A beautiful place to stay

by Katy, England

Originally published on Slow Travel

When

16 – 23 April 2011, 1 week

Location

Casina di Rosa is a small, traditional stone house located in the hilltop village of Civitella Marittima. The house was close to other buildings but this did not intrude on our privacy in any way. We loved the area and enjoyed being in the heart of the village – it allowed us to immerse ourselves in village life and to adjust to a more relaxed pace of life. Everyone in the village was extremely friendly and we enjoyed sitting in the sunshine on the loggia and watching life go on around us!

Nearby Amenities

There are some shops in Civitella Marittima including a small grocery shop, a bakery, a butchers and a florists. We also shopped in the Co-op in nearby Paganico. There is also a shop selling fresh pasta, at the entrance to the village, but this did not seem to be open during our visit. There are two local restaurants – one at the entrance to the village and one within the heart of the village. We ate in both of them and they were excellent! There is also a bar at the entrance to the village that serves excellent coffee!

The House/Apartment

Casina di Rosa is a beautiful place to stay and we were extremely comfortable there. The owners have taken a lot of time and care to equip it for the comfort and enjoyment of their guests and we really appreciated this. The house consists of a well equipped kitchen/dining room, (including a washing machine); a lounge/bedroom with two sofas and a large and very comfortable double bed and a bathroom, (with a shower but no bath).

Garden

There is a small loggia at the entrance to the house with two outdoor chairs and pots of flowers – we found this a lovely sunny spot to sit in the mornings.

Furnishings/Cleanliness/Living Areas

The furniture and equipment in the house is in very good shape and of a very high quality. There is seating for four people in both the lounge and the kitchen/dining room. There is a satellite TV (with DVD) in the lounge – the satellite was not working during our stay but we did not miss the TV at all so this was not a problem! There is a book cupboard with a good range of books, both fiction and non-fiction, (in English!), and tourist information and maps. There was plenty of storage space for our clothes – a large wardrobe and a chest of drawers. The house was very clean on arrival and fresh towels were laid out for us in the bathroom.

Bedrooms/Bathrooms

The lounge/bedroom has one large double bed – we both found this very comfortable. The bathroom is small but well equipped, with good storage space for our toiletries, etc. The shower is very good with plenty of hot water.

Kitchen

The kitchen is very well equipped with good quality crockery, cutlery, pots and pans and other equipment. There is a filter coffee machine and an espresso maker and we put both of these to very good use! We enjoyed cooking in the kitchen. The owners have left a supply of basic ingredients (salt, pepper, oil, etc) for the use of their guests.

Problems or Bonuses

The owners provided a welcome gift of wine, pasta and sauce and chocolates which was a lovely touch. There were fresh flowers on the table which added to the welcome feel of Casina di Rosa. The owners also provided a folder of information about the house and the local area and this was extremely useful.

Agency and Representatives (and price)

The owners of Casina di Rosa both speak English, (they are Italian and Canadian), and this was great for us as we do not speak Italian! They have been extremely friendly and helpful towards us prior to our stay, on arrival and during our stay.

Do you recommend this vacation rental to others?

We would highly recommend Casina di Rosa to others and would love to visit again in the future! We feel that the price that we paid for our weeks stay was extremely reasonable and that we got very good value for money.

Things to do in this area

We enjoyed exploring the surrounding area, preferring to stick to the less ‘touristy’ areas. Highlights for us were San Gimignano, Pienza and the Abbey at Sant’ Antimo. We feel that Casina di Rosa was extremely well placed for exploring this area of Tuscany with easy access to busier places like Siena, Florence and Pisa, for those that prefer this type of experience.