Villa Eracle

Villa Eracle is just a few miles far from the beautiful town of Lucca, "the new place to visit in Italy", according to the New York Times. The area nearby the property is famous for a few very elegant noble villas, basking in the verdant countryside among olive groves and vineyards. These are best seen in March when the camellias are in bloom.

You could visit the tourist sites of Lucca in just a day: The Duomo San Martino, which houses among its treasures the Volto Santo, a wooden crucifix said to have been carved by Nicodemus and to have floated across the Mediterranean from the Holy Land (commemorated by a night-time procession in mid-September); Jacopo della Quercia's Tomb of Ilaria del Carretto; and Tintoretto's Last Supper. You must also see the riotous church of San Michele with its 19th-century add-ons, the small museum at the home of Giacomo Puccini, best known of the 11 celebrated composers who Lucca claims as its own, the oval anfiteatro on the site of a Roman arena, the baroque gardens of Palazzo Pfanner and the Palazzo Guinigi with a tree sprouting from its tower. Don't forget to rent a bike and have a ride around the 4km of walls that surrounds Lucca. It's an experience to remember!