A Month in Italy in a real Italian Town (posting for a friend)

[Pauline]

I am posting with a question a neighbor of mine asked. David and his wife have traveled a lot, and have been to Italy, but not in the last 20 years. They are retired now and he would love to spend a month in Tuscany, in a town where he can see himself sitting in the piazza with the retired Italians, and just taking it all in. He pictures renting a house with an extra bedroom or two so his adult children and their families could each come for a week.

I think he is remembering Tuscany from 20+ years ago and things have changed. The main towns are not as sleepy. There are more tourists, more upscale restaurants.

I suggested that instead of a month in one place he divide the time between two places - two weeks in Tusany, two weeks in Umbria?

I will post in my recommendations to him below but I would like to hear what everyone else has to say about this. What is the best way to approach a longer stay in Italy? Where would you go?

 

[Pauline]

My response to David.

You said it has been over 20 years since you have been to Italy. Tuscany, and much of Italy, has changed since then. We traveled a lot to Italy in the mid-90s and we see a big difference now. The main cities – Venice, Florence, Rome – are very crowded. Not just Europeans, Brits and Americans, but apparently the Chinese are traveling in big numbers. Plus the whole cruise ship thing – where the boats unload all their people into a city for a day.

Tuscany, and parts of Umbria, are very upscale now. You don’t find falling apart villages – everything has been renovated. I assume Chianti is like this, but we have not been there in 15 years. My favorite part of Tuscany is the Val d’Orcia, south of Siena, with the towns of Montepulciano, Pienza, Montalcino. We spent a lot of time there 20 years ago, and returned the year before last. I still love the area, but there are more tourists. The piazzas are not full of old men talking, but full of more prosperous cafes. That old Italy is still there and I recommend you go to Tuscany, but perhaps for a week instead of a month – so you can see what it is like now.

For Tuscany I have three recommendations.

Sant Antonio: http://www.santantonio.it/
This is an olive growing estate outside of Montepulciano. We spent a week here the year before last. Many of my travel friends go there every year. It is run by Nico and his wife. They are Italian and they run the place well. It is an building that was in Nico’s family and he turned it into 12 apartments over 10 years ago. Nicely furnished, very comfortable. He lives close by and has full time staff who are always around if you need them. You need a car. It is just a few minutes to Montepulciano.
Read my review here:
http://www.sloweurope.com/community...nt-antonio-apartment-in-countryside-1bed.716/
And other reviews:
http://www.sloweurope.com/reviews/221/Sant-Antonio/

Cretaiole: http://www.cretaiole.it/
I have not stayed there but everyone loves it. A farm near Pienza. Reviews here:
http://www.sloweurope.com/reviews/363/Agriturismo-Cretaiole/ (they flooded my site with reviews)
And here:
http://www.sloweurope.com/community...pienza-agriturismo-cretaiole-is-amazing.1082/

TuscanHouse: http://www.tuscanhouse.com/
A very good small agency that offers very nice houses in southern Tuscany. The area south of the Val d’Orcia is more spread out that the central Tuscany area the first two places are in and is not as touristed.
Read reviews here:
http://www.sloweurope.com/reviews/327/TuscanHouse/

I keep a list of interesting vacation rental (holiday rental) resources on my website: http://www.sloweurope.com/vacationrentals/italy/tuscany/

While I think Tuscany is a bit posh and touristy, I still love it. The extra tourism brings great restaurants and shops and delis.

For Umbria I have one recommendation:

Umbria is less touristed in some places, but sweet small towns like Montefalco and Bevagna are much more upscale than they used to be. We recently spent a week in Spoleto, a town in southern Umbria. It is a very good town, good walking in the hills behind the town, great restaurants.

Umbria Holiday Rentals: http://www.umbriaholidayrentals.com/
This agency has very good apartments right in Spoleto.
Read my review here:
http://www.sloweurope.com/community/threads/umbria-spoleto-2bed-2bath-apartment-in-the-center.1191/

 

[Valerie]

If he is wanting that slice of Old World, rather than loads of tourists, I'd recommend Le Marche, or some of the smaller towns in Umbria. Or Abruzzo.

 

[Roz]

Pauline, I agree with you about the Val d'Orcia. I think it has some of the most beautiful landscapes anywhere in the world. We had not been to Tuscany for several years when we decided to spend two weeks in Montepulciano in 2014. I know everyone loves Sant'Antonio, but we wanted to stay in the village so as not to have to drive everywhere. So we stayed at the Politian Apartments, which I would highly recommend.

We were there in late April - early May, and of course there were plenty of tourists, but I think not nearly so many as you'd find later in the year. Also the apartments were far enough outside the center of town that the area was not very crowded, but the town is so small that you can easily walk anywhere. And there are wonderful day trips all around. The apartment owner, Giacomo, and his sister are also a great source of information on the area.

We had a 2 bedroom / 2 bath apartment, quite reasonably priced I thought for the area. But if your friend wants a bigger house, I suggest he try the Summer in Italy agency. I know you are familiar with them, Pauline, and I think they are wonderful to work with. Here is a link to their Tuscany selection.

