The location of Casina di Rosa is fantastic!

by Carleen and Richmond, New Zealand

Originally published on Slow Travel

###Location

The location of Casina di Rosa is fantastic. It is in a very small village south of Siena. Civitella Marittima still retains the true essence of Italy and has not been spoilt by tourism. The people are friendly from the owners to the shopkeepers and the lady who waved each morning from a nearby window. Civitella Marittima is also well located for visiting other places in Tuscany. In our week long stay we visited Montalcino, Montepulciano, Pisa, Lucca, Pienza, Castiglione della Pescaia and Siena.

###Nearby Amenities

Each morning we strolled up the hill to the local bakery. We bought tomatoes and mozzarella at the local dairy and the restaurant that Gloria and Marcel recommended was great. (La Locanda nel Cassero) But we have to say our favourite was the pasta shop that made the most wonderful Truffle salsa. We really enjoyed cooking in the kitchen at Casina di Rosa.

###The House/Apartment

The building was beautiful and immaculate inside. The village is very peaceful. We spent most of the time in the kitchen or on the seats outside the front door. But the whole house was very good, especially for the price!!

###Garden

The outside area was small and of course it would have been lovely to have a pool or a deck but this would have increased the price. We enjoyed strolling around the town and it was still possible to sit outside the house and have a glass of wine.

###Furnishings/Cleanliness/Living Areas

The furniture was comfortable and in good shape. The apartment was immaculate and absolutely perfect size for a couple.

###Bedrooms/Bathrooms

The bed was comfy and the bedroom is a good size with plenty of storage. The bathroom was very good.

###Kitchen

We loved the kitchen. It just had a great feel and there were plently of utensils.

###Agency and Representatives (and price)

The house is owned by Gloria and Marcel who live in Pisa. Gloria and Marcel are some of the friendliest, most hospitable people we met on our four months in Europe (and they speak English). There was lots of info available on the website. We were met on arrival, shown to the house and parking details were explained to us. The house was immaculate with lovely touches like fresh flowers and a basket of pasta, sauce, olive oil and wine to get us started. We really enjoyed picking up different produce in each village then coming back to the house to cook it. We even cooked our first truffle pasta!!

We spoke very little Italian but everywhere we went people were helpful and friendly.

###Do you recommend this vacation rental to others?

We would definately recommend Casina di Rosa as a place to stay as it had all the key ingrediants – great price, the owners provide lots of local info and are amazingly helpful, location is great, the village and people who live there are magic. I can’t wait to go back. Thank you Gloria and Marcel. :)

###Things to do in this area

* La Locanda nel Cassero
* The pasta shop
* Great buffalo mozzarella at the butchery/dairy
* Next time we will visit the olive farm!
* Montelcino and Montepulciano
* There is a great restaurant south in San Sano (Chianti) – it’s the only one there
* San Galgano and the restaurant nearby