Avis Historic villa, private pool & gardens with kitchen/dining, in hillside village

Nous sommes très habitués à louer en France ou à l'étranger et sommes vraiment attentifs à la précision des annonces : il y a de nombreuses imprécisions dans celle de Bagnone qu’il faut soulever : - La maison est une succession d'étages dont certaines pièces sont totalement aveugles (le studio « La Cantina » est troglodyte et sent le renfermé, le séjour du premier étage n’a pas de fenêtre... - le jardin est séparé de la maison par une ruelle commune avec d’autres logements : la voisine avait un chien qui nous aboyait dessus à chaque passage...comme elle !! - lors des déjeuners dans le jardin, pour accéder à la cuisine la plus logique, il faut franchir l'équivalent de 4 étages de marches !!! La cuisine d’été existe mais elle est située très bas et avec un matériel rudimentaire donc inutilisable. Celle du studio « La Cantina » est en mezzanine et totalement aveugle ! Bref, il ne faut pas oublier le sel... - Si vous aimez les cloches allez-y : celles des vaches à 10 mètres de la piscine...celles de l’église, à 1 mètre de la maison, celles des églises environnantes, ça sonne tout le temps !!! - les Cinque Terre sont magnifiques, mais très loin ! (1:30 de voiture pour prendre le bateau à la Spezia ou Porto Venere) - La piscine est tres belle, de grande taille, bien entretenue. . En revanche elle est située à 10 mètres au-dessus d’un champ avec des clôtures en barbelés : soyez habiles avec la balle si vous jouez avec vos enfants sinon c’est l’aventure (dangereuse !...) - dans les éléments positifs, les propriétaires ont un joli potager dont ils nous ont fait profiter : courgettes, tomates et basilic ! Sympa !

In a nutshell, of the many houses we have stayed in in Italy La Palazzo is among the very best. The house itself is simply wonderful; inviting, cosy, roomy, very well equipped. As just one example: properly sharp knives, something you don't encounter very often but so important if you like to cook. The garden and pool area is beautiful and well maintained. Walking down there is much more of a joy than any nuisance. On the terrace above the pool is a big canopy with - again - a well equipped outside kitchen area and barbecue which we much enjoyed using. As regards surrounding area, this is indeed different from other areas in Tuscany such as for instance the Chianti area: perhaps a little less vineyards historic landmarks - although these are certainly there as well - but more nature such as beautiful forests. And, coming from a more touristic area the relevant lack thereof is indeed somewhat of a relief. Having said that, more touristic areas such as Livorno, La Spezia and in particular Cinque terre are just a 45 minute drive - as is the beach. One last compliment are the three House Books in La Palazzo that describe in detail the house, food and drink interesting places nearby. These are written with much interesting detail and a real help when exploring the house, village and area. All in all, Jane and David: don't be surprised if we book again!

We had a wonderful week in Al Palaz. Lunigiana is a nice relaxed area, different from the rest of Tuscany. You won't find many freco's, but also little turists. What you will find is beautiful nature and real Italian atmosphere, with nice villages - especially Bagnone and the hammock of Mochigiana. In and aroud the house you've to walk many steps, but it's worth. At the second floor we had a large sittingroom overlooking the valley and two spacious bedrooms with both a badroom. On the first floor we had a nice, well equiped diningroom and kitchen with a terrace overlooking the villagesquare with the church and the lovely restaurant of the neighbours. Going down we entered a large garden, where we found our own strawberries, vegetables, basel and rosemary. Further goind down we foud our large lunch-terrace and one step further down a field in the shadow of some trees and a nice refreshing swimmingpool - with swallows dipping in when it's hot and we were out... Really something special!

Toller Garten mit Pool

Wir haben im Juni 2 sehr schöne Wochen in diesem wunderschönen Haus verbracht und fanden, was wir suchten: Ruhe, einen weiten Blick über hügelige Wälder, Bumenduft und Vogelgesang und die Annehmlichkeiten eines privaten Pools. Alles ist für einen erholsamen Urlaub vorbereitet und ausgelegt. Der Garten, die Außenküche, ... ein Traum.

Das Haus ist rustikal, bietet aber alles, was man braucht und ist sehr sauber. Die meiste Zeit haben wir am tollen Pool und in der Outdoorküche verbracht. Da am Pool eine Toilette und eine Dusche sowie ein Kühlschrank ist, kann man den ganzen Tag dort genießen. Die Aussicht ist wirklich phänomenal und man kann sehr gut vom Alltag abschalten. Wir haben die Woche sehr genossen.

We had a wonderful week in Bagnone. The house is exactly as photos, very clean and comfortable, best weeks sleep we have had in years. The stairs in the house and garden are quite steep and of uneven heights so not for young or old or limited mobility. The owners left very comprehensive information manuals. We would highly recommend the restaurant across the road, don't be put off by its lack of kerb appeal, the restaurant is spotlessly clean and the staff very friendly, the food was amazing and the bill small, we ate there 4 nights. I would highly recommend this house. The owner was extremely helpful and available when we needed her. Definate 5 star

We really loved the villa and the area, got a real feel for rural Italy. The villa was very well equipped and we enjoyed the restaurant across the square. Dogs and other animals were a little noisy at night.

We had a lovely week at Al Palazz. Especially loved the well organised and well equiped house. The best we have ever rented. It felt like coming at home. We also enjoyed the well documented tips for trying Italian food, restaurants and suggestions for trips in the surroundings. The villa and swimming pool are built on a hill and so divided over several terraces. We got used to that soon and enjoyed the view from the swimming pool a lot. The Lunigiana region is fortunately not overcrowded with tourists and we enjoyed discovering the very Italian atmosphere especially at the local restaurants. Had some great diners at La Lina, in Bagnone!

We had a very good time enjoying the grandeur of the location and your lovely home. Though we loved the house which was well equipped and very spacious and comfortable we appreciated living on the pool and outdoor kitchen levels too from breakfast onwards. I know it sounds weird but your house book was one of the most excellent things about the house - so much helpful information for journeys out and about and how things work and what foods are local including vast selection of recipe books etc. We spent most of Sunday morning our first morning studying intently. We Loved the pool the swallows who dart in perhaps to cool off we couldn’t tell but they were very daring and skilled flyers. What an amazing layout with the changing rooms and downstairs kitchen and loo. We sat outside a lot of the time and made sure we remembered to close the windows and shutters late morning which kept the house nice and cool. We were enchanted by the sounds of the bells from around the mountain side including the cow bells though we felt very sorry for the cows who must have been deafened. We also loved the dvd collection which was vast and we particularly enjoyed Scorsese ‘s review of Italian films and film makers. The selection of reading was also very rewarding. Thank you once again for sharing your home