An ensemble unique in its beauty, this park was built over a number of different periods, and combines very different styles and plant species.

The original complex, taken over in 1599 by the Cenami family, was acquired by the Mansi family in 1675. Between 1725 and 1732, Ottavio Mansi (most likely) commissioned Filippo Juvarra to transform the garden with a system of locks and waterworks. All that remains today of these 18th-century works is the cascading water feature that runs through the park longitudinally, ending in an octagonal basin that, in Juvarra’s design, stood at the centre of a small wood with radial avenues. From here, the water flows on into a large, elegantly-designed fishpond decorated with balustrades and statues. Next to the pool, towards the villa, there used to be a walled, hidden secret garden for growing flowers within geometric parterres. The visual focus was the Bath of Diana, a water feature with a fake ruin with figures of the goddess of hunting and a swimming nymph. Following the 19th-century conversion of part of the garden into an English-style park, the Bath of Diana is today isolated within a section of woodland. Other renovations carried out during the romantic period include a large lawn that enhances the impressive residence. On the eastern side of the villa is a grove of palms and bamboo; to the west, in March you can admire magnificent varieties of camellia, the iconic flower of these beautiful Lucca gardens.

Highlights