Hotels Near Montepulciano

ttt

Not stayed in either one of these but can highly recommend Sant' Antonio, also just outside Montepulciano, where I stayed for a week last October. Small, family-run with a very very helpful and generous host, 13 self-catering apartments of various sizes to accomodate a variety of guests. Each Wednesday evening, if enough of their guests want to participate, they hold a dinner, for a price of course, which is prepared by two lovely women who know their Tuscan cooking!! They have olive groves on the property and make their own oil and wine which are very good.

I haven't stayed in either one but the location is wonderful. We were there last year and loved the Val d'Orcia. The road they are on is twisty but with the most gorgeous views.

Flame123 - I had looked at Sant' Antonio, but they book by the week in season. I'm looking for a five night stay (M-F)

I'll through in one more - L'Olmo near Pienza?

bfrac - love twisty!

Stu has a wonderfully detailed driving itinerary for that area.

In today's Daily Telegraph - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/italy/7984865/Montepulciano-guide-Tuscanys-haven-on-the-hilltops.html

and - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/italy/7984904/Montepulciano-guide-flights-hotels-and-restaurants.html

I think most agriturismos book weekly when in season so you might have trouble finding any that don't. If it does not HAVE to be in the Montepulciano area, I have another suggestion which may or may not book by the week (we were there off season in beg. Nov and stayed 3 nights only) - Il Poggiolo just outside of San Qurico d'Orcia. 11 apartments in a residenza, beautiful grounds, a pool, walking distance to the small and lovely town and a wonderful caretaker named Michele.

Flame, Do you know if your Michele used to work at Posta Marcucci in Bagno Vignoni? Does he have a shaved head?

bfrac - 3 years ago, when I was new to Fodors and planning a trip to the Chianti region, I came across Stu's itinerary, copied it and put it aside for my next trip to Italy - this is it!

nochblad - thanks for those links. It was interesting about the 'tannic red' wine. I am not a fan of 'big' reds and like the suggestion of drinking Rosso di Montepulciano.

I am probably going to go with Villa Poggiano; it's highly recommended by Karen Brown and the reviews online are consistently quite good.

Flame - I've emailed them for rates. Some of their rooms are quite bright!!

CPG, We followed Stu's itinerary to the letter and it was an absolutely perfect day. He covered every detail and I could go on and on about how wonderful it was. I will look forward to your report.

DH and I made reservations to stay at Il Fontanaro (Paciano?)
www.fontanaro.it on recommendation from friends who stay there once a year. Can't comment on it as we haven't been there yet ... we are due to arrive in October 2010.

In maps, it looks close enough to Montepulciano, which is one of my intended stops, but I really don't know how long it will take from one to the other.

CPG - I hope you get some good rates. Where is Villa Poggiano?

Bob - yes "my" Michele does have a shaved head but I don't know where he worked before. Do you know him? When we were there in Nov. '08 he was recently married.

Flame - it appears to be 2 km outside of Montepulciano going towards Pienza, off the SS146.

Bookmarking - we are also looking at staying in this area. Lots of lovely places recommended here thank you

What do you want in a villa or do you just want a hotel? It's hard to suggest without knowing types of amenities (pools won't be open in October at most places).

Do you plan to go into Montepulciano for dinner at night?

http://www.prolocomontepulciano.it/index.uk.php

ky - I'm going in May. A pool is nice to sit around although I don't think it will be warm enough. I don't want to rent an apartment or villa. 5 nights in either a small hotel or upscale agriturismo. I think I'm avoiding places with apartments that would cater to groups or families. Yes, we plan to drive to dinner at night and I've been reading through old threads and putting together a list (I'll start another thread on that soon). Do you have favorites?

We stayed in Montepulciano this May and loved staying in town. We stayed here-

http://www.ilriccio.net/english/meuble.html

Locando San Francesco looked really lovely.

http://www.locandasanfrancesco.it/

I don't think families will be a problem in May as kids will still be in school. The kids in Europe will have a two week break at Easter.

Parking can be a problem in Montepulciano for dinner. The lot by the tourist office is free, but usually won't have a spot. Be sure you have coins for the parking machines as some you have to pay upon arrival (guessing how long you will stay) and place your ticket on your dash.

macdogmom - we really want to stay in the countryside, but Locanda SF really does look wonderful. Hmmmmm?

ky - thanks for the info on parking - sounds like our muni parking. I will make sure we have coins. I don't recall paying for parking at night in Chianti or even having trouble parking.

<<5 nights in either a small hotel or upscale agriturismo.>>

Not sure of your budget, but this place might work for you-

http://www.la-bandita.com/

I have not stayed there, but I like the location and it looks pretty cool.

By the way, if your stay is during the second half of May you may find that a pool will be nice. I have visited the area several times during the last 2 weeks of May and it was sometime quite warm and sunny during the day. The pool was a nice way to cool off and recover from the heat.

