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Casa Poggio Living room Upper terrace Plunge pool Dining alfresco Twin bedroom Dining room Kitchen Master bathroom Olive Harvest, November The house on its hill Sundowners   Tweet       Property Location     Casa Poggio Poggio Mirteto, Lazio, Italy       One-off feature     Casa Poggio – ‘the house on the hill’ – is a lovely old farmhouse set in an olive grove in the Sabine Hills, just 40 miles north of Rome. Ideal for exploring Sabina’s hilltop towns (no tourists), and for day-trips to Rome (45 mins by train). Spectacular views – bedrooms face the Umbrian mountains; the living-room overlooks the Tiber Valley; from the dining terrace you can see St Peter’s in Rome.       Property Info     Accommodation Type: House / Villa     Property Setting: Village / Rural     Holiday Type: Relaxing / Family / Culture     Bedrooms: 4     Guests: 8     Catering: self-catering       General Info     This villa in Italy sits in five acres of olive grove and orchard, high on the prow of a hill. When the morning mists clear you can see Rome in the far distance – but whether you’ll manage to get there is another matter. This is a place to truly unwind. You can pick figs from just outside the front door, while the surrounding acacia trees are alive with birds – goldfinches, blackcaps, blue rock thrushes. You might spot the odd hoopoe… or, at night, a porcupine. Casa Poggio was rescued from ruin five years ago and the story of its slow restoration was told in The Daily Telegraph. The house has thick stone walls, terracotta floors, chestnut beams and whitewashed walls. Furniture is simple and comfortable. The large kitchen is equipped for serious cooks, the dining tables inside and out are great for long communal meals. Small plunge pool with panoramic views plus three lovely public pools and river swimming within a 15 minute drive.       Details on the area surrounding the property/accommodation     Sabina is just an hour’s drive from Rome, but a world away in mood and pace. This is Italy’s ancient olive heartland, with silvery groves, rolling hills and distant mountain ranges. From the house you can see eight hilltop towns, all within a half hour drive. The closest is Poggio Mirteto (5 mins), with excellent food shops and a Friday market. Summer in Sabina is a whirl of village festivals and food ‘sagras’ with trestle tables under the stars and live music, while the Romanesque Farfa Abbey hosts concerts all summer. You can drive further north for Renaissance cities on the tourist trail (Orvieto, Spoleto, Assisi eg), but Sabina’s little towns give a rare glimpse of old-style Italy with their tiny butchers shops and cobbled alleyways. For isolated walking, the Monti Sabini are stunning. You can also rent bikes, take a boat through the Tiber nature reserve, learn to make pasta, have an Ayurvedic massage, swim in thermal pools… And there is Rome on your doorstep.       Getting there & away/local amenities     Getting There: Nearest airports to this villa in Italy are Rome Fiumicino and Rome Ciampino, from which you follow the ring-road north to the A1 Florence-Naples motorway. Take the first motorway exit which takes you straight into the Sabine Hills. The 40 mile journey takes a hour to an hour-and-a-half, depending on rush hour traffic. You can also fly to Perugia with Ryanair: a longer journey (70 miles) but very scenic, following the Tiber past the medieval hilltop town of Todi. Late arrivals can catch a train direct from Rome Fiumicino to Poggio Mirteto (90 mins). You’ll need picking up as there are no taxis at the station.     Nearest airports: Rome Ciampino or Rome Fiumicino 40 miles     Nearest train station: Poggio MIrteto 2 miles     Nearest ferry terminal: Civitavecchia     Nearest bus stop: Poggio MIrteto     Car Hire: Essential     Nearest restaurant: 10 min walk     Nearest beach: Lake Bracciano 35 miles; Tarquinia Lido 60 miles     Nearest shop: Organic farm shop 10 min walk     Nearest market: Poggio Mirteto, Friday. Many others       More Info Owner Info     Name Tessa Boase   Contact Phone No. 07904 586121       Accommodation details     Activities Nearby Birdwatching / Cycling / Golf within 30km / Horse Riding / Therapies / Walking       Interior Facilities Cot / Highchair / Dishwasher / Linen provided / Log Fire / Maid Service / Washing Machine       Interior Details The farmhouse is built into the lee of a hill: you enter at first floor level to an open-plan kitchen/dining room and a living room with French windows looking out onto Monte Soratte, a fireplace, large sofa and armchairs, abundant reference books and good reading lights. At the opposite end of the first floor is a twin bedroom with shower room. Downstairs, a long corridor gives onto two generous-sized double bedrooms and a smaller twin room, each with north-facing French windows opening onto a terrace with a rose arbour. Each room has been restored to its original state with vaulted brick ceilings (complete with hanging hooks for hams), thick chestnut beams and herringbone terracotta floors. There is also an intriguing arched grotto for storing wine and olive oil. One double room has its own shower room; the other shares a large bathroom with the twin room. Bathrooms have modern designer fittings.       