Early summer is peak lavender blooming season in many places. While France, and Provence in particular, is the most popular “lavender destination” in Europe, Italophiles with a passion for lavender should know that there are several locations in Italy where you can admire the magnificent blooms. Lavender usually blooms in mid-June and will produce flowers for around 4 weeks, with color variations that go from blue to lilac to violet.
You can go on walks amid lavender fields, taking in the scents and sights, and perhaps try some lavender-based experiences.
Here are some beautiful lavender fields around Italy.
Il Lavandeto di Assisi and the Festa della Lavanda
In Castelnuovo di Assisi, the Lavandeto di Assisi features three hectares of lavender fields that include some rare varieties such as the white and rose ones. Here, the Lavender Festival is organized every year from mid-June, every weekend for about four weeks. The event is free and, besides visiting the fields and possibly buying your own bouquet, you can also go on guided walks and horseback rides, learn about the distillation of lavender and other essential oils, all within the backdrop of beautiful Assisi.
Lavanda Polesana, Ca’ Mello, Polesine - Veneto
In Veneto, there’s a place unknown to the masses where, come June, everything turns violet: it’s the ‘lavanda Polesana’ field at Ca’ Mello, near Porto Tolle in the Po Delta area, province of Rovigo. Lavender in bloom, the intense perfume, a farmhouse in the background and the buzz of bees that fills the silence - this is not your typical Veneto experience, but one that is sure worth trying. The blooming begins in June and lasts until the end of August, when the flowers are collected and processed into essential oils and other products. Even the trip to get there is incredibly picturesque, as you pass old rural houses, wheat fields, lagoons, bridges, and rows of trees.
Monferrato - Piedmont
In early summer, many areas of Monferrato are colored with a thousand shades of purple. The largest expanse of lavender can be found in Castelnuovo Don Bosco, 20 km east of Turin. Treat yourself to a romantic weekend or head there with the entire family, and enjoy trips to the fields and visits to the producers who process the flowers to create oils, perfumes and beauty products - the bigger producer is located in Spigno Monferrato.
Santa Luce Hills, Pisa, Tuscany
Tuscany offers many places where to enjoy lavender in bloom, from the Maremma to the Chianti hills of Fonterutoli and Castellina, from the rolling hills of Santa Luce up to Massarosa.
In the last decade, many abandoned fields have been reconverted into lavender fields and local farms have developed a number of activities around them to attract tourism. One such experiment has taken place in the Pisan hills of Santa Luce, with “La Valle Dei Profumi” project. Farms and producers welcome visitors by showing the various phases of processing, from harvesting to steam distillation, up to obtaining essential oils with beneficial properties. The lavender experience is completed with a photo tour, an e-bike ride, a relaxing massage with Tibetan bells or simply watching the sunset in the fields.
