Visit to the camellia exhibition in Tuscany
(March 2026)

Book a private guided tour of the Ancient Camellias of Lucca exhibition in March 2026.

It’s hard to believe that there is a village of camellias in Tuscany. Yes, there is; at the foot of the Pisan mountains, a few kilometres from the city of Lucca, lies the mountain village of Sant’Andrea di Compito. Japanese camellias (Camellia japonica) have been growing here for more than two hundred years. More than a hundred different varieties of this camellia species bloom every year in March in their various shades of colour, ranging from white to pink to dark red. It is so beautiful and unique that a “Camellia Exhibition” has been organised every year since 1989.

With the aim of preserving this splendid plant, some years ago, the Camellia Garden was created. A magical place that houses hundreds of camellias and has received the “Garden of Excellence” award from the “International Camellia Society”.

But Sant’Andrea di Compito is also home to the only tea plantation in Italy! The tea plant (Camellia sinensis) was cultivated here in 1987 and real tea is produced here!

Book a guided tour of Sant’Andrea di Compito during the camellia blossoming period and discover the tea plantation, the camellia garden and interesting anecdotes about this beautiful plant.

Duration: 3 hours private walking tour
Rate family/group of friends: €170.- (up to 10 people) 
Rate tour group: €160.- (12 to 25 people + €2 for each additional person)
Exhibition entrance fee: €8.- per person

Dates 2026 of the camellia exhibition:

07-08 March 2026
14-15 March 2026
21-22 March 2026
28-29 March 2026

On request, I create multi-day and tailor-made Garden tours for groups, tour operators and travel companies as well as a Journey to Tuscany for the camellia blossom.