17th Century House in Ancient Hilltop Village
Beautiful Location Amongst Tree-Clad Hills
Bed and Breakfast (Sleeps 4/6)
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Castagni d'Oro is a beautiful old house that has remained virtually unchanged for the past 350 years. Built in traditional style, with thick stone walls, huge chestnut beams, terracotta floors, it still appears much as it did in centuries past, apart from the requirements of modern living such as central heating and electricity! Recent renovations have provided en-suite bathrooms and a large central wood-burning fireplace, ideal for those winter skiing breaks. Registered with Tourist agencies in Lucca and Tuscany with full B&B permissions and insurance. VAT registered.
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| Rental Period | Per Night | Per Week | Per Month | Min. Stay (Nights) |
| 1 January 2011 - 31 December 2011 | €60 | €390 | 7 |
Changeover day
Any day. No minimum stay. Checkout by midday and arrival anytime after 4pm. Detailed directions available on request.
Notes on accommodation
All rooms have central heating and there is an impressive wood burning fireplace on the ground floor that is lit all winter making us ideal for skiing holidays in the nearby Abetone resort. We can provide other services, such as evening meals, packed lunches and laundry services. For skiers and bikers there is a secure, locked garage for storage of bikes and ski equipment.
Smoking is only allowed outside, due to Government regulations and the fire alarm.
Accessibility
There is a private cobbled driveway with possible passenger drop off at front door level. Parking for up to 3 cars and a garage for 4 motorbikes. The garden and patio are flat and level with the front door.
Outside
The sunny patio with table and chairs offers a relaxing spot to sit and enjoy a cooling drink, or eat an evening meal, whilst the garden with tree shade and gazebo is the perfect place to sun bathe or enjoy an evening barbecue. The garden has spectacular views up into the Apennine Mountains and down into the Lima valley.
Coast/Beach
The Versilian Coast with wonderful seaside towns such as Viareggio and Forte dei Marmi is an hour's easy drive. Beautiful golden sandy beaches, wide avenues with Art Deco buildings, cafes and shops, marinas full of boats and all with the towering 'Marble Mountains', the Apuane Alpes, as a backdrop. Children's play areas and public areas with pools and bars line the seafront. Further up the coast is the Cinque Terre with quaint fishing villages squeezed into tiny coves.
Golf
There is an 18 hole course, an 8 hole course and a driving range all within an hour's drive.
Skiing
Abetone ski resort is only a 45 minute drive away. This is the largest ski centre in Tuscany and offers dozens of slopes for all abilities, served by many cable cars and ski lifts. Cutigliano is smaller, but closer at 30 minutes and both have equipment hire and ski schools.
Travel
Pisa Airport is around an hour's drive. We recommend car hire to fully appreciate the beauty of our mountain and coastal scenery, as public transport is mainly limited to the valley floors. Florence is an easy 90 minutes drive over pretty mountain roads or by motorway, Sienna and San Gimignano are only two hours away. Lucca is only a 30 minutes drive and offers a wide choice of bars and restaurants to suit all tastes.
Distances
Bagni di Lucca is 10km, a 15 minute drive. The Medieval city of Lucca is 30km taking about 30 mins. Beaches at Viareggio 60km take an hour. Florence is an hour and a half by car. Sienna and San Gimignano about 2 hours.
Further details
If you do not want to always eat out, there is a small bar in the village that serves Tuscan food. Also, we can provide packed lunches to take out and three course evening meals with free wine - as we don't have a drinks licence! We just need some advance notice, please. Bagni di Lucca is only 15 minutes away down our hill, and has a number of friendly little bars, typical Italian trattorias and rather more glamorous restaurants. There are a couple of banks with cashpoints, food and clothes shops, a twice weekly market, supermarkets and sports facilities such as swimming pool, tennis courts with coaching, and horse riding at the bottom of our hill.
The Terme thermal Spa in Bagni di Lucca offers many treatments for health and beauty, using steam, mud, massage and hot stones. We can offer discounts on all treatments when booked through us. If wine is your thing, then a tour along the Strada del Vino, or wine road, is a must. This route passes many vineyards, wineries and olive groves and runs up through the hills outside Lucca, offering the most fantastic views of the Lucchese Plain, whilst allowing wine and olive oil tastings and tours of beautiful Tuscan Villas. Just ask us for the map.
Booking notes
Please book directly with Adrian, contact details below. For stays of more than 2 days, the deposit is around 25%, paid in Euros very easily using Paypal, with the balance paid on arrival. Deposit may be lost if cancelling within 7 days of intended arrival.
Owner profile
Adrian and Louise welcome you to their home
About the owner
We moved to this dramatic region of Italy in summer 2007 from The New Forest on the south coast of England. After careers in Electrical Engineering and in Administration, we decided to leave the rat-race and set up home in beautiful Tuscany, opening up our new home to guests. We discovered this original and unrestored family house after visits to various parts of Italy over the past several years and simply fell in love with it and its position in the green Lucchese hills.
Year purchased: 2007
Why the owner chose a guest house in this location
We discovered the Garfagnana region of Tuscany in late 2006 after looking around Lazio, Le Marche, Emilia-Romagna and finally Tuscany. We loved the deep river valleys and green tree-clad mountains all set against the dramatic Appenines. Being less than an hour from the beaches at Viareggio and the snow at Abetone, we thought the location was just perfect. When we were shown this house in this beautiful hilltop village, we just fell in love with it and stopped our search. It had never been ruined or restored, just lived in by 9 generations, improved when needed and left alone when required. This means that most of it is original, from the cotto floors to the pantiled roof. We find the peace and quiet here quite refreshing, whilst only a 15 minute drive gets you to Bagni di Lucca.
Unique benefits of the property
Castagni d'Oro is unusual for a village house in that it has its own private driveway which can easily take 3 cars and it is possible to drop off passengers level with the front door. There is also a large lockable garage and cellar which provides secure storage for motor bikes, cycles, ski equipment and trailers.
For booking and further information
Property Ref IT3683
Adrian McCrae-Bell
Tel: (Italy) + 39 0583 809 480
Fax: (Italy) + 39 0583 809 480
Mob: (Italy) + 39 334 222 6781
Owners Website: Click here
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and has advertised this property with us since January 2010.
Property Ref IT3683
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