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I’m not sure any location conquers up more serene imagery than that of Tuscany, Italy. Sitting at the very top of my European travel wish list for years, I imagined rolling hills, vineyards, small cars driving along winding dirt roads, and, of course, huge plates of pasta served al fresco amid lemon and olive trees. It turns out this dream can be made a reality with the simple decision to book a trip to Villa Lena.
Found in the province of Pisa, an hour away from Florence, Villa Lena is set in 500 hectares of Tuscan woodland, high up in the rolling hills, amid the aforementioned fantasy of olive groves and vineyards. The hotel was originally a 19th-century villa built for an Italian aristocratic family, before it was all but abandoned for years.
Eventually, art consultant Lena Evstafieva, her musician husband Jérôme Hadey and their friend Lionel Bensemoun, founder of one of Paris’ most chic underground nightclubs, Le Baron, joined forces to reimagine the space as not only an all-inclusive hotel, but an artist residency, a haven for creatives who can come together under the Tuscan sky.
There are many things that give Villa Lena character above other hotels in the area. Not least the Wes Anderson charm, seen everywhere from the main villa’s pastel orange, pinky hue to the terracotta tiles and soft yellow tones in the bedrooms, which are all unique and adorned with unique murals by former artists in residence.
Rooms are spread across various buildings on the property, including the Fattoria (the glorious orangey pink villa) where you’ll also find a yoga studio for morning flow (when weather doesn’t permit it by the pool), a lounge, and screening and games rooms.
The San Michele building, where the two best features — the pool and the restaurant — are a stone’s throw away, also has rooms upstairs with standalone bathtubs and French doors opening out onto the rolling hills.
For bigger group occasions and families, found nestled away from the main areas are Renacchi (which has six separate apartments), Stentino (three bedrooms) and Casetta Bella, a more secluded private house with four three double bedrooms. There, you’ll find private pools, where, if you know how to holiday, you’ll likely spend most of your time.
Speaking of which, the main pool area’s proximity to the bar where they make afternoon Aperols couldn’t be more perfect.
Villa Lena’s farm-to-table approach, too, stands out. Head Chef Marco Baldeschi picks fresh ingredients daily from the sprawling vegetable garden meets biodynamic farm where Villa Lena grow and harvest most of the produce that gets cooked in its restaurant, Osteria San Michele. While staying, we foraged for fresh ingredients, before doing a cooking lesson wherein we used what we’d picked to make a rainbow chard orecchiette pasta from scratch with Chef Marco’s guidance. It was so delicious, we ordered the exact same dish later that day.
Not made in the vegetable patch but most definitely of importance to note is the homemade olive oil from the trees nearby, the freshly baked focaccia bread, which is so good it should be illegal to have in such abundance, and the mouth-watering tiramisu.
To go alongside the fresh ingredients showcased on the menu are delicious organic wines, all supplied by Villa Lena’s natural larder. If you want to learn more about the wines grown in the region, a local Tuscan sommelier is on hand to spend the afternoon talking you through the grape varieties.
Instagram aesthetics, poolside Aperols and carb loading aside, the artists’ residency programme is perhaps what sets Villa Lena apart the most. To foster this, the villa has created a foundation with the aim to bring together a unique mix of multidisciplinary artists who can spend their time working on their craft amid nature and other creatives. These artists often leave their creations on-site, creating a constant rotating gallery on the villa’s walls.
They also curate workshops and events such as the aforementioned morning yoga, ceramics-making, concerts or poetry readings and come together for daily artists’ aperitifs for which guests can join and mingle. On Friday nights, artists and guests dine al fresco on a long communal table. Music and dancing often commence after dessert is digested before guests retire to their comfortable beds, ready for poolside recovering the next day. That’s amore.
