Villa La Massa

Villa La Massa

Villa La Massa sits on the banks of the Arno, five miles outside Florence, spread across five historic buildings rather than one hotel block. Villa Nobile and the Mill keep their Renaissance bones, frescoed walls, canopied beds, tapestries and brocades, in a villa whose noble origins trace to the 13th century. The Villino, Casa Colonica and the Limonaia trade that heritage for a plainer, contemporary Florentine look, and Casa Colonica can be booked whole, for guests who want the 25 acres of olive and lemon groves to themselves. What separates it from other countryside estates near the city is the daily shuttle: fifteen minutes each way to Ponte Vecchio, running from before nine in the morning until half past ten at night, so no one has to choose between the stillness of the river and the pull of the centro storico. Between runs there is a new pool among cypress trees, a spa built around local scents, Il Verrocchio for Tuscan cooking, L'Oliveto for lighter meals by the water, and a cellar stocked from the neighbouring Chianti Rufina hills. None of it suits anyone hoping to step out of a lobby onto a Florentine piazza, or anyone who wants a hotel that feels new rather than inherited; the age of the buildings is the point, not an apology. It suits a traveller who wants the city within reach but not underfoot, and who does not mind that the nearest lemon grove is closer than the nearest tram stop. That trade, quiet grounds for a short ride into town, is the reason to stay here instead of in it. Five historic buildings on the Arno, five miles outside Florence, linked by a shuttle that reaches Ponte Vecchio in fifteen minutes. Renaissance frescoes in the oldest wings, a poolside bistrot and 25 acres of olive and lemon groves around the rest. Suits those who want Florence close, not underfoot.