Life as an Italian

Guest: David and Nadine (Vancouver, Canada)
Date of Stay: 05/22/11 Review Submitted: 09/16/11

We wanted a spacious, comfortable apartment with a sitting out area in a non touristy town as a base for our 6 weeks exploration of Tuscany and Umbria.This one in Sansepolcro was ideal. Louise, Franco and their son were very hospitable while giving us privacy.I was a little concerned about the noise of the nearby end-of-the-line train station but the once an hour, short, mostly electric train became one of the rhythms of the day, like the ringing church bells. Living across the street from the walled town meant a short walk to shop, for a coffe or a gelato, or to join the passegiata.Some of our favourite shops . .Pasta Fresca, Chieli(pastry),Ottimi Vini(wine), Martini(butcher), Casa del Caffe, Panificio La Spiga(bakery). We shopped the twice weekly market for produce, meat (find the porchetta man), fish, cheese, etc, and the nearby Coop for basics and a good selection of wine. On the third Saturday of the month, the market has many local food artisans.It was great! The locals were patient as we practiced our Italian. A highlight of Sansepolcro are the frequent festivals when the Piazza and surrounding streets are filled with strollers of all ages well into the night. We spent our first week without a car getting to know the town, and took the local train to Perugia. From Arezzo we took the train for day trips to Florence twice, Rome once, and the bus to Siena.We drove to Anghiari, Monterchi, Gubbio for the Palio della Balestra (great!), Urbino, Cortona, Chianti country, The Crete, Assisi, Deruta, Montefalco, Torgiano for the Lungarotti Wine Museum. If we sound enthusiastic - we are! Grazie mille Louise and Franco!

Recommended for:Sightseeing, tourists without a car, girls getaway, age 55+, romantic getaway.

The REAL Italy

Guest: DM (Raleigh, NC,USA)
Date of Stay: 05/14/11 Review Submitted: 06/21/11

We went to Rome, Venice, Florence- all the big sites- but to really go to Italy,a stay in Sansepolcro with the medieval center of town in Tuscany is unbeatable. This apartment is wonderful-spacious,perfectly located and better than the photos show. The town has the most incredible restaurants, and your access to real Italian life is a delightful experience, relaxing and a total departure from the USA. Louise and Franco are the best hosts you could ask for. They made us feel like old friends and were so helpful. Rent a car in Arezzo(don't forget the GPS) and this town is the perfect "home base" for exploring life in Tuscany and Umbria, not really accessible by their rail system. See Anghiari, Caprese de Michaelangelo(where he was born), Assissi, a working goat farm(buy their cheese) and really feel like you are Italian. You'll even pick up the language. Thanks Louise and Franco for a wonderful anniversary- and our first of many adventures to Italy.

Owner response:Hi thanks saw the goat's cheese place myself last week. It was fab! ciao a presto

Recommended for:Sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, romantic getaway.

A delightful apartment in Sansepolcro

Guest: Ali (Yarrow, BC, Canada)
Date of Stay: 11/20/10 Review Submitted: 01/12/11

Our stay at the apartment in Sansepolcro was nothing short of fantastic. Louise and Franco are gracious and very accommodating hosts. We loved the comfortable luxury of the apartment with its beautiful dining room and living room made so delightfully cozy by the warmth of the pellet stove. Perfect for our stay throughout the month of November.We felt truly at home in this warm and welcoming home. We also reveled in the close proximity to the wonderful walled town of Sansepolcro. Such a vibrant and enchanting place where you feel that you are slightly off the well trodden tourist path and able to experience the true ambiance of a Tuscany town. All this was just a short walk away from our front door. The whole experience left us wanting to return very soon.

Owner response:Hi Alison, thanks for your promptness and kind words! See you again soon! Louise & Franco

Recommended for:People with disabilities, sightseeing, tourists without a car, girls getaway, age 55+, families with teenagers, romantic getaway, families with young children.

Great apartment, well furnished, within walking distance of Sansepolcro center city shops and events

Guest: Joyce (Topeka Kansas USA)
Date of Stay: 09/01/10 Review Submitted: 10/25/10

I just spent a wonderful few weeks in Sansepolcro, a lovely friendly Italian city, in Tuscany. My friend and I had been planning a trip to Italy for over a year and we could not have found a more suitable spot. From the moment we arrived we felt completely at home. Louise and Franco were extremely helpful, they had an array of brochures available of nearby places to visit, local restaurants and loads of information about weekly markets, festivals and events. The apartment is quite spacious. Each morning we had Italian coffee on the patio, visited with the owners cats and then headed off to either somewhere suggested by Louise or Franco or something we researched on the computer, found in a brochure or just simply knew we wanted to visit . I can't imagine a more perfect spot to enjoy Italy and take in the Italian culture. One of the highlights of the trip was celebrating my birthday in Italy with a special cooking class in the apartment. Thanks Louise and Franco, it was a wonderful trip. I'll certainly want to come back.

Owner response:Hi see you soon! Louise

Recommended for:People with disabilities, sightseeing, adventure seekers, tourists without a car, girls getaway, pet owners, age 55+, families with teenagers, romantic getaway, families with young children.

Wonderful Holiday

Guest: Trevor (Belfast, Northern Ireland)
Date of Stay: 07/24/10 Review Submitted: 08/23/10

On arrival we were greeted by Franco who had stayed up after 1am to welcome us. The apartment was deceptively large and spacious which made it perfect for those HOT days. We were welcomed with 2 bottles of wine an added bonus after a 2 and a half hour drive, shame we couldnt stay awake to enjoy it properly! The beautiful town of Sansepolcro is literally a stones throw away, if you are there on a Sunday be sure to walk Via Septembre for the promenade with the locals. The apartment is ideally located for travelling throughout Tuscany and Umbria. Franco and Louise were more than helpful and there for any questions or queries we had and couldn't have been any friendlier. We look forward to going back again........ Thanks Franco and Louise

Owner response:Hi Trevor and Judith, thanks and hope to see you next year or the year after! ciao

Recommended for:Sightseeing, romantic getaway, families with young children.

