Italy is full of Leonardo da Vinci landscapes and Piero della Francesca views. Yet all too often it turns into a well-trodden trail to arty Florence and overly popular “Chiantishire.” Can you really have your wine and drink it, preferably in a magical wine estate close to the mountains and the sea? And then drink in the view at a beach club owned by opera superstar, Andrea Bocelli? This beguiling adventure combines unsung Lunigiana with the celebrity-studded coast.
The secret is to choose an off-the-beaten-track area with access to the backcountry and the beach. Lunigiana, the beguiling borderlands between Tuscany and Liguria, is a land of castellated villages and craggy mountains, with enough authentic inns and wine estates to stop you pining for the manicured Chianti vineyards or yet another Renaissance masterpiece.
Billed as the land of a thousand castles, untamed Lunigiana is a stepping stone to the Carrara marble quarries that dazzle like snow. This unsung area is also a gateway to the gorgeous Cinque Terre clifftop villages and to the mountain-framed Tuscan coast, centred on privileged Forte dei Marmi.
To dovetail the authentic hinterland with the fun of the coast, combine a quirky farmhouse stay in Lunigiana with a chic villa retreat under umbrella pines in Forte dei Marmi. Or, for more romance and coastal character, hide out in Portovenere for pasta-making and wine-tasting, with any over-indulgence offset by hiking and ferry-hopping the Cinque Terre (see Doing the Cinque Terre here).
Land of a thousand castles
Haunted Castello Malaspina c Lisa Gerard-Sharp
Borderlands Lunigiana became known as ‘the land of a thousand castles’ in medieval times as its forts protected trade routes from the mountains to the sea. This rugged inland area has long been disputed territory, from Dante’s day to the Second World War, when the castle was on the Gothic Line, commanded by Germans and bombed by the Allies.
On my visit, Castello Malaspina, a medieval fortress bathed in golden light, surveys the valley, with sunset views stretching from the Apuan Alps to the Ligurian Sea. It’s less about the architecture than the light, the stillness and the sense of savouring the moment.
Topped by turrets, the lofty castle gradually falls into shadow, shifting the mood from sunny to sombre. Deepening shadows conjure up the resident ghost, the White Lady who stalks the battlements and bedrooms. As punishment for elopement, Bianca, a medieval noblewoman, was walled up alive with her dog, a symbol of loyalty, and a wild boar, a symbol of rebelliousness.
The feudal Malaspina lords clearly indulged their streak of violence. Envious brothers supposedly banded together to poison Pasquale, their eldest sibling, in his medieval bed, which is still in use. We leave the watchtower with sympathy for any overly-sensitive overnight guests.
Where marble meets memory
The marble-studded mountains and quarries near Carrara c Lisa Gerard-Sharp
Seen from the turrets, the looming Apuan Alps are a foretaste of the marble-studded quarries to come beyond Carrara. We clamber around Fantiscritti open-air marble museum to make sense of the glittering peaks, marble quarries and statuary that have made Carrara famous.
Walter Danesi, the grandson of the founder, shares a legacy of the land his family has worked for generations. “Everyone knows about Carrara marble but few understand the backbreaking work behind excavating, transporting and working this precious marble. We created this museum experience to show how it was done until the 1960s, using virtually the same techniques used by Roman slaves 2,000 years ago.”
“Carrara marble is an Italian brand, much like Armani or Ferrari,” adds Danese proudly, as he reels off masterpieces that have shaped Western art. Delicate yet durable, dazzlingly white or finely veined, Carrara marble remains in great demand among sculptors and architects.
Carrara is where Michelangelo chose his marble from blinding white quarries that glitter against the greenery of the Apuan Alps. In Florence, Michelangelo’s towering statue of David, chiselled out of a massive block of Carrara marble, is a masterpiece of anatomical precision, as is his poignant Pietà, which graces St. Peter’s in the Vatican.
The prized marble is featured in timeless architectural landmarks, such as the Pantheon in Rome, Pisa Cathedral, and the Leaning Tower. The United States Capitol, inspired by the Pantheon, also pays homage to its marble heritage, as does Oslo Opera House and Marble Arch in London.
On the Lunigiana wine trail
Marble-quarrying is thirsty work, even for spectators, so we head to the best wine estates beyond the famed Cinque Terre. Close to Carrara’s quarries and Castello Malaspina, the Bosoni dynasty has created Ostaia Ca’ Lunae, a bucolic inn on an 18th-century wine estate that looks the part.
Wine-pairing feasts or tastings with Ligurian tapas take place under the romantic rafters or on a terrace overlooking the Apuan Alps. Protected by the Alps, the vineyards benefit from a microclimate blessed by the blend of sea and mountain breezes. Overlooking a charming courtyard, the ancient threshing floor, we tuck into cheese and pumpkin fondue before pasta with porcini mushrooms.
Later, in Podere Ferrari, closer to La Spezia and the Cinque Terre, we enjoy a rustic dinner in a family-owned wine estate that celebrates an Italian-American love story. Sarah, formerly a Texan model, met her husband in Portofino and married into his wine-making dynasty before taking to it like a cowboy to a rodeo. Sarah’s easy southern charm and wine mastery make this “wine and dine” experience memorable. Staged in a bohemian barn, a sunset wine-tasting turns into a barnstorming dinner of estate wines paired with walnut and pear salad, pumpkin ravioli and poached pears.
Towards the Tuscan coast
Forte dei Marmi Alpemare
After tasting the Lunigiana borderlands, which link Liguria and Tuscany, it’s time to hug the sandy Tuscan coast south to Forte dei Marmi and the summer beach scene. This being Italy, the beach is more about socialising and sardine-style sunbathing than swimming and reading.
