Get Inspired at a Writing and Art Retreat in Tuscany
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Looking for a creative retreat in Tuscany where you can focus on your art or writing in peace? Then consider booking a week’s stay at Casale di Clio, an 18th century village house located in tiny Vetteglia, about an hour’s drive north of Lucca.
Here, you’ll find stunning views, cozy rooms, and inspiring spaces designed to inspire writers, painters, and poets.
I spent a week at Casale di Clio working on my novel while my husband, artist Gregg Simpson, painted in the “art barn.” The peaceful, jaw-droppingly gorgeous surroundings are exceedingly conducive to contemplative creative work.
We both left feeling energized, productive, and deeply inspired by this magical corner of Italy. And no wonder! Look at the view I gazed at while writing in my top floor room.
Highlights: My Stay at Casale di Clio
The Setting – Casale di Clio
In the charming village of Vetteglia—founded in Roman times—Casale di Clio offers breathtaking views of valleys and mountains. The retreat is run by Adrian, from Devon, and his Italian wife Tiziana (Tizi), who live in part of their thoughtfully renovated stone house.
Four guest rooms, each with a desk, are reserved for artists and writers. Three of these have their own ensuite facilities, and a fourth uses a bathroom a short way along the corridor. Guests also share a kitchen, dining room, library, balcony and terrace, plus the newly renovated “art barn” and are welcome to use the garden, where chairs and a sunshade are available.
Daily Rhythm
My week was a productive mix of writing, walking, and soaking in the atmosphere. Mornings at my desk with a view of the Tuscan hills stretching out before me led to some productive writing stints.
Afternoons meant terrace breaks, library time, and woodland walks to nearby villages. Gregg worked happily in the art barn, spreading out his supplies in a space designed for creating art.
Meals were a pleasure: cooking with ingredients from Tizi’s garden and the village shop, or joining Adrian and Tizi for homemade dinners. We also enjoyed excursions to Bagni di Lucca—once a favorite spa town of Mary and Percy Bysshe Shelley, Byron, and the Brownings.
The Experience
The week wasn’t just about word counts—although I did manage to write over 10,000 words. It was about reconnecting with my work in progress, finding clarity, and even weathering a rainy-day writing crisis with the misty Tuscan hills for company. Gregg declared the art barn the best studio he’s ever had, and I found myself more focused and inspired than at any other point in our European travels.
Final Thoughts
Casale di Clio is not a vacation spot—it’s a creative retreat designed to give writers, painters, and poets the space to work in extraordinary surroundings.
If you’re looking to escape distractions, breathe in mountain air, and invite the muse to visit, this Tuscan haven may be exactly what you need.
Full Journal: Day by Day at Casale di Clio
Saturday, September 6, 2025
After a twisty, turny drive up to the village of Vetteglia, we veer down a narrow road and park near an ancient chapel below Casale di Clio. Adrian bounds down the hill to greet us, then cheerfully hauls our luggage up to the house in a wheelbarrow.
Here’s the view up from where we parked the car to the Casale di Clio. My room’s the middle one.
Casale di Clio does not accommodate couples in one room, preferring to rent rooms to individuals. Gregg is in the Galileo room and I’m next door in Hildegard. Each room has a desk, cupboard, double bed, and small ensuite bathroom with a shower and toilet. Just steps away is another bathroom equipped with a large bath.
But we are not confined to our rooms! Retreat guests also have the run of the ground floor, which includes a kitchen, dining room, living room, library, and terrace. There are lots of places to work.
Gregg and I get settled, and then Adrian takes me and the other guest for a walk around Vetteglia and the surrounding countryside. Adrian tells us the village is home to about fifty people, including a few expats, some holiday homes, an Airbnb, and several Italian families with young children.
Here’s the view from the main square, which is actually just an overlook with space for a few cars to park.
We descend below the village to Adrian and Tizi’s large vegetable plot, enclosed by a mildly electrified fence to stop wild boars. Apparently, it doesn’t stop porcupines, which manage to do some damage.
Adrian and Tizi grow squash, cabbages, tomatoes, potatoes, and other crops. I sample a handful of cherry tomatoes the next morning—delicious.
Below the plot is a hillside that’s also part of the property and available as a place to bring a chair and commune with nature while writing, painting, or just thinking. The views are spectacular!
After our walk, I set up my computer and get to work. By the time Adrian calls us to a welcome aperitif before dinner, I’ve knocked out 900 words—a big win for me!
For most of the five weeks we’ve been in Europe in the fall of 2025, I’ve been lucky to manage 300 words in a day. I’m determined to buckle down this week at Casale di Clio and get a solid 10,000 words written.
I’m working on the first draft of a new novel, which is always the most challenging part of the writing process for me. Like many writers (perhaps most!), I don’t particularly love writing—but I love having written.
Gregg and I meet Adrian and Tizi on the terrace for a festive glass of prosecco and some nibblies. The third guest is tired and chooses not to join us.
We launch into a lively conversation and quickly discover common ground. Adrian shares his love of sports cars with Gregg, a fellow enthusiast, and tells me about the historical novel he’s planning to write. Who knew that the host of this writing/art retreat is also a historical novelist?
Tizi serves a tasty lasagna dinner followed by homemade fig pie with ice cream.
The welcome dinner is included in the seven-day retreat price. For the rest of the week, we have full access to the well-equipped kitchen and can also pay extra to have dinner cooked for us. I tell Tizi we’ll eat with them on Wednesday.
