Within the coronary heart of the Tuscan countryside, simply 80 kilometers from central Florence, sits Villa Lena: an agriturismo (the more and more standard Italian phenomenon of a farm-based vacation) that focuses, in equal measure, on natural agriculture and the humanities. It’s the proper place to go for a little bit little bit of all the pieces—its mountain climbing trails are a nature lover’s dream, its locavore restaurant will sate anybody after genuine Italian “sluggish meals,” and its creative workshops are good for individuals who can’t assist however need to study one thing on their trip, in addition to for individuals who don’t. (Its pool can also be an oasis for tanning fiends.)
Picture: Dan Sauer
San Michele, the restaurant on the premises, sources most of its meals from the farm that surrounds it, the place greens are planted amongst olive groves for oil and vineyards producing crimson, white, and rosé prosecco. All of the greens come from the gardens, which makes for scrumptious seasonal fare—one thing so simple as a blended inexperienced salad reworked right into a particular occasion. That which isn’t grown on website, specifically the meat and cheese, comes from hyper-local suppliers, whereas the pasta is, naturally, do-it-yourself.
The rooms, which accommodate 70 to 80 visitors, are unfold between a big villa for households and teams, two giant residences, and the fattoria, a former horse stables reworked into the principle lodge constructing. Overlooking the inexperienced fields and mountains of Tuscany, the bottom flooring of the country fattoria is filled with Italian modernist design and paintings chosen by Lena, the lodge’s eponymous artwork collector proprietor. The rooms are spacious, with hovering ceilings, uncovered picket beams, and outsized bathtubs tucked beneath a window with a view.
