At 1,452 m above sea level, Castelluccio di Norcia is one of the highest settlements in the Apennines, reachable via a panoramic road with hairpin turns. Located on a hilltop inside the Monti Sibillini National Park in Umbria, this small village of little more than 100 residents, lies above the ‘Great Plain’ (Piano Grande - 1270 m), one of three karstic plateaus that surround Castelluccio, the other two being Pian Piccolo and Pian Perduto; once the bottom of an ancient Apennine lake, they hold underground reserves of water. 

Every year from late May to July, the plains transform into a colorful carpet of flowers, a spectacular nature show known as ‘La Fiorita,' when lentils bloom (for which Castelluccio is famous), alongside poppies, cornflowers, daisies, wild mustard, orchids, and more flowers. Wildflowers grow naturally among the lentil crops thanks to an absence of pesticides.