Gardens of the Riviera

Itinerary

• Day 1 - Menton

  We fly from London to Nice and transfer to Menton where we stay at the family-owned 4 star Hôtel Napoléon. Comfortably furnished and offering a high level of personal service, it has a swimming pool, terrace and a fine garden of its own. The hotel does not have a dining room but the centre of Menton is just a few minutes’ walk away and has many fine restaurants.

• Day 2 - Hanbury Gardens

  Our first visit will be to a garden in Italy, the famous Hanbury Gardens at La Mortola. Established in the late 19th century, the garden has an impressive collection of exotic and tender plants and banks of cascading scented flowers. Later we go to Villa Piacenza Boccanegra in Ventimiglia. Since the 1980s Ursula Piacenza has cared for and expanded the garden created by Ellen Willmott in 1906.

• Day 3 - St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat

  We drive to St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat where we visit the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, as famous for its art collection as for its gardens, which harmoniously combine formal and contemporary styles. The villa was built between 1905 and 1912 for the Baroness Béatrice de Rothschild in the most beautiful spot on the Cap Ferrat peninsula. Nine gardens surround the villa, each with its own distinctive and contrasting theme. Later we go to Villa Kerylos, a contemporary and stylish recreation of a classical Greek villa.

• Day 4 - Val Rahmeh Botanical Garden

  Today we walk to the Val Rahmeh Botanical Garden, close to the hotel. The garden was developed from 1905 by Lord Percy Radcliffe, and in the 1950s many unusual plants and trees began to be added. Next we go to the great garden of Lawrence Johnson, designer of Hidcote – Serre de la Madone. The rest of the day is free for you to explore the pretty resort of Menton.

• Day 5 - Clos du Peyronnet

  The Waterfield family have owned Clos du Peyronnet since 1915. There is much imaginative use of fountains, ponds and cascades which enhance the artful landscaping. During the afternoon we will drive to nearby Monte Carlo to see the impressive collection of succulents and cacti at the Principality’s Jardin Exotique.

• Day 6 - Flight

  We drive to Nice airport for the flight to London.