ABOUT THE VILLA

Description of the Villa

The villa, on two levels, comfortably furnished with many original antiques, consists of:

Ground Floor:
	independent entrance
	entrance hall
	large kitchen
	formal dining room
	living room with TV
	three double bedrooms
	two bathrooms, one with shower, one with tub and shower
Upper Floor:
	drawing room with TV
	four double bedrooms
	four ensuite bathrooms (1 with tub, 3 with shower)

During your vacation in Italy you will enjoy exclusive use of the swimming pool (5m x 12m), the panoramic terrace with views of the surrounding valleys and the villa's 10.000 mq walled-in garden with century old trees and a romantic grotto, Grotta dei Delfini. (see photos of the villa)

This villa rental includes central heating, telephone, 2 TVs, fully equipped kitchen including dishwasher and washing machine. Fax is available on request. Cleaning and/or cooking help are available at an additional fee. Pets are allowed on the premises.

Golf courses, tennis courts and a riding school are in the vicinity. For a tour of Tuscany on two wheels, there are four mountain bikes available in the villa. Lago di Bilancino, a lake near the villa (20 km), offers water sports such as sailing and windsurfing. (View photos of the lake)

Cooking classes, gourmet meals and wine tasting tours can be organized on request.

Many other destinations in Tuscany, such as Florence (35 km), Arezzo and San Gimignano (70 km) Siena (80 km), Pisa and Lucca (90 km), are all within easy reach. Rome is only 3 hours away, by motorway.
Most destinations can also be reached by train from the station of Vicchio through Florence.

See our Useful Links page for guides to Florence and Tuscany, travel information, companies offering guided tours, information on Italian wines and Italian language schools.

A short history of the Villa

Although no definite records have been found, the origin of Villa di Collina goes back for many centuries to the Renaissance years, and quite possibly to the Middle Ages. The house is first shown on a 17th century map of the Mugello region; it was then much smaller and belonged to the Martellucci family. The family of the present owner inherited the property in the mid-1700's.

Like most other country houses in Tuscany the Villa di Collina was the centre of an agricultural system as well as a summer residence. The tenant-farmers' dwellings around the property are now converted into vacation houses. Still preserved, but no longer used, are the stables, work-shops, wine cellar, and bakery that evoke its agricultural past. Among the additions made in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, was a tower with a clock that could be seen for miles.

During the Second World War the house was used as quarters by both the Wehrmacht and the Allied troops; writings in German and English, and the soldiers' signatures, can still be seen on some walls. You'll be staying in the large rooms originally used by the owners during the summer months, which have been completely restored as part of a general plan of restoration and reconversion of the property. (see photos of the villa)