Absolutely tied with our private island experience in Fiji.
This place was surreal.
When we were planning this trip, we decided to book this place as we would have a group and it would make it a lot more affordable. We booked a Tuscan Villa on Airbnb and I am so glad we did. Here is how it all went down...
After grabbing our rental cars at the station, we plugged in the coordinates to our place, we rode down the expansive and windy roads all the way to the front gates of the estate. We buzzed Maria, who would be the housekeeper and she let us right in. We pulled up and were instantly amazed. We had our own Tuscan Villa for the next few days and we had no words. Maria greeted us with big smiles and the best bottle of Prosecco I’ve ever had. We dropped our bags, went on a mini guided tour of the estate and I really couldn’t believe I was there.
This place had been restored and originally owned by Napoleon Bonaparte. As the story goes, he purchased this place for his niece. It was decorated beautifully and it was totally a maze! We got lost finding each other and navigating between rooms and levels. The views were breathtaking and we didn’t event know how to take it all in. We couldn’t take the smiles off our faces. We seriously felt like royalty here. Honestly, next to the island in Fiji, this was easily the best place we have every stayed in our life. Truly incredible.
We had Maria prepare us a traditional meal one night that included wild boar and polenta. We paired it with some Vino Nobile de Montepulciano that was gifted to us from d’Ricci and it was delicious. We spent the days basking in the sunshine, enjoyed hanging by the fire at night, chillin in the cinema room, intense games of foosball in the gym, lighting candles near the relaxing spa in the master bedroom and even jumping in the pool one night!
The days flew by and we still couldn't believe we had this place to ourselves. We soaked up every minute and before we knew it, we were packing our things and getting ready to head out to Florence. What an experience! I WILL absolutely be back here before I die. It is one the list! Thanks again to Belinda for being such an incredible host and to Maria for being so much more than we expected. Cheers!