My crazy idea

What does an international music executive do when he’s sick of his big time New York job? Quit and move to Tuscany to open a small hotel...of course!

My name is John Voigtmann. After ten years of chasing rock stars around the world, I decided to change my life... and together with my wife, who is a writer for several travel magazines, I spent four years searching, researching and renovating La Bandita. My wife and I love to travel, have been all over the world, and we love intimate hotels with character, personality and a sense of place.

So I didn’t want La Bandita to be a just a typical hotel. In fact, I didn’t want it to feel like a hotel at all. I didn’t want fussy, formal service, or old-fashioned design. I wanted a beautiful, comfortable retreat, with a modern look and a relaxed atmosphere, where my friends — and friends of friends — from all over the world could come to relax, cook big dinners, and enjoy Tuscany.

We battled the legendary Italian bureaucracy, international finance laws, and my own sense of nagging doubt ... to create La Bandita.