Renaissance Tuscany Il Ciocco Resort & Spa: A Hilltop Haven in the Serchio Valley

Tucked high in the lush hills of Garfagnana, overlooking the medieval town of Barga and the winding Serchio Valley, lies **Renaissance Tuscany Il Ciocco Resort & Spa** — a place where Tuscan serenity, modern luxury, and wild nature come together in harmony. The resort is set within a vast 600-hectare estate, a land of chestnut forests, mountain peaks, and ancient villages. It is one of those rare destinations where you feel at once secluded and deeply connected to the land.

Arrival & Setting: Nature’s Grand Embrace

Your journey up to Il Ciocco unfolds via country roads lined with pines and chestnuts, high over Garfagnana’s valleys. The resort perches on a ridge, and from many vantage points — your suite balcony, the terrace, or the spa pool — the valley spreads out below: patchworks of woodland, terracotta village roofs, the distant silhouette of the Apuan Alps and the Apennines. Especially magical at sunrise or dusk, when light softens into gold and lavender.

Accommodation: Rooms with Views (and Heart)

Il Ciocco has around 180 rooms and suites, in categories like Classic, Superior, Deluxe, Balcony Deluxe, Junior Suite, full Suite, Presidential, and even Penthouse. Many rooms feature sweeping views over the Serchio Valley, some with balconies or terraces. Interiors are modern, with elegant touches: linen sheets, HD TVs, minibars, Wi-Fi, and comforts that balance rustic Tuscan charm with contemporary design.

Wellness & Relaxation: Spa, Pools & Slow Moments

When the world outside is whispering with the wind in trees, Il Ciocco offers spaces to slow down and revive. The Beauty Spa is generous: multiple treatment cabins (including a couple’s suite cabin, a detox cabin, and one with jacuzzi), an indoor heated pool with hydromassage, Turkish bath, soft sauna and steam rooms, emotional & chromotherapy showers, solarium & relaxation terraces. Spa rituals often draw on the local landscape and produce — treatments using chestnut, vine-based scrubs and other Tuscan natural ingredients.

Two swimming pools—one outdoor (seasonal) and others partially covered—allow guests to soak with views, swim laps, or drift into stillness. The surrounding forested hills, often kissed with morning mist or autumn’s flame, make walking paths, gentle hikes, horse riding, or biking especially rewarding.

Cuisine & Culinary Soul

At Il Ciocco, food is more than sustenance—it’s story. The resort’s main restaurant, La Veranda, presents a menu that blends tradition with creativity: Tuscan staples (farro, pasturna, soups, local cheeses, game, pasta) reimagined with seasonal and local ingredients.

Smaller experiences are offered too: Le Salette, an intimate space where private culinary experiences, cooking classes, market tours or “From the Land to the Plate”-style meals are arranged. For lighter moods, there’s the Nour Lounge where wines, cocktails, snacks, and relaxed conversations are part of the charm.

Exploring Garfagnana: Wild Trails, Villages & Legends

One of the joys of staying here is stepping into nature’s book: the resort serves as a launchpad for discovering ancient woods, plateaus, ridges, and hamlets where time moves slowly. The Local Navigator service can help you pick trails—maybe to Monte Orecchiella, or the Pania di Corfino, or through forests to hidden waterfalls and viewpoints.

Medieval villages like Barga, Gallicano, Castelnuovo di Garfagnana are close enough for easy half-day or day-trips — exploring narrow stone alleys, historic churches, local artisans. Folk tales and history are alive here: legends of the Ponte del Diavolo at Borgo a Mozzano, or the traditions of chestnut harvests, mountain plateaus, and regional gastronomy.