The Villa Medicea of Montevettolini, a grand mansion built in the XVI century, was once one of the 12 somptuous hunting residences of the Granduke Ferdinando I, grandson of the famous Lorenzo de' Medici il Magnifico. Built on a hill of olive trees and vineyard overlooking the ValdiNievole valley, next to the medioeval village of Montevettolini, the villa has retained its original architectural beauty and serenity. The Villa has been carefully restored and improved upon by the present owner, the prince Borghese, whose family bought the property more than 200 years ago. All the rooms are decorated with antique furniture and paintings, venetian glass chandeliers and persian carpets, while all the bathrooms have been recently renewed. Guests will feel fortunate to be able to reside in such a unique and truly special atmosphere while enjoying the enchanting Italian garden, the beautiful park, the numerous bedrooms and the large swimming pool. The villa is 40 minutes by car from the international airports of Florence and Pisa and ten minutes from the railway station of Montecatini. Trains to Florence and Pisa leave every hour.
INFORMATION
Maximum number of guests:
- 10-12
Availability:
- June-July-August-September
Distances by car:
- Florence: 30 minutes
- Pisa: 30 minutes
- Montecatini: 10 minutes
- Forte dei Marmi: 30 minutes
- Highway: 5 minutes
Staff:
- One housekeeper
- One cook
- One butler
- One gardener
- One maid
- One extra maid 4 h/dd on separate billing by the customer
Exclusions:
- Food, beverages, telephone, laundries, wage for the extra maid.
Facilities:
- There is satellite dish for tv, fax machine, PC station, Wi-Fi connection. Few roooms have flat screen tv with cd/dvd player and iPod sound dock. In the beautiful garden there is a patio for dining outdoors. Near the swimming pool, that measures 18 mt. x 7mt., there is a ping pong table, a small kitchen for pool snacks and a patio for open air lunches.
- A golf course (18 holes), riding stables and tennis courts are nearby (10 minutes drive). Down the hill (5 minutes drive) there is the Grotta Giusti Hotel, a very well reknown beauty spa. The little town of Montecatini Terme, famous all over Italy for its thermal waters is only a short distance by car (7 km).
HOUSE DESCRIPTION
Ground Floor:
- Large kitchen
- Large dining room with fireplace
- Smaller dining room (ideal for children)
- Guest bathroom
- Large galleria
- Two large double bedrooms each with bathroom and tv
First Floor:
- Very large living room with fireplace and piano
- Smaller living room
- Tv room with fireplace
- Library containing an antique collection of books
- Billiard room
- Private chapel
- Two large double bedrooms with antique poster beds each with bathroom (one has also a terrace overlooking the park and the whole valley)
- Two smaller double bedrooms each with bathroom
Maria's menu
Maria the cook has been working for the Borghese family for more than twenty years. She specializes in the typical , regional cuisine using fresh ingredients acquired locally. Some typical dishes she prepares are listed here, but she will be happy to customize your own menu.
Antipasti/Hors d'oevres
- Crostini e bruschette varie/assortment of crostini and bruschetta
- Torte salate di verdura/vegetable quiche
- Carpaccio di zucchine/zucchini carpaccio
- Verdure grigliate/grilled vegetables
- Fiori di zucca fritti/fried zucchini flowers
- Fichi e prosciutto/Figs and Parama or Tuscan ham
Primi piatti/First course
Piatti caldi/Hot dishes
- Pasta di tutti i tipi/all kinds of pasta
- Pasta al pesto/pasta with pesto sauce
- Pasta alla carbonara/pasta with eggs and bacon
- Penne alle melanzane e pomodori/penne with eggplant and tomato sauce
- Pasta aglio, olio e peperoncino/pasta with olive oil, garlic and red pepper
- Pasta alla puttanesca/pasta with raw tomatoes, basil, almonds and olive oil
- Spaghetti all'amatriciana/spaghetti with bacon and tomato sauce
- Spaghetti ai pachino/Spaghetti with cherry tomatoes
- Spaghetti alle vongole veraci/pasta with clams and white sauce
- Tagliatelle al salmone/salmon tagliatelle
- Risotto alla pescatora/Seafood risotto
- Risotto primavera/spring risotto
- Risotto ai funghi porcini/porcini mushroom risotto
- Risotto alla milanese/saffron risotto
- Risotto con vari tipi di verdure (zucchini, piselli, asparagi, carciofi)/risotto with various types of vegetables (zucchini, peas, asaparagus, artichokes)
- Ravioli burro e salvia/ravioli with butter and sage
- Gnocchi al pomodoro/gnocchi with tomato sauce
- Minestrone estivo con salsa al pesto/summer vegetable soup served with pesto sauce
