Retreat with the Idler to Florence and the Tuscan countryside, 7-12 September 2026. Victoria Hull has the details

On the Idler Gardens of Florence Retreat we’ll visit some of the most beautiful and fascinating gardens in Italy. We’ll wander the streets of the city itself and visit palazzi with hidden gardens. We’ll view outstanding Renaissance paintings of the gardens and nature of Florence and Tuscany. We’ll relax in a boutique farmhouse hotel, complete with a spa, pool and tennis court.

Your hosts will be Idler art critic and landscape historian Tim Richardson, Idler editor Tom Hodgkinson, and Idler Academy Director Victoria Hull.

With exclusive access at Villa La Pietra and Villa Gamberaia, Tim will set everything in context as we wander these lovely and fascinating gardens. Tom will give talks on the idling academies of Renaissance Florence, and the medieval values of the city-state.

Expect good food and wine, interesting company and plenty of time to idle in a stunning location.

Places are extremely limited on the Idler Gardens of Florence Retreat so secure your place now with a £500 deposit.

On the Idler Gardens of Florence Retreat, you will enjoy…
•A visit to Villa Gamberaia, possibly the greatest of all the gardens of the Italian Renaissance.
•An exclusive tour of Villa La Pietra and its garden, not generally open to the public.
•A visit to Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, a great ‘forgotten’ Medici palace with outstanding frescoes by Gozzoli celebrated for their wonderful background scenes of countryside and nature.
•An afternoon in the famous Boboli and Bardini gardens of Florence.
•A morning at the Artigianato e Palazzo, an annual festival of artisans in the Corsini Gardens never otherwise open to the public.

The Idler Gardens of Florence Itinerary

The guide itinerary below gives you a good idea of what we’ll get up to during our time in Florence. We’ll also provide reading lists and a city guide should you wish to do some exploring on your own.

Monday 7 September
•Arrivals at Podere Castellare. Welcome lunch in the gardens.
•Aperitivo lecture: Tom will talk on Idling in Florence and the medieval values of the city state.
•Dinner Podere Castellare.

Tuesday 8 September
•Morning trip to Florence: We’ll discover painted landscapes, as we visit Gozzoli’s astounding frescoes in the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi. This is a great ‘forgotten’ Medici palace where the Medici lived before the Palazzo Vecchio. The palazzo’s courtyard and garden are noble spaces, replete with statuary where Michelangelo and other sculptors came to draw and copy Roman statues.
•Lunch at a traditional paninoteca.
•Afternoon excursion to the Boboli and Bardini Gardens: We’ll explore two of the most significant historical green spaces in Florence, both masterpieces of Renaissance landscape architecture and filled with sculptural treasures.
•Dinner Podere Castellare.

Wednesday 9 September
•Morning Lecture: Tom on the Idling Academies of Florence. Tom will unpack the history and meaning of the word “Academy” and its intimate relationship with the art of idling.
•Optional extra: Wine tasting and light lunch at Castello di Nipozzano, a 1000-year-old castle home to renowned Chianti wines, owned by the historic Frescobaldi family.
•For those not wine tasting, there will be the option to hike to Castello di Nipozzano instead, followed by picnic lunch by the pool.
•An afternoon of leisure for all, enjoying the beautiful gardens and pool at Podere Castellare.
•Optional extra: Learn to cook Tuscan classics like cantucci or pasta with rabbit ragù in a cookery class with Castellare’s chef.
•Aperitivo lecture: Tim on the Gardens of Florence.
Garden-making was an important aspect of the Italian Renaissance, particularly through the patronage of the Medici family, who built a number of villas with gardens in and around Florence. Tim will show how garden style developed in sophisticated ways through the 16th and 17th centuries, with the emphasis on the creation of mood and atmosphere in garden episodes, always with reference to mythical stories and settings.
•Dinner Podere Castellare.

Thursday 10 September
•Morning visit to Villa La Pietra. This imposing 16th-century Tuscan villa was owned by the English art dealer Arthur Acton and then his son the aesthete Harold Acton. At the turn of the 20th Century, Arthur created the extraordinary formal garden which looks as if it is Renaissance – full of statuary and hedging and on a steep slope. We’ll enjoy exclusive access to the limonaia, with a special lecture from La Pietra’s Horticultural Associate on the garden’s creation, building and restoration.
•Lunch in La Pietra’s orangery.
•Afternoon visit to Villa Gamberaia. Set in Settignano, one of the hillside villages overlooking Florence, this great masterpiece of Florentine gardens remains wonderfully off the beaten path for many tourists. It has amazing views from its terrace down to Florence and the Duomo, where we can enjoy refreshments while soaking up the incredible scenery.
•Dinner Podere Castellare.

Friday 11 September
•Crafts festival at Palazzo Corsini: This event convened by the late Princess Corsini gives us the chance to meet traditional artisans as well as see the garden itself, which is otherwise not open to the public. There are lovely 17th-century limonaia, geometric boxwood hedges and even tortoises roaming freely.
•Choose your own lunch from food stalls at the festival.
•Afternoon to relax at Podere Castellare.
•Final feast and singalong.

Where you will stay: Podere Castellare

For the Idler Gardens of Florence Retreat our home will be Podere Castellare, an eco-resort located in stunning Chianti countryside, about 30 mins from Florence. Podere Castellare is a working organic farm, producing wine, olive oil, fruit, vegetables and the first Tuscan craft gin, Peter in Florence, made using local botanicals from the estate. We have access to the spa, pool, tennis court and a small gym. There are plenty of local hikes to explore.

Places are extremely limited so secure yours now with a £500 deposit.

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A Drink with the Idler

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How to Live Like a Stoic

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