Wake at dawn to the sounds of the countryside after the night: the chirping and tapping of birds, the rustling of leaves, the feeling of peace. We’re in Tuscany, with views of the Valdera hills and surrounded by green meadows and ancient oak forests, the woods that speak more than anything else of the soul of this magical region.

Here, sunrise and sunset regale the visitor with a beauty approaching perfection. It’s special early in the morning as you sip coffee and eat apple cake. It’s stunning in the evening, dining as the sun sets over the castle’s terrace, admiring uninterrupted views of the landscape and soaking up the energy of this place. Take a moment to think about how you imagine Tuscany to be. A land of hills, villages, woods and meadows? Rows of vines against a blue sky? A white earth road crossing green countryside past scattered stone farmhouses, lunch on the veranda, pappa al pomodoro and a glass of red wine, a terracotta floor, a sofa in front of a great fireplace, the peacefulness of silence? It’s all here, all the iconic elements interpreted with beauty and elegance, fulfilling the expectations of foreign tourists, but also reassuring us Italians, like a kind of confirmation.

On the great Castelfalfi estate, every corner speaks of a long history, whose first traces are documented in the middle of the 8th century.

Today this is one of the top addresses for luxury accommodation.

The castle was once a farming community, already established in the Middle Ages, with a church and a manor house. It belonged to the della Gherardesca family, and later to the Medici-Tornaquinci, and has always been home to the farming families who cultivated the vast lands of the ancient fee and raised livestock there until the 1960s, when the village and the castle, the farms and the lands became a place for hospitality, with an organic farm; today it has a golf course with a new club house, as well as a hotel and three restaurants.

Not forgetting the fact that we’re in the enchanted area between Florence, San Gimignano and Volterra: any more questions about what to do? Very few.

Castelfalfi
Loc. Castelfalfi – Montaione (FI)
ph. +39 0571 892000
www.castelfalfi.com