Casetta Selvella (x 5 people) details and photos

Casetta Selvella is available at a lower rate for smaller parties. For details see Castella Selvella (x 2 people).

In the gently hilly farmlands west of Lake Trasimeno. The nearest village, Gioiella, 1.5km/1 mile, boasts a single shop and caffè; Castiglione del Lago, 9km/6 miles, offers a much broader choice. Hilltop villages abound: Chiusi, 16km/10 miles, boasts an Etruscan museum; Montepulciano, known for its fine wines and Chianciano Terme, a spa town, lie to the north. Siena, Perugia and Orvieto can be reached in 1 hour.

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[all rooms have glass doors leading outside] Open living/dining room opening to study. Kitchen with marble sink opening to loggia. Bathroom with shower.

Double bedroom with small terrace overlooking pool. Double bedroom. Bathroom with bath and separate shower.

A small garden of lawns and shrubs is skirted by fields that give way to forests, with the nearest neighbour some distance away. The vegetable patch, from which guests may help themselves, is planted just above the house. The private swimming pool, 4 x 8m/13 x 26 feet, is set on a terrace steps from the study door.

Assistance is provided locally by the property's helpful offsite caretaker who speaks English fluently. Services included in the rental fee, and optional services available, are noted under Price and Availability.

Dishwasher. Microwave. Washing machine. Satellite TV with DVD/video. CD/cassette player. Air conditioning in the bedrooms. Central heating. Fixed telephone line. Satellite internet. [Simple dial up connection from 2007].

Airports: Florence, 1 hour 30 minutes; Rome, 2 hours; Pisa, about 2 hours 20 minutes. Railway station at Castiglione del Lago [for Florence and Rome]. Motorway exit at Chiusi-Chianciano Terme, 16km/10 miles from the property, including a few hundred metres of good white road. Parking for two cars.

Tennis and water sports at Castiglione del Lago, 15 minutes. Several thermal spas at Chianciano Terme and Montepulciano, both about 30 minutes. A favourite activity on Lake Trasimeno is the is the ferry trip to Isola Maggiore, the only inhabited island. There is an old fishing village on the island, with houses dating from the 14th and 16th centuries, and a ruined 19th century folly. St. Francis of Assisi is said to have slept here in 1211, and two little churches boast a variety of artefacts from and paintings of the event. Ferries to the island leave from Castiglione, Tuoro-sul-Trasimeno and Passignano.

The pool has a depth of 1.50m/4.5 feet and steps for entry/exit.