Tuscany, Italy
La Dolce Vita! Yoga Retreat in Tuscany, Italy
Please email info@savonn.com if you would like to hear about future retreats to Italy. I’m looking at some new venues and places to explore.
I had so many great retreats at Il Borghino with Yoga in Italy. The info below reflects past retreats held between 2017-2022.
Enjoy 7 nights and 8 days of La Dolce Vita (“The Sweet Life”) in Tuscany, Italy: a destination that speaks for itself with its rich history, art and culture, idyllic villages, iconic landscapes, fabulous food so delicious in its simplicity, world-class wines, friendly locals, and more.
Retreat Highlights
This list of highlights, excursions and activities is subject to change depending on the COVID-19 regulations in place at the time of your retreat.
Daily Yoga Classes Taught by Savonn and other instructors. No need to bring your own mat or props. The yoga studio has blocks, blankets, straps, mats, and bolsters. We will have opportunities to practice both inside the yoga studio and outside on the terrace.
Delicious Meals, Including Farm-to-Table Produce and Estate-Produced Wine, Olive Oil, and Herbs. Most meals will be served al fresco (outside) on the terrace. Meals will be prepared by a local chef who makes deliciously fresh dishes based on what is in season and the region’s specialities. Food is sourced from local producers, and wherever possible, that includes organic grains, fruit, and vegetables. Homemade fresh fruit and vegetable juices and cleansing herbal teas using fresh herbs from the garden will also be available. You can indulge in local cheeses, pasta, breads, wines, and other delights, along with plenty of dishes made from nuts, seeds, legumes, and vegetables/salads, rice, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, fresh fruit, and yogurt. Organic wine, olive oil, and honey is produced in the surrounding agricultural area near Il Borghino and is served during the retreats. Friday night is Pizza + Prosecco Night, with pizza coming out fresh from the wood-burning oven. If needed, gluten-free and other special dietary requirements options can be arranged.
Simple Yet Stylish Lodging. Options include both shared and single rooms with private baths, as well as private rooms with shared baths. See below for room availability and pricing. The rooms are large, simple, and furnished tastefully in local Tuscan style, each with fabulous views from every window. Tea and coffee are available in each house outside meal times. Each house also has a washer and dryer that you can use during your stay.
A Large Communal Area. “L’Olivo” is the hub of the retreat centre—a place where we will gather to enjoy meals together and share experiences. There is also a wood-burning pizza oven, which we will make use of during the retreat, and a gorgeous outdoor terrace with panoramic views for al fresco dining and outdoor yoga classes. Wi-fi access is available in the communal areas.
Day Trip to Cinque Terre or Surrounding Area. We will spend a day in breath-taking Cinque Terre or the surrounding area, exploring the coastal villages embedded in rocky cliffs along one of Italy’s most scenic stretches of Liguria. For those who are hikers, it is possible to spend a day walking and climbing between these beautiful villages and enjoying some spectacular scenery along the way. For others, you can still enjoy walking the more gentle trails or spend time swimming, exploring the villages, or sampling some of the local delights.
Italian Cooking Class at Il Borghino With Their Local Chef, Maria-Angela. Learn to make Italian classics like make homemade gnocci, pesto, and tiramisu.
Optional Excursions and Add-Ons
This list of highlights, optional excursions and add on activities is subject to change depending on the COVID-19 regulations in place at the time of your retreat.
Local Tuscan Wine-Tasting Trip. Enjoy a scenic 3km walk along “Strada del Vino” (the wine road) to reach a local winery for a tour and tasting. The estate makes award-winning wines, olive oil, honey, and pasta.
Bike and Walking Tour of Nearby Lucca. Take part in an informal guided tour of Lucca for 3-4 hours. Includes transportation into Lucca, a bike tour around the ancient walls, a walking tour to explore the main attractions, and a cappuccino or apertivo break.
Puccini Opera in Lucca. For the opera lovers, you can catch a Puccini opera every night in Lucca. The concert starts at 7:15pm and lasts up to 1 hour.
Golfing and Cycling. Take advantage of the scenic vistas and enjoy an afternoon of golfing or cycling.
