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Giardini di Villa della Pergola

Discover Giardini di Villa della Pergola

Last updated on October 22, 2026

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Checked against Wikipedia — The Villa della Pergola is a historic residence of Alassio in Italy. The land on the hill of Alassio on which the villa stands was bought in 1876 by general William Montagu Scott McMurdo, who, together with his compatriot George Henderson Gibb, was among the first Britons to spend the winter period in the locality of Alassio. General McMurdo then had built, upon a pre-existing residence of the Counts della Lengueglia, a small villa in Anglo-Indian style baptised "Casa Napier" in honour of his father-in-law, general Sir Charles Napier; the villa proper, of eclectic style, was instead erected from 1880. From 1922 the property subsequently belonged to the Hanbury family. During the war period the estate remained closed and subject to confiscation; because of the lack of maintenance and the intrusions of wild animals a significant deterioration of the park occurred, a situation that worsened during the occupation of the German troops between 1943 and 1945. From the early nineteen-eighties the property passed temporarily to the De Martini family, who carried out some restoration interventions limited exclusively to the buildings. In 2006 the Park and the villas were the object of a judicial auction sale and were subsequently bought by a group led by Silvia and Antonio Ricci. In collaboration with the competent authorities, actions of conservation and recovery were carried out to preserve the historic dwellings and the garden, which was subsequently returned to public enjoyment. The two main villas present an eclectic style. An element of note is given by the dome clad in polychrome majolica of Albisola. The villas, today part of Relais & Chateaux, are immersed in a vast visitable park, rich in botanical species., The Gardens of the Villa della Pergola develop around the two main villas and are situated in a privileged position with a view over the sea, and are visitable with guided visits. They cover an area of 2.2 hectares and were created from the nineteenth century onwards; thanks to the actions undertaken by the various owners, the gardens harmoniously combine the typical Mediterranean vegetation with a rich variety of exotic plants. The intervention of the McMurdos was distinguished principally by the transformation of an ancient Ligurian agricultural holding into a sumptuous park, through the introduction of numerous ornamental plants and the use of balustrades in terracotta to delimit the most suggestive panoramic points. Upon this layout, from 1922 by the work of the Hanbury family, the park of the villa knew a period of notable development, and it is in this period that it assumed an increasingly exotic and botanically rich aspect; systematic actions were undertaken to enrich the plant collections, which included the addition of splendid specimens of palms such as the washingtonias, the date palms and the canariensis, besides the Mexican cycads. With the passing of the decades and of the owners, among whom Sir Walter Hamilton Dalrymple and the descendants of the Hanbury family stand out, the park saw the addition of new plant species, fountains and landscape works of value. After the great work of recovery that took place with the new ownership from 2006, the gardens have been tended by the landscape architect Paolo Pejrone. One of the distinctive characteristics of the park is its evergreen flora, which combines with the tropical plants brought to the place by the Hanbury family, a mixture that includes trees such as the maritime pines, the olives, the cypresses and the cedars of Lebanon, blending harmoniously with exotic plants such as jacarandas, giant strelitzias, araucarias and a specimen of the rare Wollemia nobilis. A significant aspect of the Gardens is the creation of renowned botanical collections: the collection of wisterias is considered the most important in Italy, with about 40 different varieties, and the collection of agapanthus counts more than 500 different species, the largest in Europe both for quantity of specimens and for number of different species. In addition the park hosts a vast collection of citrus trees coming from various parts of the world. The Gardens won the competition "the Most Beautiful Park in Italy" 2020/2022, and since 2025 they are a Partner Garden of the Royal Horticultural Society, one of the few gardens to boast this recognition outside the United Kingdom., The Muretto di Alassio -- also nicknamed the little wall of love and the little wall of the artists -- is an installation situated in the centre of the town of the same name, precisely along the corso Dante Alighieri. It consists of a wall composed of stones, characterised by the addition of small ceramic tiles. These tiles are adorned with signatures of famous figures, coats of arms of Italian and foreign comuni, and sculptures. Positioned beside the "Charlie Chaplin" playground and the square in which the monument to the fallen stands, the Muretto is found opposite the "Caffe Roma". It was in that very bar that, in 1953, the idea of beautifying an "anonymous and bare wall" was conceived by Mario Berrino, together with his brother Giorgio and with the United States writer Ernest Hemingway. It is universally recognised, together with the Baci di Alassio, as one of the most emblematic symbols of the town, so much so that Alassio is sometimes nicknamed "the Town of the Muretto". (October 2026).
Checked against I Giardini di Villa della Pergola — The Gardens are partially accessible also to people with reduced mobility. These are historic Gardens with a terraced conformation, stairs and ramps; where necessary the use of electrically powered devices is advised, and for personalised experiences the private visits section should be consulted. For journalists, press and bloggers the Press Office is available for information and accreditation; it is obligatory to send a request by email at least three days before the visit, and accreditations are not available at weekends or in periods of maximum attendance. Under the photo policy it is forbidden to take photographs of a professional kind or with a commercial purpose without authorisation; filming for personal use is permitted without tripods or additional lights, and for commercial uses the approval of the Press Office is necessary. The Gardens do NOT have parking for visitors; the use of the public car parks at Alassio is advised, such as the Parcheggio Stazione Ferroviaria, the Parcheggio Piazza Partigiani or the Parcheggio Don Bosco, and a taxi service is available on +39 0182 646464. For the protection of rare plants and local fauna it is not possible to bring in domestic animals of any size. Clothing adequate to the visit is required: closed and comfortable shoes for naturalistic routes. Sun protection and/or an umbrella are advised, and rain capes are available in the shop. Access is NOT permitted with rucksacks, voluminous bags or other bulky objects, which must be deposited in the paid cloakroom; small bags, on the other hand, are admitted., At every period of the year at the Giardini di Villa della Pergola different varieties of flowers can be admired and numerous fruits found on the trees. The Gardens give notice that every season is in itself different: if, for example, the spring is particularly cold, the flowering times of many early-season flowers will probably be delayed, while if the spring presents itself very warm, numerous plants will flower early; a hot and dry summer with drought conditions can also cause changes in the flowering times. The indicative flowering periods of some of the collections, plants and flowers of the Gardens are: March and April -- wisterias, Cesalpinia, iris, spireas, roses, Erythrina coralloides; April and May -- wisterias, roses, citrus, Opuntiae, Echium, Ceratostigma plumbaginoides; May and June -- lavender, water lilies, Solanum, Opuntiae; June and July -- Agapanthus, lotus, Annabelle and oakleaf hydrangeas, tropical water lilies, blue water lilies, cacti, Hemerocallis Stella de Oro; July and August -- oleanders, hibiscus, lantanas, Strelitzia nicolai, lotus, Canna indica; August and September -- oleanders, campsis, lantanas, datura, hibiscus; September to November -- hibiscus, oleanders, lantanas, plumbago, Dahlia imperialis. The restoration of the 22 thousand square metres of the Gardens was carried out by the landscape architect Paolo Pejrone, with particular attention dedicated to the recovery, conservation and enrichment of the flowerings, among which those of wisterias and agapanthus stand out. (October 2026).

Discover Giardini di Villa della Pergola

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Discover Giardini di Villa della Pergola

Architecture

The short history

How it was built and evolved over time

Frequently asked questions

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