Perfect!

Guest: Mary, Colleen, Maggie & Katie (Charleston, SC)
Date of Stay: 06/12/10 Review Submitted: 07/17/10

My three teenage daughters and I stayed at Louise and Franco's home in Sansepolcro for two weeks and found it to be perfect for our needs. We enjoyed leisurely walks each day into the walled city for dinner and gelato. The home was ideal and affordable as a base for exploring the surrounding towns as well. Louise was very helpful in providing information on the area. We were able to enjoy a yearly "antique" festival on our last night in Sansepolcro. Highly recommended.

Owner response:Hi Mary, it was lovely to have you and your girls here.. hope to see you again soon, ciao a presto Louise

Recommended for:Girls getaway, age 55+, families with teenagers, families with young children.

jane and Jim's review, May/June 2010

Guest: JB (Waiheke Island, NZ)
Date of Stay: 05/22/10 Review Submitted: 06/29/10

This apartment was our home in Sansepolcro for three weeks and was the high light of our Italian holiday. The apartment itself is spacious, cool in hot weather and equipped with all the comforts of home. The owners have reserved the best bit of the garden for use by the apartment dwellers and we enjoyed many meals on the patio, prepared in the well equipped kitchen. The location is brilliant, just a two minute walk and you are inside a walled medieval town, perfect for the evening stroll to the piazza for gelato. The bars and restaurants in the town serve delicious coffees and food and the atmosphere is cheerful and friendly in all the shops we entered. Sansepolcro itself is surrounded by lots of equally interesting towns and villages, most less than an hours drive away.

Owner response:Hi Jane and Jim, thanks very much for your kind comments and support ciao a presto Louise

Recommended for:Sightseeing, tourists without a car, pet owners, age 55+, families with teenagers, romantic getaway.

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 10/21/09 Review Submitted: 10/21/09

My wife and I were on a month long cycling trip in Tuscany and Umbria and we chose Sansepolcro as a place to base ourselves for a week so we thought an apartment would be ideal. It was very easy to find Louise and Franco's house and we were met with a warm welcome and introduction to our apartment. To say that I was pleasantly surprised with the accommodation would be an understatement. It was much larger than we anticipated and clean and well equipped. The only thing we missed was having a headboard on the bed. There was a huge collection of maps, coffee table books, novels and magazines as well as wifi to keep us entertained andf in touch. We made much use of the outside patio and garden for meals and just relaxing. It was very quiet and the location couldn't have been better. Within a few minutes (walking), were an array of restaurants, stores, including a bicycle shop, and sites. Although there were some other tourists we were definitely in the minority, and were able to experience a truly Italian way of life while we were there. For cyclists, it is an ideal location to do day rides and because of the proximity of the train staion many options exist for visiting other cities outside the normal reach of a cycling day trip.Oh yes, we loved the huge walk-in shower, a definite rarity on our trip. Thank you Louise and Franco and your handsome son, for making our stay in Sansepolcro one we will always remember.

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Guest: Avril Stott (New Zealand)
Date of Stay: 10/20/09 Review Submitted: 10/20/09

A lovely and elegant apartment in a beautiful old town in a gorgeous country - what more could you ask for in a holiday? The apartment was cool on the hot days and cosy in the cool Autumn evenings . The kitchen was ideal for cooking all the delicious fresh food bought from local markets or fresh pasta shops. Being three minutes away from the town centre meant the evening walks to buy a gelato were a delightful change of pace from our normal busy lifestyles. I agree with earlier comments that the free parking spaces across the road from the house is an added bonus. And the proximity to the train station meant we were able to dash and catch if the mood took us (as long as we researched the train timetables in advance). San Sepulcro is the perfect town to stay in to experience both Tuscan and nearby Umbrian life.

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Guest: William Russell1 (London, UK)
Date of Stay: 10/11/09 Review Submitted: 10/11/09

I stayed in the flat for two weeks at the end of August - my brother and sister in law joined me for one of the weeks. It was perfect. Room for everyone to breathe. Everything you need is there - they even have internet access! Louise and Franco were perfect hosts - there when you needed them, but otherwise you were left to get on with it, which is as it should be. The location of the flat is ideal for wandering in to the centre of San Sepolcro from and just as handy for the town's splendid swimming pool complex and its several very good restaurants. The railway station is close by and from there you can take a local train to Pergugia (one of many great days out destinations) and even, although you need to study the timetable, to Rome.I would go back. There is free parking across the road, free parking,rare in Italian towns. Parking is always a headache in Italian town centres. San Sepolcro is a delightful town - no steep hills, some tyerrific churches, and there are, of course, the Piero de la Francesca paintings. It is the ideal base from which to explore the Tiber Valley or go east into the Marches or West to Arezzo and Florence. Assisi, Gubbio, Arezzo, Urbina, Fano, the Franciscan monastery at La Verna, Umbertide, Lake Trasimene and Ancona are all day trip destinations while the towns, villages and castles in the valley around from Citta di Castello, San Giustiano, Lippiano and Monterci to Anghiari will constantly surprise. The back roads are quiet, the main roads easy to navigate. It is not tourist free, but it is not a tourist trap town either. There are visitors, but it has its own vital life to watch pass by or join you at one of the main street cafe tables. Go once, and you will almost certainly go back

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