After dinner, Gregg returns to the art barn while I pound out a few more words and attend to email. The Wi-Fi is thankfully strong throughout the house—a relief after four days near Lake Garda at a place without Wi-Fi in our room.
Sunday, September 7, 2025
I wake early on our first full day at Casale di Clio, make myself a coffee, and settle on the terrace for a phone call with our daughter back in Canada. By 8:30 am, I’m back in my room and at my desk.
My goal is to write 2,000 words in one day—a lot for me. I’ve heard of writers cranking out many more, but I’ve learned to let go of envy. Writing is deeply personal: what works for one writer doesn’t work for another.
By eleven, the sun pouring into my room is too hot for me to continue. I pull the wooden shutters closed and go outside for a short walk. At every turn is a new vista, a new photograph, a new idea. I can see why Adrian and Tizi chose this place to live in and share as a retreat.
I make myself an early lunch and spend the afternoon roaming from room to room, terrace to terrace—writing, reading, and thinking. By mid-afternoon, I’ve passed the 1,000 word mark.
In the small library, I spread out research books on Van Gogh and his time in Arles. The first part of my novel is set in 1888 in Arles and features both Van Gogh and Gauguin, although the story is not about them.
By 6 pm, I venture out for a longer walk. Paths wind through the forest and across the hills. The afternoon light casts deep shadows across the Tuscan landscape, and I give myself over to the magic of this stunning area.
A brisk 20-minute walk takes me to a crossroads. I choose the far-left road and eventually end up in San Gemignano, the closest town to Vetteglia, where we’ll shop on Monday. Vetteglia itself doesn’t have any stores.
Back at Casale di Clio, I cook lemon-buffalo stuffed pasta with cacio e pepe sauce, plus a salad and tomatoes from Tizi’s garden. After dinner, I return to my desk and finally hit my 2,000-word goal.
Monday, September 8, 2025
I’m at my desk by 8:30 am and manage 1,000 words before breaking at 11 to walk with Tizi to San Gemignano.
She takes me through the woods along a track that likely dates back to Roman times. Tizi explains that Vetteglia was founded by a retired centurion who was given the land as payment for his military service. The path is steep and rocky but beautiful and very peaceful.
At the village shop, I stock up on food, including sausages for dinner. I walk back along the road. It’s a less charming route, but easier when laden with groceries.
The afternoon is low-key—reading, resting, and research—but by 4 pm, I’m back to work and produce another 1,000 words.
Gregg is equally happy: the art barn gives him space to spread out and work.
Tuesday, September 9, 2025
Rain and thunder roll in overnight. A rainy day for a writer is the best kind—but instead of cranking out more words, I waste the morning tumbling into research rabbit holes and existential doubt.
I at least take a break to film the cacophony of swallows swirling through the sky in front of my window. I learn later that they are having one last swoop through the village before winging off to Africa for the winter.
By day’s end, I’ve written zero words. Instead of beating myself up, I publish an Artsy Traveler blog post, answer emails, and Zoom with a potential publicist for my next novel, The Choir (coming February 2026).
Days like this happen despite the best of intentions. At least if I must have a writing crisis, Casale di Clio is a beautiful place to have one.
Wednesday, September 10, 2025
The rain lingers, but I’m refreshed. I spend the morning rethinking my novel’s plot and purpose. It’s hard work but necessary.
At noon, Gregg and I drive down to Bagni di Lucca, once a fashionable spa town. Mary Shelley edited Frankenstein here, and later the Brownings stayed by the river, where Robert proposed to Elizabeth. Literary history lives in these hills.
Back at Casale di Clio, Tizi serves us a dinner of risotto with courgettes and freshly foraged porcini mushrooms. I’ve never tasted mushrooms so good.
Thursday, September 11, 2025
The morning is productive, but our attempt at finding lunch in San Cassiano goes awry. We can’t find a restaurant, so we keep driving. The SatNav goes out, but fortunately the road winds down into the valley and back to Bagni di Lucca.
We settle at an outdoor cafe for lunch, where we’re joined by a busload of Yorkshire tourists. I enjoy listening to their accents (The Choir is set in Yorkshire in the 1890s). After drinking a cappuccino and buying a few groceries, we head back up the narrow, hair-raising road to Vetteglia.
We spend the rest of the day in our respective work spaces. I make more progress with my novel and feel like I just might see a few glimmers of light at the end of the tunnel. Can I sustain it? I hope!
Friday, September 12, 2025
I fill my last full day with writing and blogging. At noon, I walk to San Gemingnano and buy fresh porcini mushrooms from the village shop. Cooked in butter and olive oil and accompanied by a slice of fresh focaccia, they make a divine lunch.
In the evening, Adrian and Tizi drive us down to Bagni di Lucca for a farewell celebration—aperitifs at Café Italia followed by pizza. Thankfully, Tizi drives us safely back up the twisting road in the dark.
Here’s an admittedly doctored shot of Adrian and Tizi that I snapped in Bagni di Lucca and then put in front of a view of the Tuscan countryside.
Saturday, September 13, 2025
Final clean-up, final check for belongings, heartfelt goodbyes—and we’re off to the next adventure.
If you’re looking for a place to tune out the world and focus on a creative project in spectacular surroundings, Casale di Clio may be just the thing. Find out more information on their website.
Conclusion
Have you participated in a writing or art retreat? Share your experiences with other artsy travelers in the comments below. Here is a post I wrote about an art workshop with Italiana Tours:
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