Our story

We stumbled upon Torre il Fico Estate for the first time in 1988, and it was love at first sight.
Steeped in history and nestled in protected parkland in privileged hilltop location, Torre il Fico quite simply took our breath away. We stood there loosing ourselves in the uninterrupted views of the gentle rolling hills so typical of the Tuscan countryside, dotted with cypress lined roads and borghi. The main house, Villa Napoleon, was built as a Guard Tower in the 13th century (no surprises, given its location!) and we just tried to imagine what it must have felt like for the original owners to be here, watching over their lands in the middle ages.
We acquired the Estate and embarked on the restoration works, which took us well over 5 years. Determined to preserve the heritage of the villa and its grounds and to emphasize and value the Italian craftsmanship from which it was born, we spent years in painstaking research and hard labour. Nothing was left to chance: the gardens were brought back to life by famous Italian landscape gardener Pietro Porcinai, who shaped the Estate’s exclusive 8 hectares of land to include a stylish 8 x 14 meters salt water swimming pool (complimented by a solarium with double daybeds and parasols), extensive lawns bordered with flowers, shrubs and olive trees and panoramic terraces with amazing countryside views and shady retreats perfect to relax with a good book or a glass of prosecco in front of the sunset.
The interior was sympathetically restored to preserve the original backbones of the house: the original stone arch is still here, defining the spaces and reminding us of the history of what we call our home.
Every painting, mirror, carpet and fitting is the result of thorough research and artisan work. Original Italian sand stone was used for the floors and stairways, the walls are finished with Venetian plaster in pastel hues, and all fittings are hand-made to measure, from the large linen curtains to the built in library in the master bedroom, which was hand carved by a local artisan, over several months, from a century old cherry tree.
For the bathrooms we used the best Portuguese marble, which was cut to measure and fitted by local craftsmen.
For the interior design, Anna’s Hungarian heritage and her love and knowledge of the Biedermeier period came into play, perfectly complementing the heritage of the place with rare Empire paintings and pieces of furniture.

It wasn’t always plain sailing, and it took us passion, commitment and quite a few tears over the years, but the beauty of the nature surrounding us and our love for the Estate always supported us – and the rewards were immense.
Torre il Fico made us happy, no matter what. And it still does.

Our family has been living here ever since: Torre il Fico is, always has been and always will be, first of all our home.
Only recently we decided to share it with discerning travelers seeking a special unique way to experience Florence and its amazing surrounds, rather than the usual off-the-shelf hotel accommodation. A comfortable, sophisticated home which really is true to its heritage, in secluded peaceful location yet close to all amenities in the heart of Tuscany.