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> SlowTrav > Italy > Vacation Rentals > Reviews > Tuscany North Review 2209: Domani, Casa La Volpe
8bed/9bath house near Lucca, Tuscany North 
WhenJune 2006 & June 2004, 1 week each visit LocationLa Volpe is located in Segromino Monte, about 15 minute drive east/northeast from Lucca. It is an old farmhouse surrounded by vineyards and olive groves in the area of the country estates of the old Lucchese silk merchants. Villa Torrignani and Villa Mansi are nearby. It's very quiet and private but accessible to town. You can buy wine from the next door neighbor. Nearby AmenitiesThe nearest "town" is about 1 kilometer walk where there are some small stores and bars but it's only a ten minute drive to a larger grocery store. Given the size of our group, (15), we went for the larger store in Altopaicia. The House/ApartmentThe core of the house dates to the 16th century with later flanking additions. The owners, a doctor and contractor who specializes in restoration, have done a beautiful job. All the rooms have painted finishes and detailing, are nicely furnished with a mix of antiques and reproductions. The house is rectangular in shape. It can be rented as a whole or by halves. The sections are Casa Ada and Casa Michele. GardenThere's a large terrace with a divider of potted lemon trees. Both halves of the terrace have a pergola with round table/chairs, built-in barbeques, and tables seating about 12. There's a loggia on the side of the house with additional tables and chairs. It's beautifully planted, a garderner comes every morning. The pool sits below the house and is accessed by a stairway through the garden. I'd guess the pool to be 40' in length and there are plenty of lounges, umbrellas, chairs, etc. There is a hot/cold shower at the pool level. This year there is a new pavilion with exercise equipment overlooking the plain. Furnishings/Cleanliness/Living AreasThe house is immaculate. There are two mornings of housekeeping included in the rental, more if your arrange in advance. It is by far the best equiped rental I've ever seen. Bedrooms/BathroomsThe beds are comfortable with high quality linens. All the bathrooms are equiped with hairdryers. Each half of the house has four bedrooms upstairs with an additional foldout on the ground floor. There are full baths on the ground floor as well. There is cable TV in all the bedrooms, AC, internet, and a wash house. KitchenAs we take the entire house we then have our choice of kitchens! The kitchen in Casa Michele is larger so we all tended to congregate there and do most of our food preparation. My kitchen at home should be so well stocked! Both kitchens have dishwashers, coffee makers, microwaves, toasters, etc. Refrigerators in Europe are small by American standards but I'm accustomed to that. Problems or BonusesThe owners are amazing. They treat you as their personal guests not tenants. Agency and Representatives (and price)DomaniUSA were a pleasure to deal with. They have a local person who can facilitate but I was able to work out any questions directly with the owners. Their English is marginal but improving. The photos of the house on the website must have been taken when they were just finishing up and don't reflect the improvements and mature landscaping. It's better than it looks. We usually rent before the rents peak for the summer. July and August are high season and the rental was running about $6,000+ per week for the entire property. Do you recommend this vacation rental to others?I have been singing the praises of Casa La Volpe to anyone who will listen. Things to do in this areaIt's an easy 15-20 minutes to Lucca and we spent a lot of time hanging out there. La Volpe is practically on the local "wine road". We had a delicious wine one evening and found the local Tenuta was just up the road. This review is the opinion of a Slow Travel member and not of slowtrav.com. |
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