In the municipality of Alassio, in western Liguria, the month of April is tinged with the intense purple and lilac of the wisteria, which you can observe on the pergolas of Villa della Pergola. The Gardens are open, and with them the most awaited flowering of the Riviera returns.
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The park – 22 thousand square meters overlooking the gulf, in via Privata Montagu 9 – houses the most important collection of wisteria in Italy, made up of forty varieties different in shape and colour, certified by the Italian Horticultural Society. A record which in 2025 convinced the Royal Horticultural Society, the most authoritative botanical institution in the world, to include Villa della Pergola among its Partner Gardens.
An almost lost story
The landscape we are telling you about could not have existed. In 2006 a building project risked obliterating the villa and park, it was the intervention of the Ricci family that saved the complex, followed by a long restoration entrusted to the landscape architect Paolo Pejrone. Cleaning, making it safe, botanical enrichment: from that recovery were born the collections that today make the park unique. The most prestigious recognition arrives in 2022, the title of Most Beautiful Park in Italy.
The origins date back to 1876, when the British general William Montagu Scott McMurdo purchased the land on the hill of Alassio, starting the English colony that would transform the small fishing village into one of the most elegant destinations on the Riviera. The subsequent owners – first the Dalrymple family, then the Hanburys – continued to enrich the botanical collection, introducing exotic species alongside the Mediterranean scrub. Wisterias were the passion of both families: the Hanburys celebrated them every spring with a “Wisteria Party”, a social event attended by the city authorities of Alassio.
What is found in flowering
Alongside the wisteria, the 22 thousand square meters are home to maritime pines, olive trees, almond trees, cypresses, cedars, palms, citrus fruits and a collection of exotic plants – eucalyptus, jacarandas, araucarias, giant strelizias – which coexist with the seasonal blooms of hydrangeas, oleanders, bougainvillea and jasmine. Lotus flowers and water lilies grow in the lakes and fountains of the park.
New for 2026: the Glicine Masterclass Experience
To celebrate twenty years since the rescue of the Gardens, the 2026 season introduces the Glicine Masterclass Experience, a two-hour guided tour with the park manager, among pergolas, terraces and the Garden Museum.
Useful information
When: From March 20th
Where: Gardens of Villa della Pergola, Alassio, province of Savona
Hours: open every day. Ordinary access to the Gardens takes place exclusively with an 80-minute guided tour, in the slots of 09.30, 11.30, 15.00, 17.00
Tickets: the visit takes place only via guided tour, here to purchase tickets
Official website: giardinidivilladellapergola.com
