The most beautiful bridges of Tuscany

Most of the bridges of Florence are reconstructions, due to the fact that Nazis had destroyed them to stop the advancing Allied forces during World War II. But luckily this was not the case of Ponte Vecchio, the world famous bridge perfect for a romantic stroll surrounded by jewellery shops and with the Arno River under your feet.

Ponte Vecchio is topped by the Vasari Corridor, the secret passage created by the Medici family that unites Palazzo Vecchio to Palazzo Pitti, now part of the Uffizi Gallery.

Maybe the most famous bridge in Tuscany, the Devil’s Bridge (also called Ponte della Maddalena or Ponte del Diavolo) is for sure one of the most spectacular and photographed bridges of all.

The Devil’s Bridge is located in Borgo a Mozzano; it marks the entry in the Garfagnana area and features striking and asymmetrical arches. It was built around the year one thousand, and according to the legend it was Satan himself to built it, claiming the soul of the first person that would have crossed it, but the people of the village proved to be smarter than him and let a goat cross the bridge first, making fun of the devil.

Another amazing bridge is the “ponte sospeso” or suspended bridge in San Marcello Pistoiese, a pedestrian bridge that connects the two sides of the Lima River at a height of about 40 metres.

With its 227 meters of extension, in 1990 it entered the Guinness Book of Records as the longest suspended bridge in the world: a record recently lost due to a similar structure built in Japan. One last recommendation: it is only for the adventure lovers!

The Ponte della Pia (Bridge of Pia) is a bridge of Roman origin, rebuilt in the Middle Ages, located along the road leading from Siena to Massa Marittima, just after the village of Rosia, near Sovicille. The bridge consists of a single arch connecting the two banks of the river Rosia.

Like the Devil’s Bridge, the Ponte della Pia is linked to a legend. According to tradition, its name derives from the Sienese noblewoman Pia de’ Tolomei, mentioned by Dante Alighieri in the Divine Comedy and killed by her husband, who thrown her from a rock. Legend has it that the ghost of Pia de’ Tolomei dressed in white appears on the bridge during full moon nights without touching the ground.

If you happened to cross the Castruccio Bridge somewhere around the XIV century, you would have found yourself right on the border between the Pistoia and Lucca territories. This beautiful bridge, about 10 metres high over the Lima river, is located in the area of Popiglio, part of the municipality of San Marcello Piteglio (Pistoia).