Tuscan Couture

In the fashion-forward Italian town of Forte dei Marmi, Rebecca Rose ventures to a revived villa turned balmy luxury hideaway.

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Cyclists in the Italian town of Forte dei Marmi; a 1925 photo of Pensione America.

CLOUDS WERE SCUDDING across a September sky, and there was a briskness to the pine-scented air in Forte dei Marmi, a chic resort town on the Tuscan coast. The concierge at Pensione America and I crossed a pristine patch of gravel, stopping to inspect a row of sage-green bicycles parked in perky, upright formation. I noticed they all had fenders over the back wheel to stop long skirts from getting tangled. “Do many women cycle in dresses here?” I asked the concierge.

“This is Forte dei Marmi,” he said. “Women cycle in heels!”

Checking into Pensione America for a weekend, I instantly regretted packing little more than shorts and Birkenstocks. Forte, I quickly learned, is synonymous with old family wealth, flashy international visitors—and bicycles.

A salad at Pensione America's restaurant; a hotel employee; the Garden Suite; the pool deck.

With its easy-to-navigate grid layout and wide avenues, this is a resolutely two-wheel town. Both residents and tourists cruise around on single-speed bikes, parking them in haphazard piles to shop in luxury boutiques, visit the famous Sunday market for clothing and home goods, or grab a cappuccino in a glitzy café.