6 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
Sleeps up to 12
Swimming pool 10m by 5m

Calcina, Italy, is a handsome and well appointed 'casa padronale' farmhouse offering spacious accommodation, with its own private swimming pool and charming little church with naive painted murals.

It sleeps 12 guests in 6 generously sized double bedrooms, has 4 bathrooms, 3 ensuite, satellite tv and video and offers sweeping views from three sides of the house and terraces.

Enjoying a hill top position very close to the beautiful walled city of Sansepolcro, birthplace of Piero de la Francesca, Calcina nestles in the lovely lower foothills of the Alpe Della Luna (mountains of the moon) region, and is set in 20 acres of grounds with gardens orchard olives vines and woodlands. The property offers 360 degree views to Umbria beyond and Tuscany below. It is a quiet and tranquil country setting ideal for children and a family holiday yet conveniently close to the many cultural artistic and culinary delights which attract visitors to italy.

Available for year-round rental, this is an ideal base from which to explore many of Tuscany and Umbria's prime tourist sites, or to simply bask by the pool in the Italian sunshine and admire the lovely countryside.

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Accommodations

The farmhouse was built some 200 years ago adjacent to the site of a shrine to San Cerbone which dates back to the 12th century,and which was visited by Saint Francis of Assisi on the pilgrimage to Rome.the house has been fully restored over the last 5 years but retains many original features including age polished pianelli floors, a working stone fireplace, chestnut beamed ceilings, double aspected rooms with high ceilings and long views, extensive terraces to catch the sun all day long, a working walk-in bread and pizza oven, garage and a range of outbuildings including a small deconsecrated private church with altar, pews and seating for 12 people.

FIRST FLOOR
The house is on two floors with 3 double and 2 twin bedded rooms on the upper floor and one twin bedded room on the ground floor. The house sits on a hillside and thus has groundlevel access to both floors but has been linked by an internal stonebuilt staircase. The main entrance is via a porch on the upper floor and this opens into a large double aspected comfortable living room with a huge sofa, armchairs, working stone surround fireplace dated 1851, satellite TV and video. The views from this room are towards the medieval city of Anghiari and over the plain of Sansepolcro. The bedrooms are all spacious and comfortable. The largest bedroom is double aspect with long views and has a beamed ceiling, king-size sleigh bed and ensuite bathroom with bath.

There are 2 more large double bedrooms one with a traditional Italian king-size wrought iron bed and antique furniture and the other with a queen size bed with ensuite bathroom with shower. Two further twin bedded rooms overlook the church and share the family bathroom with fabulous views as you laze in the bath.

GROUND FLOOR
The ground floor, formerly the cantina, is accessed by double French doors from a wide pergola covered terrace which runs across the front of the house. The well-equipped kitchen is a large and airy room with a wonderful chestnut beamed ceiling. It is designed with an island workstation sink unit in the middle with dishwasher and a built-in range of chestnut cupboards, fridge/freezer, gas hob and electric cooker, with stonebuilt cooker surround and granite working surfaces. The walls boast antique dresser shelving units and the whole is a very pleasing working environment which cooks will find easy to use. This room opens on to the dining room via a wide stone archway. The dining room, which also opens onto the terrace, has a large antique oak dining table seating 12 and a range of antique mountain and country furniture enthusiastically collected by the present owner from local antique fairs.

At the back of the ground floor is the old winery now housing the washing machine and wine vats now no longer in use. The dining terrace which runs the length of the house is partially shaded by a clematis and vine covered pergola. The long reclaimed wooden dining table seats 8 to 10 with quality teak seating.

The sixth bed room, which is located on the ground floor is a light an airy room which also opens onto the leafy covered terrace via a French door. It has twin beds and an ensuite bathroom with shower.

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Outside

To the side (and facing down the valley) is a large and sunny terrace stretching the full width of the house and including a pergola ideal for al fresco dining.

To the rear of the house is a large barn (presently unrestored and used only for storage) and a small private (deconsecrated) church with naive mural painted walls.

Behind the barn lies a large 10m x 5m swimming pool with roman steps and a wide paved surround furnished with loungers and chairs. There is a delightful view over the Tuscan countryside to one side and an uninterrupted view towards Umbria on the other.

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In the area

4 kms away is the small but sophisticated walled town of Sansepolcro (home to Piero della Francesca's famous work 'The Resurrection') which attracts visitors from all over the world. It has supermarkets and a full range of shops, banks, cafes and a post office, plus a lively market twice weekly and a wide selection of restaurants including 4 which appear in the Michelin guide. Sansepolcro has year-round events and festivals including the traditional crossbow contest the Palio della Balestra with rival town Gubbio.

