After 18 years, I finally made it back to Bella Italia—way too long for someone who eats, sleeps, and breathes La Dolce Vita! From the food and wine to the history and art, I’m totally obsessed. So this past July, my family of four packed up, left the teens’ phones behind (yes, really!), and hopped on an overnight flight from San Francisco to Rome. Three amazing weeks in my favorite place on earth were about to begin!
But what exactly is La Dolce Vita? In Italian, it literally means “the sweet life” or “the good life.” It’s all about simple luxury—savoring the little pleasures, indulging in what you love, and truly enjoying life. And that’s exactly what we set out to do!
As you can imagine, I have so much to share with you all; from the 6 charming boutique hotels we stayed – places like the late 14th century Residenza d’Epoca In Piazza della Signoria (Florence) and Hotel Palazzo Ravizza (Siena), to our 10 hour tour of Tour Val D’Orcia (Tuscany) with our private English speaking driver, Dejan Prvulovic, an intimate cooking class with Chef Maurizio Tater at the family-run Hotel Marina in Monterosso, discovering Artisans in tucked away alleys, long meals in small tucked away places like Cantina Belsiana (Rome), Cecco (Siena), and Da Eraldo (Monterosso) and let’s not leave out the best Gelato discovery…Gelateria Edoardo (Biological Ice Cream!) in Florence.
Was it hot, humid, and crowded at times? Absolutely. But luckily good water is a plenty in Italy and there’s nothing like a mid-afternoon break with a cup of Gelato, Affogoto, Aperol Spritz, or glass of Pinot Grigio to allow you to enjoy the Italian Dolce Vita.
Speaking of simple luxuries, I am obsessed with Italian Pharmacies – their large neon green cross beckoning me in each town, city, and village we visited. It became a family fun fact that mom knew the location of every Pharmacy within walking distance from each hotel we stayed at. Knowing this, you can imagine my excitement when the kids agreed (I may have bribed them with Gelato) to visit one of the oldest pharmacies in Europe.
Santa Maria Novella is claimed to have been set up in 1221 in the Church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence, Italy, which now houses a perfume museum and large boutique. A bit off the beaten tourist path, it’s a must-visit for any beauty junkie or history buff visiting Florence – it’s like nowhere else I’ve ever been. There are currently 5 US store locations which you can view | HERE.
For my fellow beauty lovers, here are a few amazing Italian pharmacy skincare and body care brands I discovered on my latest trip to Italy—and now can’t live without! The best part? A few are now available on AMAZON in the US!
1. Santa Maria Novella Acqua di Rose | HERE
A centuries-old tradition made from Rosa centifolia (or May rose), with refreshing and toning properties. Can also be used for: detergent for the face, tonic, refresh irritated skin, to scent bathwater.
2. Santa Maria Novella Tonico Per La Pelle | HERE
Refreshing, toning and moisturizing face tonic. Alcohol free and paraben-free.
3. Idea Toscana Prima Spremitura Melting Body Butter | Amazon | HERE
A super nourishing and fast-absorbing body butter : non – greasy, suitable for all skin types and all ages. Prevents skin dryness.Shop all Prima Spremitura Products, including their Nourishing Hand and Nail Creme, on Amazon | HERE
4. L’Erbolario Vitamin Rich Lip Balm with Apple and Tangerine Juice | AMAZON
This lip balm was recommended to me, along with the Prima Spremitura Melting Body Butter (above), while I was shopping for a room spray at L’Erbolario on Via del Corso in Florence.About L’Erbolario: Founded in Lodi in 1978 as a small artisan herbalist, but much earlier in the dreams of its founders: Franco Bergamaschi and his wife Daniela Villa, have, ever since their childhood, always shared their passion for the world of medicinal plants, and spent days on end in the country fields of Lodi searching for wild herbs…read more.
5. L’Occitane 3-in-1 Micellar Water Infused with Cucumber and Thyme
After running out of face wash, I rushed to a pharmacy in Stresa, where a helpful woman recommended this micellar water. As a fan of L’Occitane—and a traveler loving the idea of a 3-in-1 product—I had to try it. Infused with cucumber and thyme, it smells amazing, and I even started using it in the mornings.
Update: As of March 2025, I haven’t found it in the U.S., but after some research, I discovered a great alternative from Bioderma, which I now use. It has excellent reviews if you’re looking to add one to your beauty routine!
