We didn't stay in this villa but in Apartment Limone, a one bedroom apartment just above this villa owned by the same person. Our visit was arranged through Luana Zangerelli of Italytorent.com. The apartment was a delight, even better than we had anticipated. The layout and structure of apartment make it the ideal vacation home. Then, the view: quite wonderful and ever-changing in the varying light that defines Umbria. However, the owner has taken the basics and made it into something even more special, something that reflects her taste and travels, and which also brings the apartment fully to life. I would confidently recommend it any couple travelling to Spello. We were also very impressed by the communication and responsiveness to requests, although I now know I should have made more requests. My wife had a problem when dimpled sheets were put on the bed, which exacerbated her skin condition. Within ten minutes, someone was there with fresh sheets. The owner was also extremely helpful in arranging PCR tests for us, and solving other little problems. I’m sure we could have made more use of her local knowledge. However, there is an independent streak in us that sees travel as an opportunity to discover things for ourselves. And that we were able to do. We were also very impressed by the person who cleaned the apartment, great energy and very thorough. The holiday was made possible by the fantastic support we received from Italytorent.com represented by Luana Zangarelli, a completely remarkable person. Her thoroughness, kindness, integrity, and commitment to her community all contributed to making the holiday, not only possible, but so easy and so enjoyable. We started planning this holiday more than two years ago, and we have experienced the Covid pandemic, changes of rental accommodations, and more issues. Luana spent far more time helping and communicating with us than the money she might earn from us could ever justify. Money is not her motivator. She builds your faith in humanity. Spello by itself is fabulous, otherwise we wouldn't have spent three weeks there. However, it's also ideal for visiting many other towns within a 40 minutes drive. We like Trevi, both from a distance and up close. Montefalco is great and has several great restaurants, L'Alchemista being our favourite. Assisi is far less kitschy than I imagined. Rasiglia, a restored weaving town in the mountains above Foligno, has increased in popularity, but is still entrancing with all its waterways. We also really enjoyed Todi and Spoleto. We explored wine, olive oil, and food. We were familiar with most of the Sagrantinos di Montefalco. We visited the Romanelli winery, perhaps our favourite for their Medeo, and really liked the people there. Castelbueno and the big turtle has some good wine, although it’s larger scale and less family orientated. Tenuta Bellafonte, whose Sagnrantino is the only one available in British Columbia, was also a favourite. Their Rosso di Montefalco Pomino introduced us to that wine. Milziade Antona had very good wine, as, of course, did Caprai and Lungarotti. We don’t drink white wine generally, but we did have a couple of good glasses of Trebbiano di Spoletino. We also visited a few olive oil places, Azienda Marfuga near Campello sul Clitunna was our favourite, perhaps because of its proximity to Fonti di Clitunna, a small but very special spot. We also liked Azienda Viola in Foligno, who, we found out, have a distributor in Vancouver. We visited a few of ceramic places in Deruta, and bought a gorgeous plate at Grazie Deruta. There were also a few cashmere stores. What I like most about the restaurants in Umbria is that they each have their individual personality, but they are all committed to producing good food from local produce. There are no chain restaurants in Spello or most of the adjoining towns. The restaurants are owned and staffed by people who care about their community, and the restaurants are a focus of that community. Our favourite restaurants in Spello were Pinturicchio and Il Buchetto. Solid, well cooked food. Outside of Spello, there's any number of other restaurants. Our favourite was Serpillo in the tiny hamlet of Torre al Colle. Our second visit there was spectacular. Innovation grounded in tradition. For example, tagliatelle made from chestnut flour with hare and fennel pollen. Even a casual stop for lunch with the locals at Siro in Torgiano revealed quality. One dish was Uovo Barzotti in a pecorino sauce with some grilled zucchini slices and two bruschette. Spello is a very special place, and Andrea offers a very special home from which you can enjoy it.

Abbiamo avuto il piacere di soggiornare in questa casa la seconda settimana di agosto. Siamo rimasti affascinati dal design unico di questa villa. Dal giardino privato vi è una vista spettacolare della campagna Umbra e vi è anche una piccola piscina perfetta per i mesi più caldi. Andrea, la proprietaria, si è resa molto disponibile a qualsiasi nostra richiesta. Una persona davvero professionale. A pochi passi dalla casa è possibile raggiungere ottimi ristoranti, bar e supermercati. Spello è uno splendido e coloratissimo borgo, noto soprattutto per i suoi vicoli ricoperto di profumatissimi fiori. Inoltre ha una struttura medievale con vicoli tortuosi e antiche case in pietra. Che dire, affascinante! Abbiamo prenotato tramite l’agenzia Italy to rent. La nostra referente è stata la Sig.ra Luana che si è occupata di tutto fino al nostro arrivo. Grazie e speriamo di risentirci in futuro. Rebecca

We stayed at the next door property to Villa Splendida for a week in July. The location of this house is almost it’s everything - I say almost because the house itself and the view are pretty hard to beat. Although in the centre of Spello, and a few minutes walk to many excellent restaurants, Gelaterias and a small but well stocked supermarket, this house offer complete privacy and tranquility. The garden has stunning views of the Umbrian countryside and a small pool to cool off in the midday heat. The house is decorated in great taste and offers privacy to everyone. Each double bedroom with en-suite has its own private access. The living space and kitchen are pleasant spaces and are supplemented by outdoor living area. I cooked dinner on the one evening that we didn’t eat out and the kitchen was well stocked with all utensils that I needed and the space for eating for 6 was plentiful. There is also an extra toilet in addition to the en-suite bathrooms which we found handy to have. You do need to be prepared to get tour luggage up a steep hill to the house, as parking is a couple of minutes away, so make sure your bags are wheeled! Andrea, the owner, could not have been more helpful. Check in was easy and welcoming and she spent a considerable amount of time on the phone on out behalf sorting out a car hire issue that we had. Throughout our stay Andrea was on the end of the phone offering restaurant suggestions and advice on places to visit. Assisi is within 15 minutes drive and Spoleto 30 minutes away. There is a train station just outside the city walls that some of our party we used to take a train back to Rome Fiumicino Airport when going home. Spello is such a beautiful place and the we found the novelty of not driving so persuasive that we stayed within the town for most of our trip. We booked through Italy to rent who I will definitely use again. Luana new her properties inside out and was a great support and help through the booking process, our arrival and whilst we stayed. Hope to come back some day.