Festa sulle Serre Festival

The Festa sulle Serre, a spring tradition in Valdera

In the heart of the hills stretching between Peccioli and the village of Montecchio, in the province of Pisa, the Festa sulle Serre returns every year on the first weekend of May. It is one of the most authentic rural festivals in the Tuscan Valdera: not a grand spectacle, but a community celebration that has marked the arrival of spring for generations around the small church of Madonna delle Serre.

The church and the painting of the Madonna

The symbolic heart of the festival is the church located in the open countryside, along the Strada Vicinale delle Serre. Its origins date back centuries: originally an oratory dedicated to Saint Michael linked to an agricultural estate, it later took the name Madonna delle Serre due to a 16th-17th century canvas depicting the Virgin and Child surrounded by saints. This painting, linked to the Almeni family, has been restored and preserved over time; the devotion to this image gradually led to the renaming of the church and the birth of the festival.

Ancient rural traditions

In the past, the festival marked the rhythm of agricultural work and the transition to the warmer season. The farmers of the Serre would gather to clear ditches and prepare the fields, lighting fires with olive prunings on Saturday evenings and engaging in ritual games and competitions: sack races, women's water-jug races to the church, bocce games, and stalls selling cherries and sweets. The celebration was held on two Sundays, in May and August; the August festival was eventually abandoned, while the spring one has survived to this day.

Today's program

The contemporary festival maintains a sober structure faithful to its rural soul. Saturday evening kicks off with a torchlight procession that winds from the town up to the church of Madonna delle Serre, starting from either Peccioli or Montecchio. Sunday is the main event, held entirely outdoors: morning masses, a Tuscan lunch at communal tables, games and shows for children, a charity fair, markets, and the characteristic vintage tractor exhibition, a symbol of the agricultural world that gave birth to this tradition.

• Evening torchlight procession to the church of Madonna delle Serre
• Holy masses at the church on Sunday morning
• Communal Tuscan lunch and lunch boxes
• Workshops, games, and shows for children
• Charity fair and markets
• Vintage tractor exhibition

An event supported by the Municipality of Peccioli

Organized by the Corale Valdera with the support of the community, the Festa sulle Serre is a beloved event for the Municipality of Peccioli and the entire Valdera area. For those visiting this corner of Tuscany, it is the perfect opportunity to immerse themselves in an authentic spring, made of hills, popular devotion, and rural flavors, far from mass tourism circuits.