV of Franconia the following year. The friars built a cloister next to the place of worship, which they entrusted to a group of monks led by a prior. The existence of the chapel is also attested by a document from 1230, when the "Ecclesia di Sancti Michaelis de Toliorio" depended on the parish church of San Martino di Arola;[3] the Prior Sancti Michaelis de Toiorio was also mentioned in the Ratio Decimarum of 1299. Between 1699 and 1700, the ancient building was almost completely rebuilt in Baroque style at the initiative of Abbot Andrea Rainieri; at the time, the church was dependent on the abbey of Santa Maria della Neve di Torrechiara. The Benedictines maintained control of the place of worship until the suppression of religious orders sanctioned by Napoleon at the beginning of the 19th century. On July 15, 1971, the church was severely damaged by a strong earthquake, which caused it to be closed for worship. The building was subsequently consolidated and renovated both externally and internally, with the side altars and Baroque choir lofts being removed. The work was completed in late 1974, and the church was solemnly inaugurated by the Bishop of Parma, Amilcare Pasini. On December 23, 2008, the church was again damaged by earthquakes; restoration work, begun the following year, was completed in 2014. SOURCE and other information: https://it.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiesa_di_San_Michele_(Felino,_San_Michele_Tiorre)