Monte Senario is a Servite monastery perched at 817 metres on a wooded ridge a few kilometres north of Pratolino. It was founded in 1234 by seven Florentine merchants who retreated from the city to live as hermits — the Seven Holy Founders of the Servite Order, all of whom were later canonised together. The monastery has been inhabited almost continuously since, except for a brief suppression during the Napoleonic period.
The approach is along a cypress-lined road that climbs steadily through chestnut forest. The monastery complex includes a church, cloister, and hermitages built into the rocky hillside. The views across the Apennines and down toward Florence are excellent. The monks produce a herbal liqueur called Gemma d'Abeto — fir-tip liqueur — that has been made here for centuries and is sold at the gate. It makes a worthwhile detour from Pratolino, reachable by car in about ten minutes.