Pietrasanta Artist Village. If you fancy a night out in a nearby artist’s village, you can head to Pietrasanta, a thriving art centre full of galleries, shops, and restaurants. Best known for its marble and bronze artistic works, Pietrasanta often hosts international art exhibitions in the local piazzas, where you can sit over aperitivo and watch the buzz unfold. The town comes alive later in the day, so the best time to visit is in the early evening, staying until late.
Barga and the Garfagnana Day Trip. If you prefer mountains and hilltop villages to the sea, travel to the heart of the mountainous Garfagnana region and the medieval town of Barga, stopping at the famous “Devil’s Bridge,” a masterpiece of medieval construction spanning the meandering river Serchio. Spend a few hours with your private guide exploring the charming hilltop village of Barga with its medieval fortress before stopping for a delicious gourmet lunch.
Italian Language Lessons. These will be conducted at the villa with an experienced Italian teacher.
Waterfalls Walk – Guided Hike in undiscovered Tuscany – 7KM / Elevation +350M.Described as one of the top 5 best natural swimming locations in Italy by The Guardian, this hike will take you in between the Apuan Alps and the coast to Candalla. Walking amongst ruins and fig-scented woodlands, we discover the Lombricese stream which runs over waterfalls and natural pools. Although the trails are not too difficult, this hike requires good levels of fitness as there are a couple of steep points along the way as well as off-road paths with uneven surfaces.
Alternative to the Cinque Terre – Coastal Paradise Walk – Guided Hike along the Ligurian Coastline – 10KM / Elevation +500M. South of the very popular Cinque Terre, there is a beautiful area to be discovered away from the touristy crowds and off the beaten track. Here, we walk on old paths that have been used for centuries by locals, breathe in the salty air, take in the vistas and enjoy genuinely local food. With its tiny little lanes and passageways close to the sea, it’s definitely one of the best kept Italian secrets and one of our favorite coastal hikes! If you fancy avoiding the crowds in the Cinque Terre but having a similar experience, this hike is for you.
Massages and Holistic Treatments. There are wonderful local therapists who will be available throughout the retreat for various massages and other treatments.
Location
We will be staying at Il Borghino, a Tuscan estate and villa complex retreat center. It consists of three completely restored houses nestled in the hills of Tuscany, cradled between olive groves and vineyards, and features exquisite gardens and panoramic views over the historic town of Lucca, looking towards Pisa and the sea. The accommodations include simple yet stylish rooms, a large salt-water swimming pool and Jacuzzi, an on-site yoga studio, a wood-burning pizza oven, and a sauna.
The retreat is open to students of all levels. Since there are so many things to do on this retreat, it is a great opportunity to bring along friends or family who may not be interested in the daily yoga practices, but who would be inspired by the culture of Italy and the chance to unwind, explore, meet new people, and join in the excursions and optional activities.
The vibe of Il Borghino is relaxed, informal, and friendly, and the goal of the place “is to provide everyone on the retreat with an experience that blends healthy living with a perfect dose of Italian sweet life, La Dolce Vita.”
Interested in a retreat in Italy? Please let me know if you would like to be on the list for future retreats in Italy. Thanks.
What Some Others Have Said About the Retreat
I would recommend the retreat to anyone who wants to go to Italy, but has never traveled much. I liked the fact that we were expected somewhere, and if we didn’t show up, someone would track us down. It offered a sense of security in a foreign country, especially for women traveling alone. The all-inclusive retreat enabled us to relax and not worry about food prep or anything other than relaxing. We could participate in the activities (yoga, cooking class, etc), take excursions off of the property, or we could just lounge around the pool reading, sketching, or napping.
My favorite part of the trip was spending time with my daughter. What a memorable week that I will always cherish and look back on and smile. I also met some wonderful people who I would never have gotten to know if it wasn’t for the retreat.
I enjoyed the day trip to Cinque Terre and the day trips to Lucca to just hang out. We felt very safe spending the day in Lucca on our own. Of course, someone was expecting us at a certain time at the end of the day, and we were able to communicate via cell phone if we had any problems. None arose.
