DNP
60th Birthday
DNP 60 — The Fire Horse: free in spirit, endless in motion

A Birthday Celebration in Tuscany

Four days of fiendship, fun and great wines

17 — 21 September 2026 Villa Castrum·Tavarnelle & Chianti
A vintage train crossing a viaduct through the Tuscan hills
You're invited

It begins on a vintage train

Let's meet in Athens to fly to Italy, join with friends in Rome, and travel north together through the Tuscan countryside — lunch and music on board — arriving in the Val d'Elsa by late afternoon. From there, expect long lunches in cloisters and vineyards, a whole village throwing a party, hot air balloons at sunrise, and one unforgettable night at Villa Castrum.

Day OneVintage trainRome → Poggibonsi, with lunch on board
All weekGreat food & wineDiscover the gems of Tuscany
MorningsSunrise ballooningThree mornings over the hills
Every dayCloisters & vineyardsPassignano, Torciano, Monteriggioni
Day FourThe big nightGala dinner & concert at Villa Castrum
The programme

Day by day

Mornings are gentle, afternoons are yours, evenings are the point.

Day One

All aboard

Thursday, 17 September
Theme · The Medieval Dinner
  1. 08:35Landing at Rome FiumicinoFlight A3 650. We'll be waiting for you at arrivals.
  2. 09:30Coaches to Roma Ostiense
  3. 10:30Check-in at the Sala RealeThe station's private royal lounge — a glass while the train is readied.
  4. 11:00All aboard the vintage trainA 1969 first-class Gran Confort. A marching band sees us off, and there's swing and Italian music on board.
  5. 11:30Departure for TuscanyCoffee from the start, aperitivo from 12:15, lunch at 13:15 — all served on board.
  6. 16:00Arrival at Poggibonsi–San GimignanoCollect your Fiat 500 or Vespa at the station and drive on to your villa.
  7. AfternoonCheck-in and time to settle
  8. 20:00Aperitivo at Castello di TignanoFifteen minutes from Tavarnelle. Shuttles from every accommodation.
  9. 21:00A medieval dinner in the castleCostumed characters, period table settings, grilled meats and Tuscan cheeses, with music by Ensamble Micrologus.
A laid table in a vintage first-class railway carriage
On board the Gran Confort
An evening courtyard dinner in a Tuscan castle village
Dinner in the castle
Day Two

The abbey & the piazza

Friday, 18 September
Passignano · Tavarnelle
Aerial view of the Abbazia di Passignano among vineyards
Badia a Passignano
Long tables set for dinner in a Tuscan village square
Piazza Matteotti, Tavarnelle
  1. 07:30Hot air ballooning OptionalTwo balloons lift off from Villa Castrum — about an hour in the air. Thirty places each morning.
  2. MorningBreakfast at your accommodation
  3. 10:45We meet at the Abbazia di San Michele ArcangeloBadia a Passignano — ten minutes away.
  4. 12:00Private mass with choirA six-piece choir and organist in the abbey church.
  5. 13:15Antinori wine tasting in the terrace gardenCanapés, with a cello and harp playing in the Italian garden.
  6. 14:15Lunch in the monastery cloisterA wine-paired Tuscan menu — from panzanella and pappa al pomodoro to maccheroncelli with duck ragout, and tiramisu to finish.
  7. AfternoonAt leisureSpa, shopping or sightseeing — proposals in the app.
  8. 19:15Aperitivo in Piazza MatteottiTavarnelle, ten minutes from the villas.
  9. 20:15Dinner in the squareStreet food from stalls at every corner of the piazza.
  10. 21:00Live concert for the whole townAlessandro Ristori and a Greek singer, then a DJ set until midnight. The village is invited too.
Day Three

Truffles & Florence

Saturday, 19 September
San Gimignano · Firenze
  1. 07:30Hot air ballooning OptionalThirty places. Take off from Villa Castrum.
  2. MorningBreakfast at your accommodation
  3. 10:45We meet at Tenuta di TorcianoA private estate a short walk from the historic centre of San Gimignano.
  4. 11:00Truffle hunting & a pasta cooking classWe split into groups and swap over — everyone does both. Prefer to wander? There's a guided walk into San Gimignano instead, fifteen minutes on foot.
  5. 14:00Lunch in the vineyardsA truffle menu with a guided tasting of local wines, olive oil and balsamic — and live accordion by Stefano Indino among the vines.
  6. AfternoonAt leisure
  7. 18:00Shuttles to FlorenceLeaving from Villa Castrum — about an hour's drive.
  8. 19:00Aperitivo & dinner at Teatro NazionaleDinner with live music inside a Florentine theatre.
  9. 23:30Shuttles back to the villas
Fresh tagliatelle with shaved truffle and a glass of red wine
Lunch in the vineyards
Florence and the Ponte Vecchio at sunset
Evening in Florence
Day Four

