Bosco Della Ragnaia
Bosco Della Ragnaia
4.5
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.5
50 reviews
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35
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10
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2
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2
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claudio d
Viterbo, Italy44,579 contributions
Jan 2024 • Solo
Very particular park, created by the American Sheppard Craige: a tourist sign not far from the entrance defines it as "a living and constantly transforming work of art". It is a very large fenced green area (about 5 hectares) in which two areas of almost similar size can be identified: a more "open" one to the south, where the lawn prevails, and a completely wooded one to the north (hence the name "Bosco della Ragnaia"). The characteristic, I think unique, of this park is the presence throughout the area of numerous installations, made with various materials, but mainly tuff and earthenware and subordinately travertine, bronze and iron, with the most disparate shapes and obscure meanings. , not to mention enigmatic, surreal and I dare say even esoteric. Often you find stone slabs with some phrases engraved on them, which are also mostly cryptic. There is no precise itinerary to follow (even if you move well between paths and stairways), perhaps precisely because everyone has to create their own, in the spirit of this place, in which the same installation can freely be interpreted differently by each visitor.
Free entry, but a sign next to the entrance lists some rules to be respected, which are sensible, such as the ban on smoking (I think to avoid fires and/or littering with cigarette butts), keeping dogs on a leash (I think so that they don't disturb the other visitors or damage the works present) or avoid shouting and loud noises (obviously, in the spirit of the park). Some, in particular families, complain that children under 14 are not allowed to enter: in reality it is only mentioned that "children under 14 are not welcome and must be accompanied by adults"; so in reality, even if they are not welcome, they can enter, but they must always do so accompanied by adults; the reason is probably connected to the exuberance of children and teenagers, who could, without realizing it, damage the installations or make noise. In any case, since the area is private (and moreover free) the owner can very well decide the rules he wants. The park is located immediately at the end of the western outskirts of San Giovanni d'Asso; if you want you can enter by car which then has to be parked in the open space that you come across after a hundred metres; alternatively, the car can be left in a clearing that can be found 70 meters before the entrance, coming from the town along the provincial road.
Free entry, but a sign next to the entrance lists some rules to be respected, which are sensible, such as the ban on smoking (I think to avoid fires and/or littering with cigarette butts), keeping dogs on a leash (I think so that they don't disturb the other visitors or damage the works present) or avoid shouting and loud noises (obviously, in the spirit of the park). Some, in particular families, complain that children under 14 are not allowed to enter: in reality it is only mentioned that "children under 14 are not welcome and must be accompanied by adults"; so in reality, even if they are not welcome, they can enter, but they must always do so accompanied by adults; the reason is probably connected to the exuberance of children and teenagers, who could, without realizing it, damage the installations or make noise. In any case, since the area is private (and moreover free) the owner can very well decide the rules he wants. The park is located immediately at the end of the western outskirts of San Giovanni d'Asso; if you want you can enter by car which then has to be parked in the open space that you come across after a hundred metres; alternatively, the car can be left in a clearing that can be found 70 meters before the entrance, coming from the town along the provincial road.

Written February 7, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Beatrice A
Pozzolatico, Italy11 contributions
Feb 2024 • Couples
The Ragnaia forest and park is a gift that the artist Sheppard Craige gave to
Community... I had wanted to visit it for a long time and I didn't expect it to be so magical and well cared for... a balm for the soul.
Walking slowly and stopping along its paths and ravines you can spend a couple of hours pleasantly.
I recommend bringing a good book too!
Community... I had wanted to visit it for a long time and I didn't expect it to be so magical and well cared for... a balm for the soul.
Walking slowly and stopping along its paths and ravines you can spend a couple of hours pleasantly.
I recommend bringing a good book too!

Written February 26, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Takapuna
Albany, New Zealand441 contributions
Jun 2023 • Couples
What an amazing find. This is the most outstanding wooded garden. We took a picnic and sat and listened to silence. Not sure if I want to rave too much about this place, it needs to be kept a secret. If you go, please respect this tranquil forest.
Written September 3, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TDK_BX
Bayeux, France21 contributions
Apr 2015 • Couples
When you look for San Giovanni d'Asso on the map, it seems pretty remote. It may be a bit of a detour, but with such incredible Tuscan landscapes to enjoy as your make your way there, who can complain? The tiny town has a charming castle with a truffle museum and a restaurant with a lovely terrace, delicious truffle dishes (among others) and an amiable owner. After lunch, you can make your way to the Bosco a short distance away. The Bosco is really three gardens, the entrance corridor, the woods and the valley garden. I highly recommend visiting this garden with a full stomach, an empty bladder and an open mind. Though the Bosco is rich in references to Italy's great gardens and monuments, it never gets academic or pretentious. One of the most enjoyable parts is walking around with neither map nor guidebook, just trusting your own eye and experience to interact with the landscapes, sculptures and inscriptions
Written May 6, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Manuela L
Luxembourg City, Luxembourg6,596 contributions
Aug 2018 • Friends
Bosco Della Ragnaia is not a public park, but a private park in the charming Tuscan landscapes; It's a lovely italian nature park with grass-green patch and rectangular beds,
special stone fountains, charming vases, most often cypress and a lot of other trees; I think this park has a lot of philosopher's paths, bancs for reading in the calm of the nature; don't smoke in this nice area, enjoy simply this magnificent garden and his nice sculptures, stones with inscriptions and the nature reserve.
special stone fountains, charming vases, most often cypress and a lot of other trees; I think this park has a lot of philosopher's paths, bancs for reading in the calm of the nature; don't smoke in this nice area, enjoy simply this magnificent garden and his nice sculptures, stones with inscriptions and the nature reserve.
