Le Marche
 

If Jackie is out there, we'd love your input. Just read postings indicating that you've been living in Le Marche. We are going to be visiting the area for a week in August. We'd love to find charming countryside inns, but have been running into some difficulty in identifying them. Our favorite Italian landscape is akin to Val D'Orcia -- B&Bs or inns in that type of terrain would be marvelous (is that more likely near Urbina, near Macerata, or near Ascoli? A thousand thanks for any info or other reflections that you might share on the area....

topping

With my Tuscan phobias (okay, not really, but my travel in Tuscany has always been limited), I don't know enough about Val d'Orcia, but I do think that you will find that Le Marche's landscape is similar to that in Tuscany, similar to that of the rest of Central Italy in general, if not nicer (I always claim that Le Marche is rich in natural beauty, while Umbria and Tuscany got some of the more artistic jewels).

Will you have access to a car? If so, I'd suggest visiting the areas near Macerata and Ascoli. I would definitely suggest going to Macerata in August--it has the second largest outdoor opera house in Italy (after Verona) and late July and early August marks the season. Here is the site:

http://www.macerataopera.org/

Nice hotels in Macerata include: Hotel Claudiani and Hotel Lauri. Here's a neat site with lots of info about Macerata and surroundings, which includes info on hotels (I am not familiar with many hotels in the surrounding area, except that I know the Hotel San Claudio is built into an abbey).

http://www.maceratagallery.it/

I really don't have a lot of hotel information simply because I rarely stay in hotels (live here), but I do know there are plenty of nice agriturismos in the area. I will do my research and let you know more about this soon (I have a little handbook on it, since my parents were considering staying in an agritourismo when they came).

Other wonderful towns to explore south of Macerata and in the hills surrounding are:

Recanati: very cute little town, famous for its poet son Leopardi. It has wonderful views.

Cingoli: known as The Balcony of Le Marche. You can see everything from its little terrace. There is also a lake nearby which makes a nice stop.

San Ginesio: my favorite small hill town, this is a very small town with a very charming main piazza that I found based on its listing here:

http://www.borghitalia.it/borgo_it.php?codice_borgo=993

Sarnano: one of the cutest little hill towns with a great explorable city center. This is near San Ginesio, and both are doable in the same day. It has wonderful views and a great little perched-on-rock position.

Amandola: in the same vein as Sarnano, and very close by, this is another charming hill town.

A little further south:

Montefalcone Appenino: we love this town and recommend the restaurant that I can't think of the name of (Da Quintillia or something like that). This is the smallest little town ever, but it has the best location, and if you have a car, it's a very wonderful and worthwhile trip. The views of the mountains all around are fantastic. You can do this from Sarnano--and you can even take the windy road on south to Ascoli. Even my husband's family was impressed with this find--it's amazing when you come across it, perched as it is on a rocky crag of a cliff. Here's a blog entry I did about this town (scroll down):

A Tower And A View
http://www.stelleinitalia.blogspot.c...a_archive.html

Nearby beach towns include:
San Benedetto del Tronto, Porto Recanati. A little further north is the Monte Conero region which, if you are going for beach reasons, is the nicest area in Le Marche to visit. Specifically the town of Sirolo.

Fermo is also a nice town nearby Ascoli which is worth visiting. It has great views and a nice theatre, plus some nice churches and a splendid piazza.

Anyway, these are just the tip of the iceberg. Remember that a lot is going to be closed due to Ferie, so some of these tiny towns might not have much open. Ascoli's version of the Palio goes on in August, I think, so you might be able to make it to that, and as I said before, there's the opera in Macerata. Oh, some good restaurants in Macerata are Il Pozzo (a little bar/restaurant with wonderful pizza) and Pigliapochi (an osteria). Near Sarnano, there is a neat pizzeria called Il Colle.

Hope that helps! Sorry I can't be more specific! If you have some more details that you need worked out, let me know and I'll try to help.

Also worth doing is just exploring the archives of my friend and my blog--all about our experiences in Italy, specifically Le Marche:

http://www.stelleinitalia.blogspot.com

Jackie - A thousand thanks for your posting -- what superb and helpful information!!! We are very grateful. I am going to look up all of your suggestions this weekend and will come back to you with any questions in a couple of days if that is okay with you. Thanks again!!!!!

Wintertravel:

How did the rest of the research go? I hope you have had some luck and are getting ready for a great visit to Le Marche!

Jackie

Thanks for checking in Jackie. We've been a bit side-tracked by something and are thus a little behind in our research. It is our task for the weekend, so we will definitely post again within a couple of days. Thanks again for your help!

Jackie's info is good, and here is some more. If you stay at the Hotel Claudiani try to get one of the two triple rooms on the top floor. If you do you will get a fantastic deck surrounded by flowers with breathtaking views. Nevertheless, I would put Macerata somewhere in the middle of the list of places to stay in Marche. Top of the list is Ascoli Piceno or Urbino. The two jewels of Marche. There are also many great smaller towns along the way. The best restaurants I have found, probably in all of Italy are also in Marche. The Furlo Gorge is a fascinating area between Cagli and Fano. The restauants at La Ginestra or Mussolinis restaurant across the street (il duce loved the area) are fantastic, though pricey. Also at Frontone go to the top of the mountain and you will find incredible views and an incredible restaurant. It's the second one you will come to on the main inner midieval street. (sounds more complicated than it is). A great inexpensive place to stay between Rome and Urbino is Dell'Ullivo 1 mile north of Trevi. Around 70 Euro for a double and you must eat there for a fantastic meal.