Florence, Siena, San Gimignano and Bologna are about 2 hours drive. All approximately an hour away are Lake Trasimeno (boat trips, wind surfing, child-friendly beach), Perugia, Assisi, Cortona and Gubbio. Arezzo (the location for the town shots in the oscar-winning film La Vita e Bella) is about 45 minutes away, Citta di Castello about 30 minutes and Anghiari 15-20 minutes. Also local are a variety of small hilltop towns include Caprese Michelangelo (allegedly the birthplace of the artist), Monterchi, Monte Santa Maria Tiberina and more.

Horse riding is available on the outskirts of the town, there is a bowling alley about 10 kms out of town and for the golfer a choice of a 9 or 18 hole course at Antognolla (handicap card required) in a lovely setting about 40 minutes drive away.

Calcina is well served by a variety of airports with direct flights from the UK, all within driving range:

Forli/Bologna - L Rudolphi airport, just over an hour away offers value for money flights via Ryanair.

Ancona - 1 hour 45 minutes (Ryanair)
Bologna - 2 hours (BA, GO)
Pisa - 2 hours (BA)
Florence - 2 hours (Alitalia, Meridiana)
Rome, Fiumicino airport - about 4 hours (BA, Alitalia, Meridiana)

Rome, Ciampino airport - about 4 hours (Go, Ryanair)

Milan (Linate or Malpensa) - about 4 hours (BA, GO, Alitalia, Buzz, Meridiana)

Milan/Bergamo - Orio al Serio airport (Ryanair), about 4 hours

Perugia Airport - yanair has now opened for the summer Rimini - Easyjet.

Access by car is by autostrada and superstrada. The last 3km are on typical country roads (strada bianca). From town to house is a 15 minute car ride.


See the feature in Counrty Homes & Interiors, June 2006 (Click to open).

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Rates 2008

Book early for 5% discount.
Second week at 10% discount.

Overall discount of 7.5% for two weeks.

Services included:

• rental of the property
• welcome pack food
• linen and towels provided and changed weekly
• poolside towels provided
• weekly cleaning on Saturday (an extra mid week clean if wanted)
• electricity, gas and hot water
• exclusive use of swimming pool in season and weekly cleaning of pool
• cots and high chairs if requested

The services of a cook, babysitter, maid for extra cleaning or grocery shopping can be arranged.

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How to Book

1. Confirm availability by phone or email. Please telephone or email (contact details below) to check availability for the desired period of your vacation. Tentative bookings may be made by telephone or e mail and these will be held for 7 days pending receipt of your deposit and copy of your signed booking form.The booking form can be faxed or e mailed to you.
   
   Contact Information
   Melinda Kilkenny, Owner
   Telephone: (0044) 7798 527152
   Email: melindakilkenny@hotmail.com
   
   
2. Submit booking form. Complete, sign post the booking form to Melinda Kilkenny at Gallery House, 44 The Green, Richmond, TW9 1NQ.
   
   or
   
   
3. Send your deposit A deposit of 50% is required to secure your booking. Details for sending your deposit will be outlined when confirming your booking. If booking before December in the year before your holiday date, a 25% deposit is required, with a further 25% payment by December 15th.

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Limitations
Please note that the use of the facilities at Calcina the accommodation, including the pool the bread/pizza oven are entirely at the visitors risk. No responsibility can be accepted for injury or illness during your stay, nor loss or damage to personal belongings or car. We strongly recommend that you take out comprehensive personal insurance

Arrival and Departure; We kindly ask that you arrive on Saturday afternoon after 4pm and depart on a Saturday before 10 am.

Pets will be considered for stays at Calcina by prior arrangement. Please enquire at the time of booking.

Payments
Currency
Please note that £ refers to British pound sterling, or GBP; € refers to Euros or EUR.
Final Payment
The remainder of your payment is expected eight weeks before your arrival date. A breakages deposit of £250 is also payable at this time. If you book within eight weeks of your arrival date, the entire amount is due with your booking.
Late payments
We regret that if payments are late, we reserve the right to cancel your booking and follow the refund procedures outlined below in the section regarding cancellation.
How to make your payments
Payments can be made by direct transfer to our bank account or personal cheque. Account details will be communicated to you at the time of booking.

Cancellation
If you must change your holiday arrangements we will do the best we can to accommodate you. However, the following rules apply;

1. If you cancel more than 8 weeks before your arrival, and we manage to find another tenant, you will receive a full refund of all monies paid, less any transfer charges.
2. If you cancel less than 8 weeks before your arrival, and we manage to find another tenant, we will refund 80% of your payment, less any bank transfer charges.
3. however, if we fail to find another tenant for the period of your cancelled holiday, we will be unable to return any monies paid by you.

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tel (0044) 208 948 3440
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© 2004 - 2006 Melinda Kilkenny, All rights reserved.

Last edited Tuesday February 12, 2008