Villa La Costa in Florence

You know, there are some places you walk into and you just sort of slow down. Villa La Costa in the hills of Florence is honestly like that. Piano dei Giullari is one of those addresses you hear mentioned when people talk about the best parts of the city. Even before you step inside, that feeling kind of starts when you turn off the road and make your way up the short driveway. On the way in, you get these bits of sunlight coming through the trees and you start to see what makes this place pretty special. There's this formal Italian garden right in front of you, and when you look up, the Renaissance inspired facade tells you you're somewhere with history. It's the sort of entrance I think people would remember even before they get to your front door.

As soon as I got to walk through here, it just felt grand but not in that stiff way some big places do. You move through the house and everything feels open and honest. The ground floor is all these big reception spaces with high ceilings, places you'd actually want to gather with friends and family or just read quietly on a sunny afternoon. The main staircase is elegant but friendly, it feels inviting and it leads up to seven bedrooms. Six are up there and one is tucked away on the main level. You'll notice none of the bedrooms are too tucked away or too far off by themselves. Each has enough room to feel calm and private and you can open the windows and hear the breeze in the olive trees most days.

If you step out onto the main floor terrace, you get one of the best panoramic views anywhere in Florence. You don't just see the city. You get these rolling Tuscan hills that seem to go on forever and the rooftops far off. Up in the tower, the terrace just kind of steals your breath. Some evenings you catch the sunset and the whole place is washed in gold light. It's the sort of thing you might take photos of at first, but after a while you end up just standing there, sometimes a little quiet because it's that peaceful.

The grounds are about a hectare which is a good size here. You have a classic olive grove out back, actually producing, and every time I wandered through it I remembered the smell of fresh olives and that crunch of the ground underfoot. There's even a small working vineyard and the traditional Italian vegetable garden is still here, so if you love homegrown food you'll have your own tomatoes or herbs right outside for most of the year. It's amazing how it doesn't feel fussy or overdone. Just practical, authentic Tuscan living.

At the entrance, right before you get to the villa, there's a separate caretaker's house. Maybe you want a bit more privacy or maybe you have family or staff that need their own space. The garage and extra service area make the day to day part of living here just easy. I mean, there's space tucked away for everything and everyone.

If you're looking for a Florence villa with real character and room to live, not just to impress, Villa La Costa might be for you. It's private but never isolated. The city is close enough so you rarely feel left out. Florence coffee shops and markets are within a short drive, and you even sometimes hear church bells from your garden on Sundays.

You definitely need to feel it in person. Photos just show the building but not the way it sits in the land or the sunlight in the morning. If you want to ask about it or just want to walk around and see what it's like yourself, I'm here any time. At LuxuryProperty.com, we just want to help make your next place feel like home.