Help me rent a villa

October 19, 2007 8:59 AM

Inspired in part by this thread I want to rent a villa in Tuscany. I am reluctant - perhaps needlessly - to do this all over the InterWebs. Does anyone have any experience with an Italian villa renting agent? My ideal answer would be of the form "Contact Signore Agente, he found us a great villa!" But really, any insights from actual experience would be helpful.
posted by shothotbot to travel & transportation around Italy (6 answers total)

We had a wonderful time in one of these villas in Monteleone d'Orvieto. Very nice people.
Halfway between Roma and Firenze.
posted by jouke at 9:24 AM on October 19, 2007

Contact Donna Scharnagel at Tuscan Villas. She's great. We used them twice and a friend used them once. The web descriptions of the houses are very good. We weren't surprised by anything.
posted by MarkAnd at 9:43 AM on October 19, 2007

I used Parker Villas, which I heard about from an ad in the New Yorker, to book a Tuscan villa for my parents. I found it online and then booked it by phone. It was gorgeous and they were thrilled.
posted by xo at 10:01 AM on October 19, 2007

My family has rented villas at Montestigliano on several occasions. The owner is British, so making the reservations and getting information is pretty easy. She'll even set up tours or cooking classes for you if you're interested.

The location is just south of Siena, right in the heart of Tuscany. I highly recommend it.
posted by elquien at 10:19 AM on October 19, 2007

We used Villa Vacations. It was a long time ago, so I don't remember who we worked with, but I do remember the rental process was seamless and we had a great time, staying on a vineyard south of Florence for a week, then on an olive farm near Siena for another week. While we were visiting Siena we ran into their staff in our travels, who make the point of visiting every villa and getting to know every region where they rent.
posted by booth at 12:58 PM on October 19, 2007

Having stayed a few times in Tuscany with friends and work colleagues, you could always try Essential Italy who have a great range of villas in Tuscany. Speak to Helen at the Cambridge office (UK) as she's stayed in most of the villas. It's her brother Ian (who lives in Tuscany) who is your local contact should you need any assistance whilst on your holiday, so you get great personal service and advice from 'a local'.
posted by RobSog at 2:12 AM on November 9, 2007