Things to do near Val d’Orcia Italy – what to see attractions and activities.

Our holiday farm has been awarded a rating of three "grains" for the completeness of the facilities it offers, all of the finishing touches and the setting, which we are very proud of. Located 2.8km from Montalcino, surrounded by vineyards, olive groves and its own wood, it has seven apartments with private covered parking, partially covered terrace, garden furniture, barbecue, umbrellas, shaded garden, private pool, token-operated hot tub for six people, a shop of typical products and conference hall.

The farmhouse is situated within the ‘Lucciola Bella’ Nature Riserve, south west of Pienza in a small corner of the typical landscape of the crete senesi. In fact the striking feature of the nature reserve is this unusual landscape of the ‘calanchi’ and ‘biancane’ formed during the last Ice Age. These particular formations are host to important but rare plants and wildlife especially birds. The farmhouse has a long history, it was 1924 when the Marquess Origo bought the farm at ‘La Foce’ along with numerous hectares of land. It was a time when the Val d’Orcia was inhospitable with no forms of vegetation. The Marquess together with his wife undertook an enormous land improvement programme in the area and amongst other things they also built several farmhouses (Lucciola Bella is one ), giving life to a new political and social era. The famous road with its cypress trees which leads to the farmhouse was created by the architect Cecil Pinsent who also designed the villa and the gardens at ‘La Foce’.