Saturday 17 to Saturday 24 September 2022
Join us for a week of idling in Italy
In the company of the Idler‘s editor Tom Hodgkinson and Academy director Victoria Hull, you’ll learn about the history of idling and about philosophies that can help us flourish. You’ll see some of the very greatest Renaissance art. You’ll do yoga, read, walk, loaf and feast together. There will be foraging trips in the Umbrian hills and a trip to the beautiful medieval town of Arezzo to see the great works of painter Piero della Francesca.
There’ll also be plenty of time for doing nothing.
Our teachers will be the Idler Academy’s Head of Philosophy Mark Vernon, garden historian and Idler art critic Tim Richardson, and yoga expert Claire Whalley.
The Idler Retreat 2022 takes place at Villa Pia on the Umbria/Tuscany border.
You’ll go home with new inspiration and great ideas, having had a lot of fun into the bargain.
“I don’t think I have spent so much time in the company of so many warm, easy going souls. Thank you very much for organising this marvellous week. You are both the best of hosts.”
TO BOOK YOUR PLACE CLICK HERE.
ABOUT VILLA PIA
Villa Pia sits on the border of Tuscany and Umbria on the edge of the medieval village Lippiano. The villa has a swimming pool, tennis court with gorgeous views over the Umbrian hills, table tennis, yoga studio and extensive gardens in which to rest and read.
The retreat is all inclusive. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are all provided, and you’ll be free to help yourself to fresh fruit, coffee, tea, alcohol and soft drinks at any time of the day or night.
Villa Pia’s chefs prepare delicious local Italian cuisine with the care and attention to detail that Italians are known for. All of their ingredients are locally sourced wherever possible.
The simple elegant rooms are cleaned daily.
“Great venue… well organised without being too regimented… very enjoyable list of activities. Lots of interesting people and lots to learn from them in a safe and open environment.”
THE PROGRAMME
Our programme is designed to provide great ideas for living, lots of fun, good dining and plenty of time for idling.
In his classes Tom will talk about the history of idling, from ancient times to medieval and modern. We’ll be applying these ideas to our own lives and investigating the good life. There will be particular emphasis on the medieval system of ethics.
Mark Vernon will draw on the great philosophers of the Renaissance, who made the insights of the past fit for the modern world, from Marsilio Ficino on the spirit of all things and Michel Montaigne on essaying ourselves, to Niccolo Machiavelli on strategies for survival and Giordano Bruno on multiverses. It will be inspiring stuff.
Tim Richardson will give a talk on Arezzo and its art. We’ll discuss Piero della Francesca’s mastery of perspective and the structure of the medieval cooperative city state that encouraged such brilliant arts and crafts.
Claire will lead a yoga session each day including meditation and yoga philosophy. We’ll have morning practises of invigorating yoga embracing a sense of positivity and vitality, working mindfully through the poses using the breath, and some restorative yoga practices.
Plus…
Day trip to Arezzo: a coach trip to this lovely medieval city.
Foraging Walk: we’ll ramble through the Umbrian countryside with a local expert and identify wild local food including berries, wild salad plants and herbs.
“The balance of the retreat was perfect. There was plenty of time for me to sit and think. I loved the physical exercise: tennis, table-tennis, walks. The talks were informative and genuinely inspirational and thought-provoking for me. The people were also great… Inspirational stories from varied backgrounds and generations. I learnt so much.”
Walk to Monterchi: here we’ll see Piero della Francesca’s Madonna del Parto, the radical painting of a pregnant Virgin Mary held up as an icon of feminism. Monterchi is a couple of miles’ walk from Villa Pia.
Tennis, table tennis, swimming in the pool, hanging out by the fire and a singalong.
In the evenings we dine together at Villa Pia’s long table.
“I particularly enjoyed meeting a variety of interesting new people, time out in a beautiful part of Italy, the tennis and swimming.”
BIOGRAPHIES
Dr Mark Vernon is a broadcaster, author and therapist. He teaches several Idler Academy online courses including ones on Ancient and Modern philosophy, Dante and Plato, and he is a regular on A Drink with the Idler online events. He is also a therapist at the Maudsley Hospital in south London. Mark is a wonderful communicator who knows his subject inside out and can convey difficult subjects with great clarity and precision.
