This villa perfectly blends a remote Tuscan hillside location with all the conveniences of a small town. Situated approximately 25 minutes from the nearest point of interest, the village of Iano has a full-service grocery shop (small, but well stocked) and two fantastic Tuscan restaurants just outside the gate of the villa. So, when you wake up in the morning and want a fresh croissant and hot coffee, you literally walk across the street to be greeted by friendly villagers who are thrilled to have you in town to frequent their shop and restaurant. If you spend the day touring one of the great nearby cities (Florence, San Gimignano, Volterra, etc), you can return to Iano and get a wonderful meal just steps from your villa. We were looking for a place that we could relax for part of the day and tour when we were ready - this place was perfect.
The villa, itself, is a former convent with spectacular views of the Tuscan countryside. It faces west, so the sunsets are unreal. The villa has four individual units on the grounds, including the largest, which we occupied. It had three bedrooms, two full baths, and a full kitchen. It was also situated on a high level with west-facing views, so we could watch the sunset from each bedroom if we chose to.
The owner, Cinzia, was always around and accessible via cell when she was away. She is very friendly, welcoming, and is always willing to provide travel guidance when needed. She keeps the place spotless. The pool and gardens are beautiful.
Even my husband, who is a regular business traveler, and therefore a "travel snob" loved this place. In fact, he came home and said "that was the most relaxing vacation I have ever been on!" This was a major endorsement!
The villa is totally family friendly. We have three teenagers, who loved it. There were also other families with younger children, who had a blast, as well as a young couple, who made the villa a romantic get-away, rather than a family vacation place!
We would totally recommend this villa to anyone thinking of mixing down time with adventure in Tuscany.
This is a great place to stay. Location is central bring about 30 mins drive to volterra or San Gimignano.
It's based in a very small village with 2 restaurants worth visiting for good Italian food at a reasonable price. There is also a v good shop for food and drink provisions including daily fresh breads. There is another v good restaurant in the nearby village of San Vivaldi about 10
Mins away.
We were 4 adults and 3 young kids staying in the 3 bedroom villa. We absolutely loved our stay in Iano. Cinzia was the perfect hostess - helpful, attentive and very warm but very respectful of our privacy. The villa is not big but was perfectly clean and comfortable. The private terrace with umbrella was divine and we ate and sat out there most of the time we were "home". The pool is perfect and the view from each room and the terrace is to die for. The mosquitoes at night were a bit annoying so bring some repellent. Iano is very sleepy and cute with 2 great restaurants and a super shop stocking most things you could need plus some luxurious extras. It's a perfect base from which to visit nearby villages like Lucca, San Gimignano, Volterra and Siena.
Thank you Cinzia for a memorable and lovely week.
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Perfect living in a small village with two restaurants and av shop to buy food for making your own breakfast or dinner. Beutiful sceenery from the bedrom window.
Beutiful garden with a pool that you can swim in . In may it´s Cold but if your are used to scandianvian cold water, we took a swim one day. It will be better and warmer in the summer.Very friendly och warm hostes helping us with all questions we asked.
Maybe we will be back in october when the olives are to be harvest.
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Perfect central location to tour the region, as long as you have a rental vehicle.
The farm house was as shown on the web site, clean and well equipped for our group of 6.
Lots of local eateries featuring quality foods of the region.
Cinzia our host was very accommodating and helpful through out our stay.
Would return here in a heart beat.
Many thanks to Cinzia
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We had a beautiful week in this lovely apartment. Cinzia was a great host, giving is advice about getting about and booking a fantastic wine tour for us at Agricola Tamburini Emanuela. The apartment was very clean and well furnished, with everything you need. The views from each bedroom window are breathtaking, I will try to add a photo.
The shop opposite is well stocked and very convenient. We ate at Cinzia's restaurant twice and the pizzeria in the village twice and we can highly recommend them both.
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We rented this apartment due to a previous request cancellation. Simply the best that did happened. The place was excellent for a family although the property has other apartments with less rooms. The town of Iano is a little gem in the Tuscany. This because of its genuine Tuscan character. The people were very friendly and attentive. Right crossing the street were one of the best restaurants we visit within Tuscany, "La Piazzetta del Borgo", Cinzia, Andrea and Franchesca treat you like a king. Cinzia was very attentive and helpful during our stay; she and her husband Andrea, which happens to be the Manager and Chef, respectively at the restaurant, have the grounds and cleaning of the property in a 5 stars Hotel category. The property is the perfect home base for a Tuscan vacation. Many little and great towns are within a 10 to 30 minutes’ drive from the house (Montaione, San Gimignano, Volterra, Certaldo). Siena, Pisa, Lucca and Florence are about an hour away. You can do as we were recommended at the Iano Market across the street, Mauro and Jorge were very helpful with tips on our trip, drive to a nearby town and take a train to Florence, Pisa or Siena. This way you don’t have to look for sometimes an expensive and hard to find parking or drive into major cities. We did it for Florence and it was the best choice. If we come back to Tuscany we would stay again in Podere Le Monache.
Thank you Cinzia for your attentions.
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