There are lots of things to see and do while on vacation in Tuscany from wine-tasting to hiking to visiting art galleries to snorkelling. Lots of these activities, however, will be most appealing to adults that happen to be in your party but, if you want to pencil in some outings that will be especially fun for any children (or children at heart) in the group, then you will be glad to know their are lots of suitable things for you to see and do as well. The region is home to endless excellent places to get gelato, incredible beaches offering all kinds of water sports and fun, horseback riding outings in scenic locations, amusement parks and waters parks, and zoos. One of the region's most beautiful zoos and a must-see for those who have found a villa near Prato is the Centro di Scienze Naturali, or Centre of Natural Sciences.
Located on the slopes of Monteferrato in the area of Galceti, in the Municipality of Prato, the Centro di Scienze Naturali is made up of a museum with collections of taxidermied animals and information about them and a beautiful park in which you can find living animals in the wild. Founded by the Municipality of Prato itself, it was opened in 1967 and the park is spread over some 16 hectares in the heart of the protected Monteferrato area. A botanical garden that is home to plant species characteristic to the Prato area, a forest of maritime pine, and two small lakes, this charming and pretty natural setting is rather idyllic and is where you will be likely to bump into wild animals roaming around such as deer, fallow deer, roe deer, wild boar, and birds such as geese, ducks, and swans. Paths wind in a picturesque manner all throughout the forest and the park, passing by enclosures and areas where injured or sickly wild animals are cared for, rehabilitated, and then eventually reintegrated back into the outside world. Animals usually found in the enclosures include monkeys and snakes, among others.
The museum part of the Centro di Scienze Naturali, meanwhile, is made up of over 750 square meters of rooms that house impressive collections of flora and fauna from within the park as well as collections of birds, mammals, fish, reptiles, insects, shells, minerals, rocks, herbariums, and archaeological and paleoethnology finds. The archaeological finds include Neolithic arrows and others remains of human settlements since the Paleolithic Era as well as remains from the Bronze Age and Etruscans. An additional space that has been made use of is the reptile house, which was set up in a disused area of the Centre in 2014, and plays host to snakes, amphibians, insects, arachnids, and more in display cases.
A lovely zoo doing important conservation and protection work, located in a stunning outdoor setting, populated by some super-cute animals, and boasting lots of information and educational resources, the Centro di Scienze Naturali makes for a wonderful place to spend a day having fun and learning and stretching your legs. Whether you're trying to impress kids in the group or you are interested in seeing animals yourself, this charming zoo is the ideal place to do so if you have found a vacation rental near Prato and are spending time in this gorgeous part of Tuscany.
NOTE: The Centro di Scienze Naturali is currently closed to visitors (though they are still rehabilitating, caring for, and taking in animals) as of April 2021 but it should be reopening in the coming months.
Centro di Scienze Naturali
via di Galceti, 74 59100 PRATO
0574 - 460503
info@csn.prato.it
The museum part of the Centro di Scienze Naturali, meanwhile, is made up of over 750 square meters of rooms that house impressive collections of flora and fauna from within the park as well as collections of birds, mammals, fish, reptiles, insects, shells, minerals, rocks, herbariums, and archaeological and paleoethnology finds. The archaeological finds include Neolithic arrows and others remains of human settlements since the Paleolithic Era as well as remains from the Bronze Age and Etruscans. An additional space that has been made use of is the reptile house, which was set up in a disused area of the Centre in 2014, and plays host to snakes, amphibians, insects, arachnids, and more in display cases.
A lovely zoo doing important conservation and protection work, located in a stunning outdoor setting, populated by some super-cute animals, and boasting lots of information and educational resources, the Centro di Scienze Naturali makes for a wonderful place to spend a day having fun and learning and stretching your legs. Whether you're trying to impress kids in the group or you are interested in seeing animals yourself, this charming zoo is the ideal place to do so if you have found a vacation rental near Prato and are spending time in this gorgeous part of Tuscany.
NOTE: The Centro di Scienze Naturali is currently closed to visitors (though they are still rehabilitating, caring for, and taking in animals) as of April 2021 but it should be reopening in the coming months.
Centro di Scienze Naturali
via di Galceti, 74 59100 PRATO
0574 - 460503
info@csn.prato.it