Framed by the Apuan Alps, Forte dei Marmi developed around a fort built in 1788 by Leopold I of Tuscany, a squat bastion which still dominates the main square. Apart from that, heritage plays second fiddle to flirting, feasting, socialising and shopping. When not feasting on seafood and gossip, gentle cycling fills the gap, even for global stars.
A dolce vita lifestyle rules in a resort that resonates most with well-heeled Italians. Forte is small, safe, sandy and pleasantly predictable, a chic beach escape for everyone from stressed fashion designers to singing superstars.
Forte dei Marmi’s musical playground
Beach cabanas & sculpture c Alpemare
Andrea Bocelli, the world’s most popular living tenor, is the resort’s best-known ambassador and hides out in a villa here with his musical family when not performing around the globe, sometimes with his son Matteo. Despite worldwide acclaim, the Maestro remains true to his peasant roots, with the family deeply involved in ventures such as their swish beach club, wine estate and musical tours. As his beach club manager says, “Bocelli has built an empire on his voice.”
For Italians, Forte dei Marmi is Tuscany’s most see-and-be-seen beach resort but it wears its lofty status lightly. Villas hidden in the pine groves welcome discreet celebrities, all intent on play-acting at living the simple life. That may stretch to Pasticceria Soldi for breakfast or browsing the designer boutiques of Prada, Gucci and Dolce & Gabbana. Giorgio Armani loved his summer retreat here and, shortly before his death last year, bought the beach club where he first met the love of his life.
Former racing cyclist Paul Smith has a home nearby, but it is by the seaside that I run into Britain’s most successful fashion designer, after last interviewing him in London. In this insider resort, billionaires are happy to hop on a bike to the beach club of the moment. Owned by the Bocelli family, chic Alpemare beach club is the place to be, even if the musical Maestro himself keeps a low profile.
Beach life with Bocelli
Alpemare beach club awaits c Alpemare
Awarded “Italy’s best beach club” for the last two seasons, Alpemare is resolutely low-key, with Bocelli’s wife Veronica its guiding light. Beach-lovers can slip into a cabana made for two until sunset spells the countdown to cocktail hour. Time to nibble on crispy zucchini flowers and sip Cantine Bocelli sparkling wine. The Bocelli family began as peasant farmers but progressed to being wine-makers in 1831, with the estate currently run by Maestro Bocelli’s brother.
Andrea Bocelli & wife Veronica at their beachclub c Alpemare
The famed opera singer has been known to perform at his beach club, but fans are far more likely to hear him live in the Theatre of Silence, a natural amphitheatre in nearby Lajatico, the Bocellis’ homeland, which becomes an operatic stage for a few days every summer.
Failing a live performance, lap up the Bocelli soundtrack at the beach club. As Celine Dion once said, “If God had a singing voice, it would sound a lot like Andrea Bocelli.”
As for boutique beds, Forte dei Marmi is all about swish villa rentals, not hotels. Ed Sheeran has stayed with Andrea Bocelli while working on crossover collaborations with the Maestro – but if you’re not a famous singer-songwriter, you’ll need your own villa under the pines.
Villa Diamante, a pristine white cube, feels like the perfect spot for a shady Russian oligarch or Saudi potentate but it’s not for me. Massimo Conti of Villas & Retreats shows me around but I infinitely prefer his more evocative Villa Doria in Portovenere, a cliffside retreat worthy of the Romantic poets, or his authentic country houses in remote-feeling Lunigiana. All that is lacking in these lovely villas is Andrea Bocelli coming over to sing for his supper. Dream on.
Exploring Lunigiana & the Tuscan coast
Castello di Malaspina, Fosdinovo, Lunigiana is an impressive medieval castle, with bedrooms and a resident ghost.
Carrara marble quarries: Fantiscritti marble museum, north of Carrara.
Ostaia Ca’ Lunae, between Sarzana and Carrara, is a slick, family-run wine estate and inn easily combined with a visit to the Carrara quarries.
Podere Ferrari, inland of La Spezia and the Cinque Terre, is a boutique winery run by the charming American-Italian Ferrari family. Come for a wine-tasting and rustic dinner or for pasta and pesto-making.
Alpemare beach club, Forte dei Marmi boasts two stylish restaurants.
The Bocelli’s Tuscan wine estate.
Viaggi di Mare yacht and boat trips: private excursions can visit Versilia (the Tuscan coast) plus the Ligurian Gulf of Poets and Cinque Terre villages.
Cinque Terre Riviera: great local agency for transfers, boat trips, food experiences & apartments.
Where to stay in Lunigiana or on the coast
Book a villa or apartment in Lunigiana, the wild Tuscan/Ligurian borderlands, or on the Tuscan coast around Forte dei Marmi. To combine the Cinque Terre coast with Lunigiana, opt for a hotel around Portovenere, Lerici or La Spezia. Visits can be great value in the shoulder season, with mellow weather in May/June and September/October.
Villas & Retreats: hand-picked Tuscan villas and sea-view apartments, ranging from historic cliffside homes on the coast to inland farmhouse rentals in authentic Lunigiana back-country, or swish contemporary villas in chic Forte dei Marmi.
Grand Hotel Portovenere, Portovenere: a low-key luxury harbourside retreat and gorgeous gateway to the Cinque Terre and Tuscany. Golfo dei Poeti Relais, near Lerici: a romantic, remote-feeling boutique bolthole overlooking the bay south of Lerici, the Gulf of Poets.
Cadamare, Cadimare: charming, great-value rooms in the fishing village of Cadimare on the Gulf of La Spezia, convenient for Lunigiana and Cinque Terre.
Photo credits: Alpemare; Comune di Forte dei Marmi; and Lisa Gerard-Sharp.