Our Way

The Numenvia Way

You can’t experience Italy through a bus window.

Most travel is forgettable. You see famous things, eat good food, and post it all to Facebook or Instagram. Then you go home—and it blurs into all your other vacations.

At numenvia, we believe it can be different. The register will be familiar—from the high-end accommodations to the private drivers. But our tours are something you experience in your body. You’ll knead Pane di Matera with your hands among the stones of the Sassi. Dig black truffles from the earth of the oak woods of Chianti.

A vacation you’ll remember.

The spirit of a place

Every place has a spirit—a layer of meaning, history, and practices—that imbues the landscape and its people. The ancient Romans had a word for this, numen. Numen was a quality of a specific place—of a grove of trees, or a hillside.

Numen is not of the mind—it is something you feel in your body.

It is the creators and makers of a place who guard its numen. The way to that spirit is not to watch, or to study—it is by doing. And your guides must be the creators who work the land with their own hands—Andrea who drives his olives to the mill at 3 am to ensure that they are processed first. Elena Fucci who chose to stay in Basilicata, on the black earth of the volcano, because she could not bear for her grandfather to lose his vineyard.

Our tours are not about museums. Yes, this land is ancient, and people have lived here for thousands of years following many of the same traditions. But the creators on our tours are not performing for tourists—they are adapting these traditions because they work, in a world that is rediscovering the importance of the local, the slow, and the sustainable.

Late afternoon over the ruins of Craco with the Calanchi beyond
Late afternoon over the ruins of Craco, with the Calanchi beyond.
Giuditta Pileri, founder of numenvia

Our founder

Giuditta, our founder, grew up in the hills outside Florence. For our first tour in Chianti, some of our makers were people she knew personally. Diego Finocchi, owner of the award-winning winery Erta di Radda, is married to Giuditta’s sister’s best friend. We’ve since expanded to other regions—Val d’Orcia, Basilicata, and soon Sicily—but Giuditta’s approach hasn’t changed. She curates every experience herself, sitting down with the maker and trying everything with her own hands.

Some of our creators and makers

Some of our creators and makers

We’d love to hear from you.