OK, I'm stressing a bit. After convincing ourselves that we wanted to splurge on Vingamaggio, I started having second thoughts.

I just heard from Sant Antonio, which looks very lovely and is much less money. (At least $1,000 less for the week.) The problem with Sant Antonio is it's far from Florence, where we know we'll want to visit at least twice.

I also just did a search for apartment rentals near Greve, and found many, also at much cheaper prices.

Now, my mother always says, "You pay for what you get," but I ask you...Is Vingamaggio worth the extra Euros ($250 Euros/night as comopared with approximately $100 Euros/night)?

HELP!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you!

PS: In addition to your opinions, I'd love other recommendations if you have them.

Sorry, but what city is Vignamaggio in?

I did a simple search on this board and got lots of responses by just typing in "Vignamaggio" in the search field...

Author: kathyandrick2
Date: 02/01/2005, 06:41 pm
Message: We have stayed twice a Vignamaggio but there are a couple of points of which you should be aware. If you are getting what they call a suite - it is indicated it will accommodate 4 people- you should know how it is set up. There is a very tiny small kitchen, a small dining table and a nice dining room with table. The master bedroom is very very nice and large. The bathroom is also great. The problem lies in the 2nd floor balcony bedroom. One side is just a railing so the person is in full view from the living room. The bad part was that it was just large enough for a bed and a chair. There is NOWHERE to put your clothes. It created a difficult situation for my sister. A humorous note about the chairs in the living room - the legs are about4" high and you feel like you are sitting on the floor - we still laugh about that. That being said, we still loved the place and hope to go back again this October - we will just get a different type of room this time.
Author: Weadles
Date: 10/26/2004, 07:06 pm
Message: I just wanted to add that one of the obvious benefits of staying in a hotel that's in town as opposed to a place like Villa Vignamaggio, is that you don't have to drive after drinking lots of wine at dinner. We were pretty content to either eat at the very good hotel restaurant, or at Pizzeria Michele. There were also other walkable choices right in town. One night we did take a taxi back and forth to a restaurant in Greve, but didn't find it very special.
Author: Oisa
Date: 03/19/2004, 11:19 am
Message: I like the Villa Vinamaggio outside of Greve. It has a lovely garden and walking paths. It is a working vineyard which is centrally located in the Chiante region for touring.

There are so many lovely places; you don't need to choose only between those two. We decided against Sant' Antonio precisely because of the location, and Vignamaggio is out of our price range. Take a look at the options on www.to-tuscany.com and other places, and search on Chianti on this site and on Slow Travel.

Jackie - we stayed at Vignamaggio last May and it was wonderful and well worth the price. The property is spread out a bit so its like you are really staying at an elegant country villa. The gardens are spectacular and you can stroll throught the vineyards that date back to the 16th century. There are two excellent restaurants up the hill from the Villa on the way to Lamole. One is Lamole restaurant, and the other, which is a bit closer, is Castele (sp?) de Lamole. Its a tiny little hamlet with a fantastic restaurant. Most of the patrons are local and food is awesome. I think you will love it. Great location too.

My girlfriend & I stayed there in 10/2000 for 2 nights. We were happy to have 2 separate bedrooms which were lovely as was the bathroom. Breakfast costs extra and we did not indulge. But they have coffee/biscotti/fruit in the lobby. There was a fruit bowl for us in our kitchen.

The grounds are spectacular - there is at least one swimming pool. Lovely view over the vineyards.

Some friends had suggested it from a few years earlier.

We also dined at Lamole both nights - excellent.

Enjoy!