- Pomodori di riso/Tomatoes filled with rice
Piatti freddi/cold dishes
- Insalata di riso/rice salad
- Anello di riso basmati alle erbe dell'orto con salsa al pomodoro crudo/ring of basmati rice with herbs from the vegetable garden and raw tomatoes sauce
- Caprese/Tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella and basil
- Insalata di stagione/ fresh seasonal salad
- Tonno e fagioli/tuna and beans
- Vitello tonnato/veal with tuna fish sauce
- Insalata di uova in camicia con pomodori e maionese al cognac/Salad of poached eggs, tomatoes and cognac mayonnaise
- Insalata di avocado e gamberi/avocado and shrimp salad
- Insalata di pollo con maionese/chicken salad with mayonnaise
Secondi piatti/Second course
- Pesca alla griglia, bollito, arrosto/fresh fish prepared many ways: grilled, boiled, roasted
- Calamari fritti/fried calamari
- Scampi grigliato o sautè/prawns grilled or sautè
- Pollo arrosto, grigliato, sautè/organic chicken prepared many ways: grilled, roasted, with white wine sauce
- Polpettone con patate arrosto/meatloaf served with roasted potatoes
- Polpettine al pomodoro/meatballs with tomato sauce
- Roastbeef
- Scaloppine al limone,, marsala, ai funghi/veal scaloppine with lemon sauce, or marsala wine sauce or with mushrooms
- Cotoletta primavera/
- Polletti al forno/roasted baby chicken
- Fritatte di verdura/vegetable tortilla
- Parmigiana di melanzane/eggplant parmigiana
- Barbecue
- Any kind of vegetables cooked the way you like it best
Dolci/Deserts
- Gelato artigianale con salsa al cioccolato o marmellate calde/Homemade icecream with hot chocolate sauce or hot jam sauce
- Pesche al vino bianco e menta/Sliced peaches with white wine and mint
- Crostate di frutta/fresh fruit tart
Activities
The thermal town of Montecatini is just a few kilometers away by car (10 minutes). Other activities in the area include bike rides, horsebackriding excursions, tennis and golf.
In addition to the country-life there are several remarkable art towns in the area (Pisa, Lucca, Firenze) and also some beautiful and relatively unknown medioeval towns like (Pietrasanta, Vinci, Montecatini Alto). In the area there are also a number of interesting contemporary gardens as well as some of the most incredible private villas of the world. The owner of the house can organize, with advance notice, guided tours in English of public and private properties.
Tennis courts
There are several tennis courts nearby the estate. Patrizia will be happy to show you where they are located, so you can select the best one for you.
Montecatini golf club
The golf club is just alongside the estate. You can play there by showing a passport or a membership card to your home course.
THE SPA
The Grotta Giusti spa is unique in the world and should not be missed. It is just 5 minutes by car from the estate. They have incredible natural caves and a full range of massages and beauty treatments. Patrizia will be happy to help you out with reservations.
How to get there

[Google Earth Placemark*]
*you can download Google Earth at http://earth.google.com.
By car - Take Montecatini exit off the Firenze-Mare Autostrada (A11). After paying the toll, bear right (almost a u-turn) passing a garden shop on your right. Go right through the towns of Pieve a Nievole and Monsummano. Follow signs for Montevettolini. After 4 traffic lights, you should make a left and start climbing the hill to our village of Montevettolini (going through the little town of Pozzarello). When arriving at Montevettolini, you will see a sign with Villa Medicea di Montevettolini, written on it and a grey gate. You have arrived!
By train - The railroad station and intercity bus station are a 12 minute drive down the hill from the villa. There are trains and coach buses that leave Montecatini frequently for most of the popular towns of Tuscany, Italy and with connections to all corners of Europe.
Day trips
- Using Villa di Montevettolini as a base, you can explore Etruscan and Roman ruins, Renaissance treasures, charming seaside fishing villages, local wineries and a multitude of medieval walled cities.
- Less than an hour's drive: Florence, Pisa, Prato, Pistoia, Vinci, Monsummano spa, Montecatini spa, Lucca and Forte dei Marmi.
- A 1 - 2 hours drive: Siena, Montalcino, San Gimignano, Chianti Classico, Pienza, Arezzo, the Cinque Terre, Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure, Massa-Carrara, Bologna, Ferrara, Modena, and Punt'Ala.
- A 2+ hours drive: Venice, Milan, Verona, Rome, Monte Argentario, Porto Ercole, and Isola d'Elba.













