Borgo San Lorenzo
Borgo San Lorenzo is the main town of the Mugello area in Tuscany, set along the Sieve river between gentle hills and the Apennine...
Updated 19 July 2026
This season · July · Summer
What to do in Borgo San Lorenzo now
The story
The story of Borgo San Lorenzo
Introduction and location
Borgo San Lorenzo lies within the Metropolitan City of Florence and is the largest town in the Mugello, the broad hilly district north of the Tuscan capital. The settlement sits along the Sieve river, in a basin ringed by cultivated hillsides and the first foothills of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines. Well connected to Florence by the road running through the Mugello, the town retains a medieval urban layout, with narrow streets opening onto lively squares full of shops, market stalls and cafés, making it a natural reference point for the surrounding valley.
History and origins
The origins of Borgo San Lorenzo date back to the Middle Ages, when the settlement grew around the Romanesque parish church dedicated to its patron saint, soon becoming an important agricultural market for the whole Mugello valley. Over the centuries the town was repeatedly contested between Florence and local feudal families, before settling firmly within the Florentine sphere. A crucial chapter in its recent history is the severe 1919 earthquake, which destroyed much of the historic fabric: the rebuilding gave the town its distinctive Liberty-style architecture, still visible today while walking through the centre.
Nature and landscape
The countryside around Borgo San Lorenzo shows off Tuscany's greener side: hillsides planted with wheat, vines and olive groves give way to oak and chestnut woods climbing toward the Apennine ridges. The Sieve river crosses the plain, offering quiet views and flat paths suited to walking and cycling, while the surrounding heights shelter rural hamlets, isolated country churches and hiking trails that reach into the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines. The Mugello landscape, less crowded than other parts of the region, offers genuine contact with the Tuscan countryside in every season.
Things to do and see
The historic centre of Borgo San Lorenzo invites a stroll among buildings rebuilt in Liberty style after the 1919 earthquake, lively squares and shops selling local crafts. The Pieve di San Lorenzo, with its unusual octagonal bell tower, remains the town's most representative religious monument. Villa Pecori Giraldi today houses museum and exhibition spaces dedicated to local history and artistic production, in particular the town's ceramic tradition. The centre also makes a quiet base for exploring the nearby villages of the Mugello, with their Romanesque parish churches, castles and small local museums.
Flavours and traditions
The cuisine of Borgo San Lorenzo has deep roots in the Mugello's rural traditions: chestnuts and chestnut flour, porcini mushrooms, truffles, extra virgin olive oil and locally made cheeses feature prominently on the table, alongside meat dishes linked to the area's traditional livestock farming. Borgo San Lorenzo is also historically tied to ceramic craftsmanship, made famous by the manufactures active in the town during the first half of the twentieth century. Weekly markets and seasonal festivals offer a chance to taste local products and get to know the valley's traditions up close.
Not to be missed
- The Pieve di San Lorenzo and its octagonal bell tower
- Villa Pecori Giraldi and its museum spaces devoted to ceramics
- The historic centre rebuilt in Liberty style after 1919
- Walks along the Sieve river
- The nearby villages and Romanesque parish churches of the Mugello
To see
What to see in Borgo San Lorenzo
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Routes in Borgo San Lorenzo
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