Italy has always been at the top of my travel list, and the retreat in Lucca provided the chance to sightsee, relax, and do yoga. It was great to have a destination we could settle into, unpack our bags, and not worry about moving to a new place each day (with the exception of spending a few days in Florence at the beginning of the trip, which we’re so happy to have done!). The combination of experiencing a new country and having yoga to start or end the day with was really fun.
The best part of the trip was the time spent with my mom in a new place that neither of us had ever been. We were both constantly in awe of what we were seeing. “Oh my gosh, we’re in ITALY!” was said more than once on the trip. Not only did we have each other, but we were in close contact with fellow retreat goers from the beginning of our travels, which eased a few fears of traveling to a country where we didn’t speak the language.
The scenery, food, and time shared with beautiful people made the experience truly wonderful. I will never forget it!
The yoga retreat in Tuscany was the trip I’d imagined for years. My grandparents emigrated from Tusa, Sicily, so I’ve always wanted to visit. While Sicily seemed a little intimidating, Tuscany seemed magical. Though I like adventure with a little risk, I wanted to know that accommodations and food would be five star. Savonn and company did their research, and Il Borghino Villa exceeded all expectations. I travelled with my daughter, and we were both speechless when we saw our room: a view of the turquoise saline pool out one window and rolling hills, villas, and vineyards from the other two.
The staff was welcoming, professional, upbeat, and excellent cooks. While I’m not a vegetarian, I enjoyed every meal. Visually appealing, nutritious, and scrumptious, highlights were gnocchi, tiramisu, and pizza from a brick oven. French press coffee greeted us each morning, along with fresh juice and wine from local vineyards every evening. The yoga room, which was underground, faced into the pool—our very own aquarium. There was even a pup named Oliver whose human lived on the estate, and he sauntered out to visit often.
Lucca, the ancient walled city, is a lovely winding road down the hill where piazzas await, offering gelato, opera, shopping, restaurants, and people watching while sipping a glass of wine. Cinque Terre was the highlight for me. Every photo I’ve ever seen could not compare to its beauty. My daughter and I agreed that experiencing a trip to Italy with yoga as the central core out of which other experiences radiated made this the trip of a lifetime.
Going to Italy for a yoga retreat is not something I had ever considered doing, but I realized a few days in that it was perhaps the best thing I had ever done for myself. It’s not until you’re fully removed from your everyday life and spending time focusing—just focusing—that you realize how important it is to care for yourself, not just for everyone (else) you love. I felt like I was living in a dream or a fluffy soft cloud. For the guests, everything was so easy and so lovely—pure luxury!
People first: what an incredible group of inspiring and interesting people! After that and above all was the setting and the trip getting there that made it seem so magical. The accommodations were perfectly appointed, unique, simple and authentic. Yoga class every day, with nothing getting in your way (traffic, obligations, etc) was wonderful. Every delicious meal was prepared for us. The activities that were arranged for us were all interesting and rich, or we could choose our own activity with no judgement or pressure. The masseuses on-site were a perfect luxury. I left with a much deeper understanding of what it means to relax.
There was a bit of martyr syndrome going on for me before I went: “it’s so expensive, can I really afford this, I should be meeting my family after, I should be spending the money on a family vacation, or the house, not on myself,” and so on. Midway through the trip, while I was relaxing so completely by the pool, taking in the view, I realized it was worth every penny and then some. I felt a peacefulness, love for the wonderful variety of people I’d met on the retreat, and acceptance of myself that I don’t recall having ever felt so deeply before—and I brought that home.
I totally enjoyed our yoga retreat. I had no idea what to expect. I had been to Italy many times before, so I knew, no matter what, it would be terrific. I love Italy. Plus, the price—wow. You can’t beat that for what you get! With that in mind, the retreat was way beyond my wildest expectations. The site, the rooms, the food, and the excursions were perfect. I wish like heck that I was going again this year, but alas…
Without reservation, I would recommend this trip, particularly for those who have never traveled to Italy before. This is an easy, beautiful way to slip into the spectacular countryside of Tuscany. Food, wine, scenery, YOGA, beautiful accommodations, and great travel companions—what could be better?