La Casa sulla collina del Castello

This property is difficult to rate. This house is not for the elderly.

5.0

This property is difficult to rate. This house is not for the elderly because of the steep ascents and descents to the village and to the pool area. You have to park your car in a two storey car park approx. 250 m from the ascent to the castle and the property. The parking fees are paid by the owner. The owner will meet you upon arrival and drive you and your luggage up the hill to the property at the foot of the castle. The pros: A very warm reception by the owner Maura whom we found very helpful and polite although she only speaks Italian. The interior is new and clean with a modern bathroom and a walk-in shower. Milk, butter, jam, honey and cereals, coffee capsules, soft drinks and even a bottle of sparkling wine were generously provided. The aircondition and the small fridge cool very well so that your beverages are ice cold when you take them out. The hosts thoughtfully provided a power adapter for Italian power points. There were also two bathrobes. We counted seven deckchairs and cushions around the pool area which is above average. There is even a large Weber BBQ.

− The entrance door to the apartment is just 175 cm high, the bathroom door is 185 cm and you may have to duck your head. Unfortunately, there is no wardrobe and if have two or more suitcases the apartment will soon be cluttered with clothes. As the apartment does not have real windows but rather crenels you have no view at all and you may feel locked up and uncomfortable because you cannot see the sky above. There is no terrace at the level of the apartment, only a very small sitting area with a table and two metal chairs. If you want to sit outside you have to lug everything down to the pool area. Although only 5 minutes down to the piazza the steep descent and ascent to and from the village can be very challenging for the elderly particularly in wet weather. The same holds true for the 100 steps down to the pool. Likewise if you park your car in the undercover parking near the piazza you will have to lug all your shoppings up to the house. We knew that we had to walk a few minutes from the carpark but we did not anticipate the steep ascent on cobblestones. A note on serenity: The pool is a nice feature if you do not have a pool at home but be aware that you will have to bear with a loud and perpetual traffic noise especially from the myriad motorcycles. The bottom line: the apartment is modern and new and very well equipped but the access is cumbersome for the elderly and the lack of real windows can be depressing. As the apartment has no directly attached outdoor space you have to schlep all need down to the lower levels.

We had a wonderful stay in this beautiful house. The view and the garden are impressive. A big plus is the private pool

10.0