Exterior Facilities Garden / Parking / Swimming Pool / Terrace       Exterior Details Casa Poggio overlooks the village of San Luigi, and is fenced off from the quiet road and secluded by surrounding trees. There is a shaded eating terrace with table and eight chairs just outside the front door – a spot to sit and take in the views. Sun loungers cluster above the plunge pool with views of Monte Soratte. In the summer, the north-facing terrace down below is a refuge for siestas and sundowners in deck chairs and Lloyd Loom chairs. The house is immediately surrounded by terraced gardens, before giving way to the olive grove and orchard. Our small, above-ground plunge pool (4.5m diameter, 1m deep) is set just out of sight on a lower terrace with spectacular views of Monte Soratte. There is a double car shelter.       Conditions of Rental Flexible arrivals, Sunday-Sunday during April-September. Short and longer stays possible. A heating surcharge of 35 Euros a day plus a few days warming-up is payable during the cooler months. No smoking in the house. Deposit of 25% received upon booking; balance payable a fortnight before departure when you’ll receive an information pack. Our English-speaking housekeeper Irene will greet you at the house, and check you out on departure.       Other Information Babysitting available / Child Friendly / Cook available / Ideal for honeymoons / Short breaks available       What visitors have said about Casa Poggio       Tessa and Nick! Crikey! Holidays don’t get much better… Casa Poggio is heavenly and your recommendations were all the guide we needed. Everything about the trip exceeded our expectations. We are still reeling from how incredible your house is and how much love and attention you have fed into it. How the devil did you ever find it? It was a complete privilege to stay there, and the only way we were able to leave was knowing we will be booking next year very soon... for longer! Many many thanks again, Claire and John. Claire and John Paling,  East Sussex,  Jun 2011  We’ve been very happy to come back to Casa Poggio, having first come here in July 2009. The surrounding gardens have matured and are looking very lush. And the house is such a pleasure to stay in as before. The new swimming pool is a lovely addition – just perfect for the children and we’ve very much enjoyed it, along with trips to Selci pool, which is our favourite. Our days have revolved around ‘la cucina’ – frequenting E Non Solo Carne almost daily to pick up something fabulous to cook later. Thank you Tessa and Nick for creating such a beautiful house with such attention to detail. We understand that this has been a labour of love for you both which is reflected in the finish and character. Hopefully, we will be back in 2012 for a longer stay. Tom, Anna, Freya and Eve; Stuart, Alison and Richard. Tom and Anna Ellis and family,  Tufnell Park, London,  Jun 2011  What a perfect position and a lovely house! We have all loved our holiday from ages one to seventy four. The plunge pool was a huge hit and swimming in the river was idyllic. Huge range of weather : dramatic storms and brilliant sunshines. Nightingales, scops owls, bee eaters, swallows, sparrows and turtle doves. Many lizards and many, many ants. Greengages, blackberries, plums from the garden. Thank you for such a wonderful holiday. Delia, Olando, Madeleine (4), Sol (1), Rob, Jonanthan and Jeanine. Delia and Orlando Peel,  Tufnell Park, London,  Aug 2011  Casa Poggio has been a very welcoming place to call home for the week. There is so much wildlife waiting to be discovered in the gardens, from scarce swallowtails to lizards, and dancing fireflies, to the awesome ants that Thomas enjoyed so much. The train into Rome is very easy, we spent a fabulous day wandering around the Forum and the Coliseum. The walk from Colloseo to Spagna metro station is just a mile and a half but it takes in so many of Rome’s most famous sights is took us a full day. Thank you so much for a wonderful holiday. Mike & Lizzie, Thomas & Alison, Jane & Andy. The Whetnalls,  Tooting, London,  Jun 2011  We had a wonderful time at Casa Poggio. We've stayed in a number of different villas in Italy over the last five years, but this was definitely the best. Helen Beddow & family,  Sep 2011  We spent the first few days just sitting on the terrace or in the garden reading novels from the well-stocked bookshelves, watching bee-eaters, lizards and humming-bird hawk moths and enjoying the fantastic views. Casa Poggio was also a lovely, tranquil place to come home to after a day exploring the winding roads and medieval villages. Shopping was easy and pleasurable, with lots of great little food shops in Poggio Mirteto stocking local produce, not to mention the very friendly 'Orto Bio' farm shop just near the house. The small independent supermarket is amazing - they actually make friends and try to sell you stuff in a most un-supermarket-like way, specifically their roast pork. olive oil and local organic wine. Mick Hodgkin, Gerry Holden & family,  London,  Aug 2010