A country house in Umbria

We’re gathering the addresses of the best B&Bs, hotels and other overnight locations we can find. All of which, we feel, are great places to go for a weekend or a bit longer. In Casale Il Sogno in Umbria (Italy), you can choose to stay in one of the seven apartments in the old country house, or camp out in a furnished safari tent in the field.

What makes Casale Il Sogno a great place to stay?
You get to step back in time yet still enjoy modern-day comforts as this 900-year-old-house is completely refurbished while maintaining many of its original features, like the old walls and wooden beams. There are seven luxury apartments (some of which have their own entrance via an external stone staircase), two furnished safari tents set up in a lovely field, a wonderful pool, and a small playground. The estate is surrounded by nature, with plenty of fabulous towns nearby and you’ll receive a truly warm welcome from the Dutch owners and hosts Wendy and Henry.

What’s for breakfast?
There’s a “bread service” via which you can order fresh bread daily, as well as a variety of different focaccias, pizzas and cakes. And as the bread comes direct from the baker’s, it often arrives still warm!

Our Tip
Visit Gubbio, a medieval town that has a cable car which will take you to its highest point. Or Il Sasso, a mountain stream that will delight old and young alike with its playground and a bar that serves the best coffee. And for a pleasant taste of Italian food and everyday life, eat in the square of Pietralunga.

Good food
The Trattoria Mandrelli restaurant is a five-minute drive or twenty-minute walk away. There is no menu, but you get a number of choices per course. A sure sign of how good the food is there? It’s usually packed with Italian families.

Good to know
Casale Il Sogno holds Italian film nights on a big movie screen outdoors, and twice a week the owners organize a dinner which is put together by their Italian cook Lucia.

Prices start at € 435,- per week for two people.

Casaleilsogno.nl