The birthday

Sunday, 20 September
Theme · Elegant Dolce Vita
Medieval drummers in red and green processing through Monteriggioni
A welcome at Monteriggioni
Curving banquet tables lit by candlelight around a stage at night
The gala at Villa Castrum
  1. 07:30Hot air ballooning OptionalThe last morning in the air.
  2. MorningBreakfast at your accommodation
  3. 12:45A medieval welcome at MonteriggioniFlag throwers, musicians and roaming performers at the gates of the walled castle — twenty-five minutes away.
  4. 13:45Lunch at Ristorante da RemoFresh pasta made in front of you, a garden aperitivo and a traditional Tuscan table inside the castle walls.
  5. AfternoonAt leisureA good afternoon to rest — the evening is a long one.
  6. 19:00Aperitivo — “An Italian Movie Set”Open bar by the pool at Villa Castrum, a live jazz quintet, and a cast of characters scattered through the gardens: a painter at his canvas, ladies at a chess board, a driver polishing a classic car.
  7. 20:00The gala dinnerLong curving tables around the pool, a bespoke Tuscan menu, and performances between every course — dancers, illusionists, contortionists and a band playing the great film scores. Then cake.
  8. 22:30Concert & DJ setA stage with a catwalk running between the tables, so nobody watches from the sidelines. Open bar until late.
Day Five

Arrivederci

Monday, 21 September
Until next time
  1. MorningFarewell breakfastTogether at the villa, or in your own accommodation.
  2. MorningCheck-outLeave the cars and Vespas at Villa Castrum, or arrange a different drop-off with us.
  3. 12:30Private shuttles to your departure pointTo the train station, to Bologna airport for the 16:00 flight, or wherever you're heading next.
A Tuscan hamlet with cypress trees seen from the air
One last look at the hills
Practical

Good to know

Everything else is taken care of. These are the few things worth knowing before you pack.

Cypress roads and hill towns in the Chianti countryside

THE SURROUNDINGS

The Val d'Elsa and the Chianti hills around Villa Castrum are yours to explore. Tap any place below for photos, a map and a short guide.

San Donato in PoggioChianti village
Barberino Val d'ElsaMedieval village
San GimignanoTown of towers
MonteriggioniWalled village
FlorenceThe city
A hot air balloon rising over cypress trees and olive groves

BALLOONING

On three mornings, two balloons lift off from the grounds of Villa Castrum at first light.

  • Meet no later than 07:30
  • Around an hour in the air
  • Thirty places each morning — do sign up early
  • Shuttles to the launch and back from the landing field
A red and a white Vespa parked overlooking the Tuscan hills

HOW FAR IS EVERYTHING

Short drives, all of them, and shuttles run to every evening event.

San Donato in Poggio15 min
Piazza Matteotti, Tavarnelle10 min
Abbazia di Passignano10 min
Tenuta di Torciano20 min
Monteriggioni25 min
Florence1 hour

YOUR AFTERNOONS

Every afternoon after lunch is yours. If you'd like something arranged — a spa treatment, a massage, a shopping trip to Florence or the outlets, a cooking class, a village to explore, a gelato lesson — just ask, and we'll set it up.

  • Suggestions and booking in the event app
  • Personal extras are settled directly by you

WHAT TO WEAR

Nothing that can't handle a cobbled street.

Dress code for Passignano, "angelic circus in total white"

  • Day 1 — a medieval castle dinner; comfortable and warm for the evening
  • Days 2–3 — countryside days: flat shoes for the abbey, the vineyards and the truffle woods
  • Day 4 — the gala: elegant Dolce Vita
  • Evenings in the hills turn cool in September — bring a layer

THE EVENT APP

Your programme, your accommodation, shuttle times, activity sign-ups and the day's proposals all live in the app — along with the photo gallery, so everyone's pictures end up in one place.

Open the app
The places

Where we'll be

Day One

Castello di Tignano

A castle above Barberino, taken over for one medieval evening.

Day Two

Abbazia di Passignano

An eleventh-century abbey among the Antinori vineyards — mass in the church, lunch in the cloister.

Day Two

Piazza Matteotti

The main square of Tavarnelle, turned into a street-food dinner and open-air concert.

Day Three

Tenuta di Torciano

A family wine estate below the towers of San Gimignano.

Day Three

Teatro Nazionale

Dinner on the stage of a Florentine theatre.

Day Four

Monteriggioni

A perfectly preserved walled village — Dante put it in the Inferno.

Day Four

Villa Castrum

Home base, launch pad for the balloons, and the setting for the birthday night itself.

Every day

The Chianti hills

Cypress roads, hill towns and long lunches — the reason for all of it.

The DNP Fire Horse
17 – 21 September 2026
Ci vediamo in Toscana

Bring a driving licence, a jacket for the evenings, and an appetite. We'll handle the rest.