The Giardino Esotico Pallanca occupies a steep slope at Arziglia, west of Bordighera, facing the sea. It grew out of the botanical passion of the Pallanca family, descendants of Bartolomeo Pallanca, who worked with the German landscape designer Ludwig Winter, a central figure in the acclimatisation culture that made Bordighera's reputation at the turn of the twentieth century. Across more than ten thousand square metres of terraces, the collection gathers over three thousand species, mainly cacti and succulents, arranged by region of origin.
The property remains private and family held, which gives the visit a character quite unlike that of an institutional garden: one moves quietly among rare specimens, including a Chilean Copiapoa estimated at three centuries old, with the possibility of being accompanied by a member of the family. The change in level is real and the ground uneven. From Cala del Forte the garden is reached overland by the coast road.
Other experiences in Cala del Forte
At the foot of the ochre cliffs of Grimaldi, a group of caves inhabited since the Lower Palaeolithic, and the state museum that holds their collections.
Food & VineyardsTerre Bianche, Rossese on the Arcagna ridgeA family estate founded in 1870 on the white soils of Arcagna, above Dolceacqua, devoted to Rossese di Dolceacqua.