Coconut Grove, FL, June 2006 — Tuscan Way, the eight-year-old company known for its Tuscan cooking vacations, is showcasing a seven-day yoga and wellness package, September 16-22, at Villa Castelletti, a 15th-century estate set within a lush 17-acre park, nine miles from Florence.  This extraordinary program, priced at $2,590 per person, double, provides a high level of personal attention to students along with a mixture of Eastern health principles (Ayurvedic & Chinese), delicious fresh Tuscan foods and the slower, arguably healthier lifestyle of Tuscan life.  The classes, ranging from hour-long meditations to instruction in Vinyassa and Hatha yoga, are taught by the renowned husband-wife yoga teaching team of Michi Holley & Brandon Jones, who run an acupuncture and yoga center in Hawaii and travel the world teaching yoga at resorts and to celebrities like Sting and John McEnroe.    

The all-inclusive trip includes accommodations in private apartments, all meals (with vegetarian options), two hours per day of instructor-lead Yoga, daily guided excursions to Florence, Lucca, San Gimignano and the villages of Vinci and Chianti, two wine tasting tours, lunch at an olive oil farm, and transfers to/from Florence. 

Tuscan Way participants are also introduced to “La Cucina Povera Tuscana” — the art of the traditional peasant's style of using locally grown ingredients to prepare the freshest of dishes.  Optional hands-on classes are taught in an informal style, glasses of Carmignano and Chianti wines always within arm’s reach, by the estate's head chef, Roberto Bondioli, known throughout Tuscany for his technique of combining the old and the new.  

Restored to its past splendor and managed by a local historical society, Villa Castelletti is a large, upscale estate with spacious halls, multiple wine cellars, antique fireplaces, red terracotta floors, numerous dining areas, swimming pool, and gardens and footpaths for wandering through the tranquil woods and gardens.  Guest accommodations are well-appointed private apartments set in the property's recently renovated borgo (hamlet).  Each apartment consists of lounge/dining room, split-level bedroom, bathroom and kitchen, central heating, air-conditioning and satellite TV.

Reservations, brochures and additional information can be obtained from Tuscan Way, 2829 Bird Avenue, PMB 242, Coconut Grove, FL, 33133; telephone (800) 766-2390 or (305) 598-8368, website: www.tuscanway.com.