Villa Francesca Relais

The positives ….beautiful place, the pool area is stunning and the views are amazing. Location is good, close to the castle and lovely towns within a short drive. Decor is good, apartment is very clean and modern. A really beautiful place The negatives…we were staying in the biggest room / apartment. So we didn’t get breakfast included like the other guests. That’s fine, we had our own kitchen. But then again, we paid more for it so I think breakfast would have been nice to be included. Even just once or twice (stayed for a week). But the biggest issue we had was being told we shouldn’t be in the main building. We couldn’t sit in the lounge area or walk through it, that was for other guests. Which is in conflict with the information on their own website. I think we saw them fuss over the other guests at breakfast, and it just felt like we weren’t as appreciated as the guests which was frustrating as we splurged on this accommodation in comparison to everywhere else we stayed during our Italy holiday. The flat was a little small too, plus the outdoor private terrace was completely overlooked by another rooms balcony. Though luckily they didn’t use it much I think it’s probably a wonderful place for a couple to stay, lots of positives and beautiful setting, stunning pool area. Also, our Italian isn’t great so that didn’t help us in chatting to hosts and getting a rapport. But I honestly felt it was a bit overpriced compared to the service we experienced. I think maybe not the most family friendly Maybe all just a language barrier (but then again, the guy who runs the place told us on the first day that his wife had better English so she’d come and chat to us that day). She never came the whole week to see how we were. I’m not expecting them to speak English, we could muddle through. But she just didn’t come and welcome us or answer our issues I just hope the owners read this and take it on board as I think it has so much potential and is a wonderful, beautiful place. I just felt a little let down

From the structure itself (built 3 yrs ago) to the furniture and artwork, everything is well appointed and beautifully adorned. By far, the most comfortable bed and pillows we’ve ever experienced in a hotel. The rooms have names, but aren’t referenced on the website. Ours was Ofelia (a junior suite) and it connected to Beatrice. Along with Aurelia and Penelope they look toward the pool. The other rooms (Lavinia, Ottavia, Francesca & Flamingo) have a view of the castle. It was very quiet and relaxing. We enjoyed the pool, especially during the hot afternoons. One of the owners brought drinks out to some of the guests. One point of clarification from their website: it features a restaurant, but it’s not open to the public and they only serve breakfast and lunch.

Per passare un capodanno diverso prenotiamo una suite in questa struttura. Allo stesso momento della prenotazione ci viene proposta anche la cena di Capodanno, perché no? Presi dalla curiosità prenotiamo. Al nostro arrivo in struttura veniamo accolti dallo Chef che ci fa sentire subito come a casa . La struttura è visibilmente di lusso ma ciò nonostante risulta accogliente e familiare. Ci sediamo e dal Brindisi di benvenuto al dessert il nostro palato, seppur non così sofisticato viene pienamente soddisfatto da quantità e qualità’. Ottimo il suggerimento del vino da parte dello chef che durante tutta la cena ci ha coperto di attenzioni insieme ad uno staff attento. Se proprio devo trovare una pecca…. Una signora nel tavolo accanto che ha lagnato tutta la sera…. Però si sa’ il lusso e’ per molti ma a volte non è per tutti. Ci si rivede per l’estate .