6. Pupa Milano Exfoliating & Revitalising Mask
I spotted Pupa Milano masks at the checkout of a pharmacy in Stresa—just like lip balm! Now available in the US, I used one after my trip to revive my dry, travel-worn skin, and I loved it!
What it is: A refreshing gel-textured face mask that exfoliates and revitalizes. Packed with Lemon extract (rich in AHAs and vitamins) and Fruit Micro granules, it gently peels for a radiant, refreshed glow.
Let’s Chat!
Have you tried any of these products? Do you love browsing pharmacies while traveling? What amazing finds have you brought home?
To my international friends, I’d love to hear about the gems you’ve discovered in Italian or French pharmacies! Drop a comment below—we’d all love to know. Ciao! xx
Ah, Italy! WE loved it too! I has been about 12 years for us but since we do not know anyone there, it is unlikely we will visit again anytime soon!
Beautiful pics!
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Yes, Bella Italia! I wish I was there right now! Prior to this trip, it had been about 18 years since my last visit – so I was long overdue. I just love the culture and the people in Italy, I hope to travel back sometime soon! Thanks for stopping by Mireille! xx
European pharmacies are so much fun, in my visits abroad I’ve spent hours looking at everything. Thank goodness, my husband always indulged me. I am so happy to see that some of the products you RECOMMEND are on Amazon. I’ve created a wish list. Before my late husband retired, he would travel yearly to Italy and I was blessed to visit several times the past 10 years. I left my heart in roma.
I can relate – there is no place I’d rather be than an Italy…it’s my happy place! How lucky you were to have traveled there so many times, I bet you enjoyed each and every visit! Ciao Bella! xx
Suzanne,
loved this post. What a darling pic of you and your DAUGHTER too. I have been to Santa Maria Novello and it was lovely. Cannot remember what I bought, but I knew it was a special place. At the time my boys were small and it wasn’t easy to shop with them. I am totally like you, I always look for the green crosses and have bought beauty products from all over!
We are so lucky to have many more available to us now. A few years ago, that wasn’t the case. American consumers are getting more sophisticated and want these more natural and plant based products..ALso the EU and other countries have higher standards for Beauty products-and what they can use, unlike the US where an ingredient has to be proven unsafe to be removed, in EU and other nations they have to be proven safe before they are used!
So far my favorite discoveries have been all the weleda products in Germany, most of all skinfood, which I cannot live without for my hands and can be bought at whole foods now thankfully. I also love their baby calendula creme for the face. i also try to find korres products from greece, ESPECIALLY the body creme and lip balm- most easily found in European Pharmacies, but not here. I love Marvis toothpaste, which i bought in italy all over at the price of like crest, so good. and when in france I love biotherm and nuxe products..all amazing. my last find in france was in eze at the Fragonard perfumery. they make a veryt light summer fragrance called ‘eau de vacances’- basically smell of vacation translated and it has a heavenly scent of oranges and light blossoms. I wear it all year long!
I cannot wait to read more about your italy trip. how did you find all your places? last time we went we did Rome, Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano. So much to love there right? I need to go where you went next! Looking forward to the other posts. xoxo
I do not know why my replay is not using correct capitalization, but it has something to do with the leave a reply being all caps. I don’t think you can see if you are typing correctly. I had that on my blog and we had to change it.. FYI. xoxo
OH Kim, what a fabulous list of finds – now I need to go check them all out.
I saw the Mavis toothpaste and am kicking myself for not grabbing a few tubes. And I love Weleda as well – it smells so fabulous!
On this past trip, I discovered the sad truth – like you mentioned above, our products here are full of questionable ingredients, just like our food, right? I use PV50 and when I tried it in Italy I noticed it didn’t smell as bad. The girl at the counter told me it was because we actually have ingredients in the US version of the product that they cannot use in the EU…hmmm. THis made me pause for sure.
I also discovered NUXE – which I love!
AS far as the pharmacy, I could have spent the entire day at Santa Maria NOvella, But like you, I was with the kids. Even though mine were older than yours were at the time – the attention span was limited. I wish we had places like the EU pharmacies here – wouldn’t that be wonderful? Luckily we have the internet, and some are available here in the US…but we need friends to travel there to tell us about the products in the first place!
See you soon! xx Suzanne