Bardini Gardens and wisteria in bloom. Spring in Florence at its best

It’s one of the most beautiful gardens in Florence (especially in the spring when it is filled with flowers), it has a beautiful view over the city and it is linked to one of the most interesting Florentine figures of the 20^th century: I am talking about the Bardini Gardens.

It is not one of the oldest gardens in the city, but it is certainly one of the most scenic and photogenic ones, and therefore definitely worth a visit. It’s better if you can get a guided tour.

I love giving tours of the Bardini Gardens, as a local tour guide and as a historian of architecture of gardens!

You can, of course, visit the garden on your own, but guided tours are a great opportunity to discover the history of the garden and learn lots of information about the plant species found there.

You might also like to read “the most beautiful gardens in Florence“

Some information about the Bardini Gardens

The garden has a long history dating back to the Middle Ages when it belonged to the Mozzi family’s palace complex on Montecuccoli hill. It remained in the Mozzi family on-and-off until the end of the end of the 19^th century, and over the years was expanded to include a nearby English park. In 1913, the garden was purchased by the antiques dealer Stafano Bardini, who radically altered the landscape, giving it its current appearance. He transformed the hill into an outdoor showroom: a scenic and unique frame to expose the statues and ancient works that he bought and resold to collectors all over the world.

After the deaths of the antiquarian and his son in the 1960s, the Bardini Gardens was abandoned and fell into disrepair until, in 2000, the municipality took responsibility for carefully restoring the gardens to their former glory. The caretakers try to maintain Bardini’s vision for his garden, carefully maintaining its design and even the plant species that he chose.

The garden is made up of different sections, which provide one surprise after another for the visitors. The most striking feature is definitely the large staircase that descends along the hillside, framed by six mosaic fountains and facing a panoramic view of the Duomo and the rooftops of Florence. But there are other surprises to find, such as the Kaffeehaus, the belvedere terrace, and the English garden with a stream that crosses your path in the woods.

Wisteria in bloom

The best time to visit the Bardini Gardens is at the end of April, when the wisteria bloom on one of the most photographed pergolas in Florence. Wisteria plants belong to various species that produce flowers of slightly different shapes and colors. The result is a floral tunnel of violets and pinks with a fantastic panoramic view over the city. If you are lucky and the blooms coincide, you can also admire the baroque staircase bordered by large and colorful irises, the symbol of Florence. You can read more about the iris as symbol of Florence in my article about the Iris Garden in Florence.

Visiting the Bardini Garden

The park is run by the Bardini-Peyron Foundation (the same one that manages the magnificent Villa Peyron Garden in Fiesole), and has a different entrance – and therefore a different ticket – than Villa Bardini. Entrances are from via de’Bardi 1 (red numbers) and from Costa San Giorgio 2.

For more information check out the Bardini-Peyron Foundation’s website.

Bardini Garden Guided Tour

I really love this place and I give private tours of the Bardini Gardens. Here’s some quick info:

• Duration: 1 hour and a half
• Meeting Point: lower entrance of the garden (address: Costa San Giorgio 2).
• Included: your licensed local tour guide
• Not included: tickets for the garden

The ticket also includes entrance to the Boboli Garden, so the two guided tours can be easily paired together.

If you have any question about the Bardini Gardens private tour or if you want to make a reservation, don’t hesitate to fill the contact form below and get in touch with me!