Beautifully restored Tuscan farmhouse - large pool & terrace, fantastic views
- Farmhouse1938 sq. ft.
- Sleeps: 12
- Bedrooms: 5
- Bathrooms: 2
- Min Stay: 3–7 nights
Covivoli : 4-5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, big pool, amazing views, wifi, close to amenities & beautiful towns
Bedrooms
Owner
Gareth Edmunds
- Languages:
- english, french, italian, Happy to try to converse in any European language!
About Gareth Edmunds
Kate and Gareth live in Bristol with their two teenage children, Mathilda and George. Kate is a graphic designer and illustrator, and 10 years ago started her own business designing and selling colouring-in products both online and to major retailers and independent shops all over the world. After some 30+ years in IT consultancy and account management, Gareth joined Eggnogg in 2015. We bought Covivoli in July 2003, seduced as much by the location as the potential of the house itself. With Mathilda just a toddler and George only 3 months old, we moved to Italy in 2004 to spend more than six months overseeing the complete renovation of both farmhouse and grounds. In 2005 we returned to England (to friends and family, and work), but we spend as much time as we can in Tuscany, often with a big group of friends, enjoying relaxing holidays and exploring new places. Our favourite months are May and June.
Gareth Edmunds purchased this Farmhouse in 2003
Why Gareth Edmunds chose Caprese Michelangelo
We loved Covivoli from the moment we set eyes on it. Yes, the house was falling down, and everything was overgrown, but its location, set in olive groves with fantastic views across the valley, secluded yet close to amenities, made it ideal. We already knew Tuscany well, having enjoyed many holidays there, but we both agreed this was our favourite part. It has everything: lovely countryside, historic towns, great restaurants and friendly people, and although well known to Italians, it sees few foreign tourists, which somehow makes it feel even more authentic and special. Now, after all the hard work renovating the house, re-landscaping and building the pool and pergola, our enthusiasm for Covivoli, the area and its people, has not diminished. In fact, the more we go, the more we love it.
What makes this Farmhouse unique
We've probably said enough already, but feel free to contact us if you want to know more. All we would like to add is a big, big thank you to our dear friends, Fernanda and Mario, who looked after Covivoli for us for the first 10 years. More recently Cinzia has followed in their footsteps, and from 2019, Chris takes over as House Manager and all-round handyman . They are all amazing. As the many glowing comments from past guests make clear, Covivoli would not be the same without them.
Amenities
Featured
- Swimming pool
- Internet
- TV
- Washer & Dryer
- Children Welcome
- Parking
- No Smoking
- Heater
Bathrooms
- Bathrooms: 2
House Rules
Check-in: 4:00 PM
Check-out: 10:00 AM
Parties/events allowed
Birthday parties, anniversaries, etc all welcome
No smoking
Children allowed
Pool,swings,den,tabletennis,boule,games,books,DVDs
Max guests:12 (sleeps up to 10 adults)
Cancellation Policy
100% refund if canceled at least 60 days before arrival date.
31 Reviews
Great time in Tuscany
Nothing better than waking up our first day at this great property and walking out to the terrace to beautiful views and the smell of lavender and rosemary. Secluded spot in the hills but plenty to see locally. Property was well managed and we received so much useful info about the place and surrounding area. Kitchen was well stocked as well as the rest of the house. Our 5 course Tuscan dinner was amazing.
Great view
The property is lovely and well equipped. The outside space is excellent. It would be a bit small for more than 8 if the weather was bad. But we would certainly go back. The location is great and there were good ideas for what to do locally. Chris was really helpful and responsive
Thank you
Picture perfect
We had a wonderful week away. Views were amazing it was hard to leave the villa.
Peace and quiet amid the Tuscan hills
A beautiful villa in a secluded and peaceful valley. The scenery is amazing: rolling farmland in the foreground and impressive hills in the background, with olive trees and cherry trees abundant at the villa. The pool is idyllic and our family enjoyed meals al fresco under the excellent pergola. There are plenty of bedrooms and the villa is decorated to a high modern standard. It is spread over several floors, however, with lots of steps throughout - so is not perfect for families with small children/toddlers.
The owner and local property manager were both excellent - before and during the stay - very helpful and responsive.
There are interesting local towns not too far away, eg Anghiarri and Sansepolcro (around 40 minutes) but not a great deal of amenities closer to home, so suggest stocking up further afield.
Overall, a great stay in a fantastic hidden away location.
Toscana retreat
Covivoli is beautifully situated in a quiet part of Tuscany 45 mins from Arezzo. It’s quite a drive to Arezzo, and Siena takes nearly two hours each way. The pool at the property is large and very well maintained with wonderful views across the countryside. There are plenty of other indoor and outdoor games to muck about with. The problem for us was that the weather was poor every day but one of our week-long stay - windy, rainy and cold. So we spent a lot of time in the house - 7 adults & 3 kids - and it was quite a squash. One room that had been a sitting room had a sofa bed to accommodate us which left one small dark sitting room and the kitchen to sit in which was not very comfortable. In good weather this wouldn’t be a problem but it made us feel constrained.
Covivoli
We had a wonderful stay at Covivoli! The house itself is comfortable and very well stocked, particularly the kitchen - it seems to have almost everything! The surrounding countryside is beautiful and the views from the house are spectacular.
Unfortunately for us the weather was not great, but we still managed to pack a lot in to our holiday! We had the fantastic opportunity to have a chef come and teach us how to make Cantucci and Ravioli, definitely a highlight of the trip!
All in all we had a wonderful holiday!
Map
A great location for walking, horse-riding and cycling holidays. There are many beautiful and historic towns and cities nearby, and many fantastic restaurants. (Our house guide has more details.)
Travel: Use of a car is pretty much essential, although there is public transport (trains to Arezzo, buses to Anghiari and Caprese). Suitable airports include: Perugia - 1 hour; Rimini, Ancona & Bologna - all around 2 hours; Pisa & Rome - 2½ hours; and Venice - 3½ hours.
Distances:
Caprese Michelangelo 3km. Pieve S. Stefano 10km. Anghiari 15km. Sansepolcro 20km. Perugia 90km. Siena 100km. Assisi 100km. Rimini 110km. Florence 120km.
Coast/Beach: West and East coasts reached in under two hours, Lake Trasimeno in an hour. (But remember, Covivoli has a big private swimming pool.)
Further Details:
Caprese Michelangelo has a small supermarket, pharmacy, doctor’s surgery, post office, bars, pizzeria, police station, bank and some fantastic restaurants. Pieve has a decent supermarket and Sansepolcro has a much wider selection of supermarkets and good shops and restaurants. In fact, there are many very good local restaurants within 10-15 minutes drive from the house. Several local markets can be found in local towns, our favourite being Anghiari on Wednesday mornings, but there are bigger ones further afield. Look out too for the various music, food and artisan festivals, farmers markets and antiques fairs that take place throughout the year in many of the local towns.
If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact us.