I want to go to Italy!

[EasilyConfusedIndith]

Well ok DH really wants to go to Italy and some American friends want to go before they move back to the USA so I need ideas! Cheap as possible please! I have never been so am feeling clueless.

2 families, each with 2 dcs who will be aged between 1 and 4.

We want somewhere self catering with 4 bedrooms.

We can get cheap flights locally to Rome or Pisa.

We will rent a couple of cars, don't really see much alternative to that.

My utter ideal would be the sort of self catering on a working farm, host more than happy to prepare evening meals, yummy local food type place. Children ramble around the farm having a wonderful time, we all stuff ourselves silly and have a couple of days out to nearby city too see some culture while avoiding crowds.

I realise I may have to scale down those expectations

Thinking of going after Easter next year but before the summer crowds.

We go to a place on the boarder of tuscany and unmbria which is a woprking olive farm and they make their own wine too which is really cheap and very scrummy.

It is fab for kids and you stay in extremely clean apratments of all different sizes.

The people that own the farm are wonderful and very very friendly. The pool is salt water rather than chlorinated so fab for the kids skin and for my highlighted hair (!!!).

We have flown to Bologna and Fiorli as am not sure how far Pisa or Rome is away.

You can get the train from the local station which is a short drive away and visit Luca, Sienna, Arezzo and Florence.

Last year we went and met a lovely family and when we got to know them they told us that they had been recommended by a mumsnetter!!! I had recommended it to them!!!!

Our kids amble about the pool and the surroundiong area all day and there is a small park with a slide and swings on the farm and the old woman whop owns it tales the kids off to feed the chickens and rabbits and they leave lovely tomatoes and fresh picked peaches on your patio tables for the morning - it is idyllic!

here is the website

Try Agriturismo

Any of these any good here? I haven't been , but was investigating - I too want to go to Italy, and so does DS1 ('because they have nice tomatoes').

I want to go to!

Ha, madame C - great minds!

It's bloody brilliant MNE - we have been going for the last 3 years and the kids can't wait to get back again - am driving down this year and staying in France and Switzerland along the way.

We have met some wonderful people out there and the food is devine - nothing looks that great but smells and tastes wonderful - no pesticides or uniform tomatoes there!

Actually, can I ask MmeC, how old are your children? Have always been put off that travelling to Europe thing by the thought of days in the car with the tots (mine are 3 and 4), but we might be moving down south soon, so it all seems a bit more do-able from there. How do you find it?

Will let you know afterwards as have never done it before. We are going with friends who refuse to fly.

We are only doing 3 - 4 hour drives and are taking dvd players. DS is 5 and DD 10 so a bit older than yours but we have always flown before and it is such a short flight it is not a problem.

Oh lovely, thank you that's a great start. Keep them coming!

We did accommodation with www.to-tuscany.com
Had a really lovely villa 1 hour from Pisa.
Would use them again as have loads of property to meet different needs.

MadameCastafiore, can I ask a quick question - does this place provide meals or is it self catering? I am confused by the yummy pictures of food on the website. Is there any particular apartment you would recommend

Thanks mum2, that looks like a good website.

I'd just like to reccomend the website that Orienteerer has posted, my partner is Italian and we always use this website. Agriturismo's are great, not too expensive and the food is AMAZING

Enjoy your holiday!

Amazing food is always good. Dh and I tend to base our holidays around food

Have a look at this one A bit expensive but the pictures are amazing! Closest airport I think is Torino (Turin) which I know you can get cheap deals to.

Hi,
We love Italy and have found a real working olive farm near Tuscany and Umbria. It has 2 play areas and heated pool (great for the cooler days). You might need two apartments but I would think the owners may do a deal.
Look at this page

Can I bump this thread. Links don’t work anymore.

ZOMBIE thread, 15 years old.

Yes I saw! Wow 2010. But was searching agriturisomo and wanted to see if there were any recommendations