Mesmerising Sammezzano Castle, Tuscany

I am drawn to vibrant colour, unique design and the more unusual tourist attractions. It is this combination that puts Sammezzano Castle, in Tuscany at the top of my list of dream destinations.

Where is Sammezzano?

The castle lies less than 40 kilometres from Florence in Regello, surrounded by an oak tree grove, at the top of a hill in 450 acres of parkland. Built in 1605 and later inherited by Ferdinando Panciatichi Ximenes d’Aragona who between 1853-1889 remodelled the property with a unique vision of Moorish Revival styled architecture.

Sammezzano castle has a lookout over the bell and clock at the front, where the views looking out over Tuscan landscape are said to be amazing. Sammezzano has 365 rooms, one for every day of the year, each unique in breathtaking patterns and incredible colours. Within the castle is the Peacock Room, with its ceiling and walls embellished with fans of rainbow colours and geometric patterns to the White Room with intricate mosaic tiled floor and wrought iron chandeliers and other jaw dropping interiors like Hall of Mirrors, Hall of Lilies, Stalactites, the lavish octagonal smoking room and Spanish, Arabian and Indian rooms.

Extravagant beyond comparison, Sammezzano Castle displays an explosion of colour and intricate designs in the little niches, tangled paths, hidden corridors and secret entrances. Reading a Latin inscription on an archway translates as “Nothing Further Beyond” one could think was the foundation of the creation of Alice in Wonderland which was written in 1865.

Sammezzano abandoned

After being looted during the war Sammezzano was converted to a luxury hotel with apartments, spa, golf and country club but sadly was closed to the public in 1990 and abandoned.

Within the parkland was an artificial cave with a statue of Venus, pools and fountains. The building has had little restoration since and suffered in the hands of time, the elements and graffiti. This sadly neglected building has no power or furniture and much of the stained glass is damaged or been stolen.

Hope for Sammezzano

This unique castle was sold in 2012 and was planned to be the showstopper it once was, with works originally scheduled to commence this year, 2014.

Until then, the castle is open a few times a year by reservation only, arranged by the Sammezzano Committee. In return for the voluneers’ hard work, cleaning and caring for the castle, they request a donation and the reward is watching the joy and amazement on the faces of the 6000 who has so far toured the castle. Despite the castle being closed for more than 20 years and is without water and power the tour for 1200 people allotted through an open ballot is fully booked within 2 minutes.

It’s a shame that lack of interest and neglect have left such a majestic building in such a state.

I would walk through this wonderland where reality ends and imagination begins with my mouth open, what a treat it would be to see some of its most magical spaces. So extraordinary, a Moorish style castle in the heart of Tuscan renaissance, a hidden treasure, hopefully to be restored to its former glory.

For me, this would be a once in a lifetime place to visit that I’m sure words could not describe.

You can read more and see the photo gallery on the Committee’s Facebook page.

Have you heard of Sammezzano? Would you like to visit?

What are you waiting for? Share this post or leave a comment below. If you like this post and want to read more like this why not subscribe to our Newsletter? We won’t spam you or share your personal details. If you’re not doing so already, please follow us on FacebookTwitter and Instagram or click the MixFlipboard or other social media buttons below to share this post with others who might enjoy reading it.

~ All pictures in this article were sourced from Wikipedia

12 Responses

  1. Moshe Shilo says:

    A great place. I would like to visit.

  2. Sophie says:

    Wow such a beautiful building. I can’t believe a building like this would be left to waste. So sad!

    • Lyn says:

      Thank for commenting Sophie, it is sad that this building has got to this state but will be wonderful when it is renovated. I just hope they keep the original charm and beauty.

  3. The Mesmerising Sammezzano Castle in Tuscany is absolutely beautiful! The interior of the building is picture perfect. I would love to visit this place.
    Constance – Foreign Sanctuary recently posted…OMG…I’m Writing a Book: The Events That Started It AllMy Profile

    • Lyn says:

      Thanks for your comment Constance, with the beauty of this place it’s not hard to see why the limited tours book within minutes of being released.

  4. The building facade shows granduer but its a shame its not fully restored and looked after

    • Lyn says:

      Anne it is such a shame, thanks for the your comment.

  5. It is so sad to hear that it has been in such disrepair for so long but it’s great that they’ll be fixing it up. I would gladly pay for a chance to tour and restore that beautiful house. Although, I have to admit when I read that there were 365 rooms, my first thought was ‘who has to clean that?’ Hahaha!

    • Lyn says:

      As I was reading your comment I wondered if you had read the whole article when you mentioned you want chance to restore it, thinking, does she know its got 365 rooms. Then I read on, yeah I’m with you, cleaning them all, phew. Thanks for your comments Adrian.

  6. Anda says:

    Judging from your description and pictures this castle seems to be a very unusual. The interior reminds me a lot about Topkapi Palace in Istanbul (most likely because of the Moorish style architecture). I saw that a lot in Spain but didn’t expect to see it in Italy. It’s such a pity that Italians would let such a beautiful place fall into disrepair.
    Anda recently posted…The Weekly Postcard: Pelisor Castle in Sinaia, RomaniaMy Profile

    • Lyn says:

      Anda it is very sad to hear about a beautiful building like this abandoned. Hopefully the new owners will this back to the glory it once was. It must be massive to have 365 individual rooms, each with their own style.

  1. […] think it goes without saying Mont-Saint-Michel in France is one of the most beautiful castles in the world and when I think castles is one of the first that comes to mind. This magical island is located […]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badge

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

%d bloggers like this:
Interested in travel?

Subscribe to our mailing list and get interesting stuff and updates to your email inbox.

Thank you for subscribing.

Something went wrong.

Send this to a friend