Tim Richardson is a long-time Idler contributor who specialises in gardens and art — and the point where they intersect. He is the author of a number of books on garden and landscape subjects as well as a volume of poetry and a world history of sweets and confectionery. He also writes for Country Life and the Daily Telegraph, and is the founder and director of the Chelsea Fringe Festival.
Claire Whalley has been practising yoga for over 25 years and trained as a teacher at Yoga Campus. With an interest in the therapeutic qualities of yoga, she emphasises that the physical benefits of asana are only a small part of the joy of yoga and teaches how the combined use of body, breath and mind help us discover who we really our and our path in life. Claire weaves meditation and yoga philosophy into her classes.
Tom Hodgkinson is editor of the Idler and author of several books including How to be Idle, How to be Free and An Idler’s Manual.
Victoria Hull is director of the Idler Academy and founder of the Clerkenwell Literary Festival.
“A wonderfully convivial group of people with just the right balance of activities and ‘me time’.”
OPTIONAL EXTRAS
Cooking Class: Villa Pia’s cooks are local women who learned to cook from their grandmothers. They’ll be teaching you to make pasta the traditional way or to make a dish that you have enjoyed during your stay. We’ll finish the class with Prosecco. Price around 20 euros.
Truffle Hunting: This has been exceptionally popular in previous years. Spend a morning ambling in the woods with a local truffler and his dogs and bring back truffles for dinner. Price around 60 euros depending on numbers.
Massage and beauty treatments.
“Conviviality, location, staff, atmosphere, variety, inspiration, laughter, catering setup, people being nudged out of their comfort zones but not forced, guests, ‘brain time’.”
PRICES
£1,200 per person if sharing a bedroom with two other people, with en suite bathroom (there is only one room at this price)
£1,420 per person if sharing a bedroom with one other person, and a bathroom (shared with one other room)
£1,475 per person sharing a bedroom with en suite bathroom
£1,495 per person, single occupancy if sharing a bathroom
£1,650 per person, single occupancy with en suite bathroom
Pay a deposit of £500 now, the remainder being due on 17 June, three months before the retreat.
TO BOOK YOUR PLACE CLICK HERE.
Please then email mail@idler.co.uk to tell us which type of room you would like to book.
Please note the deposit is non-refundable unless the retreat is cancelled due to Covid travel restrictions between the UK and Italy.
WHAT’S INCLUDED
All talks, trips and yoga.
Dinner for six nights out of the seven including wine and beer. This leaves one evening free to explore as there are wonderful places to eat and drink nearby in Monterchi and Lippiano.
All breakfasts and lunches plus fruit, coffee, tea, cake, alcohol and soft drinks at any time of the day or night.
WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED
Flights and transport to Villa Pia. Where possible group transport can be arranged.
Tickets to galleries.
Massage, pilates, and beauty treatments.
Truffle hunting.
Cookery lesson.
TRAVEL INFO
We recommend flying to Perugia.
Saturday 17 September 2022
British Airways flight BA616, London Heathrow 7.25am to Perugia. Arrival 10.50am
Saturday 24 September 2022
British Airways flight BA617, Perugia 11.40am to London Heathrow. Arrival 13.10pm
Transport between Perugia and Villa Pia will cost around 20 euros each way per person depending on numbers. We’ll let you know when numbers are confirmed.
There are also flights to Florence, Pisa and Bologna. The journey to Villa Pia is longer but there is more choice of departure airports and flights.
You can also travel under your own steam and get to Arezzo by train. This is only 20 minutes from Villa Pia and there are plenty of taxis outside the station, cost approximately 50 euros.
Terms and Conditions
If your booking is cancelled less than eight weeks before the start of your holiday 100 per cent of the total price is forfeited. Please ensure that your travel insurance is arranged at the time of booking.
Holiday Insurance: It is a condition of accepting your booking that you have personal travel insurance, including cancellation insurance for Covid, medical reasons, redundancy, jury service etc. for all members of your party. Please note that the use of Villa Pia, its facilities, grounds, and swimming pool are entirely at the user’s risk.
For more information about any part of the holiday please email Victoria on mail@idler.co.uk
