Pescia holiday farmhouse rental, Sorana with walking, log fire, balcony/terrace, air con, rural retreat

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Casa della Vista (farmhouse)

Home description

With a beautiful location set below the small, medieval hill village of Sorana, this is a traditional stone farmhouse retaining all the usual beautiful Tuscan features of cotto floors, chestnut beams and an open fireplace.

Outside there are private olive groves for the children to play in, a terrace for al fresco dining, BBQ for outdoor cooks and a pool for cooling off in the glorious summer days - all with spectacular views of the Pescia valley. Two of the best restaurants in the area just down the road or there is further fine dining in the local town of Pescia, less than 15 minutes drive away

Open all year around, this house offers a quiet retreat from which to explore the surrounding hills on foot to local villages such as Vellano, Castelveccio, Fibialla or Medicina.

Casa della Vista	Casa della Vista pool
View from top terrace down Pescia valley	Downstairs as sitting room

To see more photos please visit http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/98899

The Tuscany region

Tuscany, the cradle of modern European culture, contains treasures of every age and style, from the Etruscan theatre and Roman baths at Fiesole, to the majestic Gothic buildings in the medieval town of Siena, to the exceptional art and architecture of Florence. The cities of Tuscany have produced writers, scientists, architects, musicians and artists whose works have literally changed the world.

The immense dome of Florence’s Duomo, designed by Brunelleschi, inspired Michelangelo’s design for the dome of St. Peter’s in Rome, and influenced architecture in towns throughout Italy. Modern science and technology have their roots in the experiments of Galileo and other researchers. Puccini was born in Lucca. Dante, Petrarch and Boccaccio broke with traditional Latin and wrote in the Italian language, establishing the Tuscan dialect as Italy’s literary language and things Tuscan as the measure of culture and refinement.

The peaceful Tuscan landscape is primarily rolling hills, with vineyards, olive groves, cypress trees and hilltop villages all bathed in a soft, amber light. To many it seems familiar, and rightly so: during the Renaissance it was often used as the backdrop for the paintings of the masters. The rustic Tuscan farmhouse, made of local stone and set atop a hill flanked by lines of cypress trees, is a sight unique to Tuscany. Silent medieval hilltowns, with their fortified castle walls and church steeples visible in the distance, are a part of the landscape: San Gimignano, Volterra, Montepulciano, Cortona. Tuscany’s olive groves yield some of Italy’s finest extra virgin olive oil, but the heart of the region is in its vineyards, particularly the Chianti Classico, where you can visit fattorie (wine estates), to sample and purchase their wines.

In Tuscany there is huge emphasis on food and the family. Most Tuscan meals begin with crostini, slices of bread that are lightly toasted and topped with anything from chicken liver to myrtle to olive paste; acquacotta, a thin vegetable soup, and panzanella, a soup made from leftover bread soaked in vinegar and vegetables are among the many bread-based soups. Simplicity and flavour are the guiding principles of Tuscan cooking: pasta, served with a sauce of vegetables or meat; salviata, an omelette with fresh sage; or lesso rifatto con le cipolle, a stew of leftover boiled beef smothered in long-simmered onions, are classic embodiments of this philosophy.

Finally wine - Vin Santo is one of the region’s renowned sweet wines, often served with cantuccini di Prato, dry almond cookies, for dipping. Among the other great wines of Tuscany are Tignanello, Sassacaia, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, and the famous Brunello di Montaleino.

Pescia / Sorana area

The town of Pescia takes its name from the river which divides it in two parts and which makes it cool and pleasant for visits especially during the spring and summer. The Medici family was very important for this city. Leone X - Medici's Pope - erected its first parish in 1519 and then the same family improved its economy. The main economy in the past was based around water - paper, leather and silk were the main source of income. Today Pescia is the centre of the Italian flower cultivation industry.

Sorana is situated along the valley north of Pescia known as the Dieci Castella region. This takes it's names from the 10 villages that line the valley hills and hilltops, each of which has a church with bell tower. During medeival and in more recent periods of upheaval like the second world war the towers acted as prime lookout posts for defence of the area

Villages such as Vellano, Fibialla, Castlevecchio, Aramo, San Quirico, Collodi and Medicina can all be explored on foot from the old mule tracks that run from right outside the front door of Casa della Vista

How to get there

Fly to Pisa or Florence from most UK airports
Cheap flights available from Ryanair or EasyJet to Pisa or Meridiana to Florence
House only an hour from either airport
Easy driving directions from Autoroute A11 between Pisa and Florence
Regular train service from airport to local town of Pescia near the house
Bus or taxi transfers from Pescia to Sorana if required

Activities near Pescia

Facilities

Further details indoors:
The accommodation is on two floors with the kitchen, shower room and one lounge/bedroom downstairs and the master bedroom and second lounge/bedroom upstairs.

The main bedroom has a queen size bed with chest of drawers whilst the upstairs second room has a large stone grate with cast iron fire and double sofabed. Downstairs, the lounge has a sofabed and large wardrobe and is equipped with an air conditioning unit

The kitchen is fully equipped with utensils and pans, with a 5 ring gas bottle-powered cooker complete with oven

Further details outdoors:
The house is part of a working olive farm so the groves are open and available for exploration, although care should be taken down some of the steep slopes

There is also a hand-built stone barbecue and outside dining area, ideal for summer evening cooking and eating outside

The pool is a 25' by 10' plunge pool, perfect for cooling off during the long hot Tuscan summer days

Further details

There is a 300m walk from a car park through the village and down a path to get to the door, which is a little steep in places. Whilst this makes for a quiet and private location it means access would be difficult for elderly, infirmed or disabled guests

Conditions

A deposit of 50% of the rental is required to secure a booking, with the balance due 6 weeks before arrival

Rental rates

Period	From	To	Weekly	Nightly rate		Minimum  stay
				Weekday	Weekend
High Season	19 Dec 09	3 Jan 10	495£ 495	9090	150150	Flexible
Low Season	3 Jan 10	28 Mar 10	415£ 415	6565	125125	Flexible
Mid Season	28 Mar 10	11 Apr 10	450£ 450	7575	135135	Flexible
Low Season	11 Apr 10	3 Jul 10	415£ 415	6565	125125	Flexible
High Season	3 Jul 10	12 Sep 10	495£ 495	9090	150150	Flexible
Low Season	12 Sep 10	19 Dec 10	415£ 415	6565	125125	Flexible

The property's weekend rates apply to: Saturday and Sunday nights

NB: Prices may be subject to change at the advertiser's discretion.

Payment by bank transfer or Paypal

Availability

See below for next 9 months' availability - to see the next 24 months click here

Send Enquiry

To contact this advertiser please visit: http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/98899

Contact details for the advertiser of home 98899
Name:	Kevin Magee
Mobile:	+44 7775 421900
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Advertiser joined: Aug 2009