Paracadutismo Etruria Arezzo

Was in Tuscany with my wife and kids and stopped by Arezzo to make a skydive. Website boldly states that the drop zone is open 7 days a week. Went there on a Tuesday in May 2009 and nobody was around. Not a single jumper. Talked to someone after about an hour of hanging around and he said it's impossible to make a jump since no jumpers show up during the week. I had emailed them the week before and they said it would be no problem just show up and jump.
Was very disappointed, as I was totally let down.
Drop zone seemed nice. They had a Porter and a Caravan, nice grassy area with an above ground pool and small play area for kids.

Turned up after preceding phone call while on holidays in Italy. Initial paperwork is a bit of a hassle as skydiving Italy is apparently tightly regulated by their CAA and not by the sports association. Once in the system the place is great; lots of people willing to jump with you. First jump went to 15000, later loads to 13000 or more. Scenery is gorgeous. They were supposed to be closed on Monday but because there were sufficient guest jumpers and some local jumpers to fill the plane they arranged a pilot and an instructor and got the place going in the morning until sunset. That is top service! Prices are decent too. The place has a certain cosiness that makes anyone feel comfortable. Arezzo is next door for excellent food and night life. I will come back for sure.

Had an amazing time there during their last Easter Boogie.
Great people to jump with.
Great vibe.
The views from up there are amazing.
I would definitely go back when I have the chance.

This place has the chilled out feeling of the good old days of skydiving. A "living" dropzone. The best vibes I have experienced at any DZ in over 27 years of visiting drop zones all over the world. Good italian coffee, food, fantastic clean facilities, nearby ancient cities and the view is spectacular and of course there is Olav who makes you feel like family. You will be in the presence of artisans - freefly innovators. (Did have some difficulty with communication from Skydive Tortuga by e-mail and phone, regarding what I needed to be able to jump at the DZ as a U.S. citizen, USPA member.)

One of the best european DZ's I've been or heard of. Very professional, friendly and helpfull staff (coaches, packers, manifest).
Relatively cheap if you include the jump altitude (4500-5000m), with great views,
good infrastructure - packing area, debriefing rooms, bunkhouse, showers, restaurant with excellent (and not expensive) food. Combine it with some
of the best load organizers and coaches, and what you get... A+ DZ.

Have just spent 9 days there on holiday. The weather was good, the views were great, the people were friendly and nice, and the food was fantastic!

I spent the time camping. The facilities - showers, toilets, camping area are good. The restaurant serves a great lunch...and offers all the usual snacks :).
Evening meals are not always available on the dz, but can be arranged with a big enough group.

The local town - Arezzo is lovely. There are many restaurants, and bars. I don't recommend ordering pizza delivery to the dz - rather catch a taxi into town (about 10 EUROS) or walk to the local Chinese. The local dz residents will be able to help with a good place. The bars are a lot of fun as well!! - not too pricey!

The weekend turn-around is good. The porter - as always - is great, to 15k!!! :) (the views are lovely). The grand caravan was fired up when needed. The turn-around on week days is a little slow, but ok.

Coaching is readily available through the 1st school of skydiving - which I recommend! Professional, and very helpful.

There is a good gear store on the dz as well - offering all the usual bits.

There is no rigger on the dz though :(. There is someone who can help with sewing up of suits, and small fixes - but if you need a reserve pack - its a bit of a hassle :(

All in all - I had a fantastic time!!! Will definitely be back :)

super good vibes - real "living" dz,
the staff is great,
the planes excellent - the altitude the highest ive ever been, great freefly training facilities, pool, video rooms, gear shop - stay at the dz! thats the most fun!! thumbs up pirates! keep on going like this! will be back!

my favorite dz
incredibly progressive attitude
the best food i have ever tasted
the altitude is incredible
the staff are incredibly friendly and professional
thumbs up
keep it coming olav and stefania

Skydive Tortuga is one of the most friendly, chilled out, beautiful DZs around.

Its next to the beautiful town of Arezzo and is surounded by rolling hills valleys and mountains.

It has a nice bar/cafe that serves the best DZ food I've eaten. the DZ is also in the process of building a new hanger and offices.

When I was there they only had the one porter operating but a smooth yet chilled out turnaround meant I could enjoy relaxed and comfortable skydives.

Olav and Tete are there now and whilst I was there they did some great organizing over the weekend. It was awsome to fly with some of the original pioneers of modern flying and the whole atmosphere created by the staff felt like I was flying at home.

The DZ is a small but has the potential to go big. It it a dz that will undoubtedly grow to meet the needs of some of the most talented flyers in the world and the student base that will be attracted. It has a very homey feel and is by far the most chilled DZ I've been to. hopefully this will not change as the DZ starts to expand.

I would seriously recommend going to Tortuga, especialy if freeflying is your thing, I would think however that if you needed to seriously train hard (hard core turn arounds) then the big DZ machines in the US are still the way to go.

Try this place out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Skydive Tortuga,

a real skydivers enclave in Arezzo named after an island where pirates can be pirates.

I never felt so welcome before for the first time that I was at a dropzone.
The club is trying to create a place where tandem jumps are not the primary thing to do. It is all about a good time.
Jump altitude is 4500m (sometimes even up to 4800m) Load organizing is done by great people like
Stephania, Olav and Marco (also rw coach)
The food in the cantine is greaaaaat. (I'm fan for the Italian food and coffee).
Bunkhouse is good, new containers with airco. Each room has 4 beds with sheets and a table with chairs. Showers are all new. New hangar is under construction.

Due to the bad weather we did visit the nearby cities. Culture and skydivers often do not go together but when you like old Italian cities with buildings from the Roman time you have to look Cortona, Gubio and Arezzo itself.