Here is another one in a great location- the valley between Montepulciano and Montefollenico-

http://www.lupaia.com/location.html

Absolutely lovely!

Both Villa Poggiano and Dionora are beautiful and in a fantastic location
both are hight quality and charming ,
I suggest to contact directly both or chack on trip advisor

I had a wonderful stay at Agriturismo Poggio Etrusco (http://www.poggio-etrusco.com/) in the Montepulciano area. Pamela is a wonderful cooking teacher if you have time for a class.

How do I find the itinerary from Stu talked about in this thread? I did a search with his name, but couldn't locate it.

Nevermind, found it.

We stayed at Villa Poggiano in September 2007. It is a beautiful property, lavishly maintained. We stayed in a mini-suite on a second floor of the main villa with gorgeous antique furnishings, sparkling marble bath, robes, walk-in closet, view onto the Tuscan countryside, i.e., stunning!! We traveled with a couple of friends who are much more "reserved" in terms of spending and stayed in a free-standing building on the Poggiano property, I believe in room 7 or 8. While their room was comfortable and certainly adequate, it was not luxurious. However, they had a whole private lawn at their disposal with lawn chairs.. sort of "pinch me" kind of a setting.

The owner Stefania and her assistant are super gracious and helpful with driving itineraries and dinner reservations. Very nice breakfast is included. I would second the suggestion above that you e-mail Poggiano for further information.

I know that Podere Dionora is situated further up the driveway from Villa Poggiano. When we stayed at Poggiano in 2007, we drove up to see Dionora which just changed hands and looked pretty abandoned. I do not know what is its state at this point.

So, while Poggiano is certainly luxurious and a dream of a place to stay, I can also recommend La Saracina which is a bit closer to Pienza, also off the 146. La Saracina is more of a country home but also very upscale and romantic.

I hope this helps you. If you need additional info, to the extent that I have it, please e-mail me direct at agolan2@aol.com, since I do not hang at Fodor's that often.

As to sformby's question, e-mail Stu at stududley@aol.com and ask for his Tuscany itinerary. He will attach the document for you.

I would recommend Il Marzocco which is just inside the walled part of the city...ask for a room facing the outside valley...great views.

The owner Stefania is the same poster from 11/4.

Thanks anna. We will be staying there. Which restaurants did you enjoy in the area?

Centralparkgirl, I had a feeling that Stefania in the post above was the owner. Very gracious, wouldn't you think, for responding the way she did. You will love Villa Poggiano and Stefania. I envy you already!

Here is my list of restaurants with first-hand experience:

Ristorante Poggio Antico: Excellent and costly, within the winery of same name, 5km south of Montalcino; reserve in advance. We had lunch with Brunello.
Montepulciano: La Grotta is wonderful and moderately priced. We enjoyed it several times.
Pienza: Latte de Luna is o.k. Fairly good food, moderately priced. Did not knock my socks off but others seems to love it. Could be me.
Pienza: Sette de Vino is a small place serving typical Tuscan fair, e.g., broad beans with sage and oil; crostini, etc. Inexpensive and good. Just manage your own ordering vs. have the owner bring it all out..
There is another good place in Pienza, ran by a husband and wife. Kill me - I cannot remember the name, Isabella something or other.. Very nice.
Monticchiello: La Porta is good for lunch. We thought dinner was overpriced for what we got and certainly could have a great meal at La Grotta for the same money. But, lunch on the terrace with a view of the whole Tuscan valley is wonderful.

I am sure that Stefania will give you many more great tips regarding dining in the area.

anna - We are also staying in the main villa. I'm compiling a list - lunch in different towns that we will visit and dinners nearer to Montepulciano. I think I will post a new thread next week.Do you have any sense how far ahead one books restaurants for May? (Being a NYer I'm used to booking very early, but in other parts of the world, it would be looked at as crazy).

It's kind of ironic that Stefania resurrected this thread!

Oh, I am plenty neurotic and I am not a New Yorker. [BTW, you responded to my questions re trip to NY this past Spring. I made reservations at Le Bernardin a month ahead and could only score a post-show 10:00p.m. No matter - it was fantastic!] I would say a week in advance is plenty for some places like La Grotta or Poggio Antico. La Grotta has a website and you could probably e-mail or Stefania could reserve for you. Latte de Luna gets filled up quickly also and, of course, there are closing days which you have to keep in mind. Smaller places.. I would say Stefania could call in a reservation in the morning for that night's supper or the night before. We visited in September and October, and never had a problem getting into a restaurant. For other restaurants in Southern Tuscany, you may want to search for Bobthenavigator's list. He has a good list of places to eat in the area, including San Quirico, Montalcino. etc.

I did not know that Stefania was on Fodor's. I am a fan of her place on Face Book. (Lordy, with all this techno stuff, I no longer have time to read). She really is a wonderful gal and will treat you like royalty. You will absolutely love Villa Poggiano. I am glad that you are staying there.