Written March 5, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Harrywithab
Croydon, UK4 contributions
May 2017 • Couples
This is the most incredible and strange place. A real must and an experience that me and my partner will probably talk about for years to come. The park has an unassuming entrance. You pass through a gate, down a gravel path that then ends. No formal parking space, just a sign signifying the start. You then lead through a walkway to this strange wooded area to an area that looks like the epicenter of some weird cult where they sacrifice humans. That's all I'm going to say, but follow your instincts and the need to explore everything, and you will go on an truly amazing, breath taking and captavating journey!! Don't read anymore TripAdvisor reviews otherwise it's just like reading a movie review that spoils the ending.
Written May 27, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
George330
Milwaukee, WI12 contributions
Aug 2013 • Couples
Quite by accident we stumbled upon this garden, park, work of art. It is easy to miss, but we were so moved by it that we changed our schedule to return the next day. You will not easily forget your experience here.
The entrance gate looks old and there is no formal parking lot, just some bare dirt here and there. We got out of our car and wandered into a what seemed to be a small meandering sculpture garden with no particularly defined edges. Just when we thought there ws no more, we saw something else further in woods. And then we realized we were walking along the edge of a ravine. Unbelievably there appears to be more down below, much more.
Going down the steps into the ravine is like entering a magical kingdom. The floor of the ravine looked like ancient formal gardens that had been abandoned and overgrown long ago, to which a particularly skillful artist had added a little something here, and something else there, sometimes whimsy, sometimes quirky, but always helping you see and feel and hear everything around you differently.
At first we thought the long axis of the ravine must lead up to some extraordinary estate, once wealthy but now abandoned. We learned later that it all started in 1996. There is a very small flow of water along the axis dripping down between ponds and fountains, adding its music and dampness to still silence beneath the trees. Random artworks, from tiny interactive objects to very large open cubes framing space and views. Here and there are carefully placed stone blocks, carved with words and phrase that challenge you to think freshly, without limits. Walking under the sheltering trees with all this care and intention, we felt that we were in deeply sacred space, where all we needed to do was be quiet and take it all in.
As we began to think of resting before returning to our car, we noticed the ravine was widening and opening. We followed a path up the side and there before us opened out a huge bowl, an open field many times larger than the ravine, recently laid out into what seemed to be a formal Italian garden. But soon we began to notice the same kind of artistic intelligence at work only at a much larger scale, and still young, growing into its vision.
If this sounds interesting to you, take water, allow at least 2 hours, and be sure to spend a little time just sitting in it. Like a major art museum, it is not possible to do justice to all of it in one visit. So let that idea go, and do justice to whatever you are drawn to in the time you have.
The entrance gate looks old and there is no formal parking lot, just some bare dirt here and there. We got out of our car and wandered into a what seemed to be a small meandering sculpture garden with no particularly defined edges. Just when we thought there ws no more, we saw something else further in woods. And then we realized we were walking along the edge of a ravine. Unbelievably there appears to be more down below, much more.
Going down the steps into the ravine is like entering a magical kingdom. The floor of the ravine looked like ancient formal gardens that had been abandoned and overgrown long ago, to which a particularly skillful artist had added a little something here, and something else there, sometimes whimsy, sometimes quirky, but always helping you see and feel and hear everything around you differently.
At first we thought the long axis of the ravine must lead up to some extraordinary estate, once wealthy but now abandoned. We learned later that it all started in 1996. There is a very small flow of water along the axis dripping down between ponds and fountains, adding its music and dampness to still silence beneath the trees. Random artworks, from tiny interactive objects to very large open cubes framing space and views. Here and there are carefully placed stone blocks, carved with words and phrase that challenge you to think freshly, without limits. Walking under the sheltering trees with all this care and intention, we felt that we were in deeply sacred space, where all we needed to do was be quiet and take it all in.
As we began to think of resting before returning to our car, we noticed the ravine was widening and opening. We followed a path up the side and there before us opened out a huge bowl, an open field many times larger than the ravine, recently laid out into what seemed to be a formal Italian garden. But soon we began to notice the same kind of artistic intelligence at work only at a much larger scale, and still young, growing into its vision.
If this sounds interesting to you, take water, allow at least 2 hours, and be sure to spend a little time just sitting in it. Like a major art museum, it is not possible to do justice to all of it in one visit. So let that idea go, and do justice to whatever you are drawn to in the time you have.
Written July 21, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
WPQ
California554 contributions
Jun 2014 • Couples
We spent a couple of hours roaming around Il Bosco. We appeared to be alone the entire time we were there. It is a unique place that is worth a stop.
Written July 14, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jerusalemmiriam
jerusalem146 contributions
Nov 2014 • Couples
We also came upon this magical place by accident while at the truffle Fair and this was by far and away much more powerful and exciting. The garden draws you in and you can not stop wanting to see what is around the next corner. I have never been so enchanted in my life as visiting this place. We wandered for over an hour there and when my husband wandered over to the additional side that is still under construction he was fortunate enough to meet the artistic soul behind this project! Thank you, Sheppard! This place is more important than most of the places we have visited in Tuscany and is worth driving out of your way to discover for yourself!
Written November 17, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Diane P
Boston, MA5 contributions
Dec 2024 • Friends
Beautiful picturesque hidden gem. This is a very peaceful and reflective wooded area, decorated with artful landscaping. Didn't cost a cent to visit, but we were paid with a very fond memory.
Written December 14, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Trail63047537451
Venturina Terme, Italy
Vorrei sapere il periodo di apertura e orari... Grazie
Written June 7, 2020
Francamente non ne ho la più pallida idea... anche se non credo sia un problema; comunque puoi sempre chiedere inviando una mail, trovi il contattato sul sito web
Written August 21, 2018
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