I wrote a trip report on our stay in Montepulciano: Two Weeks in the Val d'Orcia. The day trips we took led us to some much smaller, less touristy towns.

 

[BryanS]

I think he is remembering Tuscany from 20+ years ago and things have changed. The main towns are not as sleepy. There are more tourists, more upscale restaurants

It isn't the same as just 10 years ago! He'll end up sitting in a piazza with his countrymen and some Germans.

I agree that some of the smaller towns in Le Marche or Puglia might fit better. Also with Ancona, Pescara and Bari he and his family can have easy/cheap air access.

 

[Sharon J]

We have rented many small houses in the Val d'Orcia area, after much travel to other areas as well. That is truly our favorite area. However, we started staying with Nico at Sant'Antonio a few years ago, and that is one of our favorite places on Earth. We are returning in May, and if we didn't have our beloved dogs to think about, we would stay in one of his apartments for a month. The grounds are stunning, with everything you could hope for. Views of vineyards, olive groves, (from which he produces his own Olive Oil), countryside and a walking trail. You are also close to many things, including grocery stores, good dining and many other wonderful towns, including the walled town of Montepulciano, which is VERY close by, but feel you are in the countryside.

Nico is a wonderful host and can help with anything you may need, which is appealing to us, as we get older. You will have lots of privacy, or can mingle with other guests if you like. He offers a dinner for all the quests once a week, if enough people are interested and it's amazing. We found lots of Canadian's were visiting while there, and we would meet up with many of them after a long day of sightseeing, pooling our wine and nibbles for a fun evening before dinner in most cases. There is a pool and several large patio's, so you could choose a different setting each night. There are also several grills for the guest to use. One evening as we were running low on wine, Nico appeared with a few bottles to share. Trust me, he is the best and the property is stunning. The property is also fairly flat and easy for us older folks.....LOL

I see Pauline included the website above, so I won't duplicate here.

 

[Sharon J]

Sorry for the spelling error above. I lived in San Antonio, TX for almost 30 years, and type it without thinking. Hopefully, everyone knows I meant Sant'Antonio.

 

[Pauline]

I missed that when I read your post @Sharon J . I always type Sant Antimo, the nearby monastery, instead of Sant Antonio. I corrected your post.

 

[ncp]

My husband and I have gone to Lucca, where he has cousins, a number of times over the last 10 years and always rent an apartment for a month or so. I think if he rents an apartment as opposed to staying in a place for tourists he'll get more of the "living like a local" feel, having to shop for food, etc. and being a regular customer over the course of more than a week. He'll also get more of that feeling by going further away from the high season, of course. You still see a lot of local old guys hanging out on the wall in the late afternoon and young ones going for a run, mothers pushing strollers, etc. there. Lucca may be bigger than the kind of place he's looking for, and I'd definitely avoid it for the last part of October (Lucca Comics) but I think staying in a rental and frequenting food shops, cafes, etc. regularly (particularly ones not right smack in the middle of things) will work almost anywhere he goes that's not too big.

 

[Anne]

If they are set on Tuscany, Cetona might be an option. We spent two weeks there a few years ago and could easily have spent a month. We didn't find it overly touristy. Endless possibilities to explore - there are fascinating towns all around, including popular ones like Pienza, Orvieto and Cortona, as well as less well known ones like Citta della Pieve and Sarteano. Or just pack a picnic lunch and drive around that gorgeous countryside!

We rented a 2 bedroom house (a restored medieval tower). The owners (she runs the business stuff, he does the restoration) are a fantastic couple who took us on an orientation/introduction tour of the town so the local shop owners would know we were their guests and not just strangers in town. We rented through Homelidays, but now they are listed on airbnb (here).

Or if they're open to checking out southern Italy, I imagine many a town in Basilicata would be a lovely fit for their desires - Melfi, for instance. It's such an amazing part of Italy and definitely off the beaten tourist track. (Perhaps not for long though, with Matera being a 2019 City of Culture.)

 

[Pauline]

My husband and I have gone to Lucca, where he has cousins, a number of times over the last 10 years and always rent an apartment for a month or so. ...

I will suggest Lucca to him. We were looking at Lucca for our May trip but the friends we are traveling with had stayed there on a recent trip.

If they are set on Tuscany, Cetona might be an option. ... Or if they're open to checking out southern Italy, I imagine many a town in Basilicata would be a lovely fit for their desires - Melfi, for instance. ...

We spent a couple of weeks in Cetona in 2004 and stayed in a tower that looked very much like the one you rented, but it is not the same one (kitchen is different). We booked ours through TuscanHouse but I can't find it on their site. We liked the town of Cetona but during that trip felt we did too much driving up to the Montepulciano - Pienza area. But maybe now that those towns are more touristed, and for a longer stay, Cetona is a good choice.

We spent two weeks in Celle sul Rigo, south of Cetona, in the late 90s and liked that area. It is probably still a bit off the beaten path. Anywhere in southern Tuscany might be a good choice.