 |
|
|
What our Guests have to say:
"We thank you and your husband for the fine week we spent in Umbria.
We really enjoyed our stay, the apartment, the dogs, our walks, the salads,
the onions, the basilicum, and especially... the fig jam! Mille grazie.
È stato molto divertente. Arrivederci."
|
"My wife and I have travelled to Italy many times and have stayed
at a multitude of agrituristicas and farm apartments. I can honestly say
that Brigolante was our favorite of the 20+ places we have stayed. The
apartment was immaculate, the kitchen well-equipped, and the location
ideal for hiking and for day trips to many Umbrian and Tuscan locations. What set it far above the rest was the hospitality of our hosts. Not only
was Rebecca attentive to our every need, the extended family was also
very cordial and generous. Even the dogs befriended us our first day there!
I would highly reccommend Brigolante for anyone requiring a home base
in Umbria or Toscana." 
"We want you to know that our one-week stay at the Brigolante Guest
Apartments was one of the finest experiences in touring that we have ever
had. The accommodations at Brigolante were all that we had hoped for,
and more. Believe the brochure! ... 
"...We are pleased to be able to speak honestly to you about our
Umbrian experience. From day one to day seven, Rebecca was a most charming
and helpful host. She welcomed us to the property, made sure that we were
comfortable and then gave us advice as we required when we required. As
non-Italian speakers we called upon Rebecca's assisitance for train bookings
and she was pleased to oblige. The Bagnoli family were also very welcoming
to us. Although our Italian speaking skills were limited to about twenty
words, we communicated and were treated courteously. But beware - do not
ask Mrs. Bagnoli to gather Rocket from the garden or supply zucchini -
or else you will be given enough produce to set-up a market stall when
all that was required were a few leaves of Rocket and one or two zucchini.
Also beware of the Bagnoli wines, liquers and pasta - extremely addictive!
The accommodation was quite adequate for our needs. The apartment we were
in was spacious, the bathroom a joy to come back to after a day's travelling.
The kitchen only has a hob for cooking but we found that adequate - pasta
and the occasional frypan meal (Australians can only go so long without
lamb chops, mashed potato and beans!) Lesley and I spent some great hours
tramping up and around the property, accompanied by the dogs - two ingratiating
pups who took it upon themselves to protect us and show us the sights.
Make sure you are there on a Sunday to experience the broadcast mass!
Rebecca has a great story of why. You must have a car to make the most
of the stay. (That's not to say you would not have an enjoyable time simply
staying at the farm and reading, having walks and relaxing - but we used
it as a base for Umbria and a bit of Tuscany) The road/track to the property
can be an experience but it only looks and sounds bad.... Assisi is only
about ten minutes away (five if you drive like an Italian, fifteen if
you are of the quieter school of driving). Other places in easy reach
that you shouldn't miss are Gubbio and Norcia. Gubbio is a half day trip,
while with Norcia take the whole day and go up to the National Park. Rebecca
will tell you about the village up there and she is spot-on. But it does
have a shop that sells nice icecreams. We took the train up to Florence
and on another day down to Rome. We preferred to drive to the Assisi train
station and leave the car there rather than face the fun and lunacy of
the autostrada and then finding safe parking. If you get the right train,
Florence is okay, but the time we had for Rome wasn't long enough. ... I'm probably going on for too long, but the bottom line is that we'd go
back in a flash and stay with Rebecca again if the chance was there -
we didn't get to all the places we wanted to and there are others we want
to go back to. You might find cheaper accomm, you might find accomm with
more faciltities, but as I said - we felt welcome, the accomm was clean,
comfortable and well maintained and the Bagnolis were great hosts."
"Brigolante has it all... beautiful setting, peaceful location,
spacious rooms, gracious, helpful hosts... all these things AND BIG FLUFFY
AMERICAN TOWELS!!!! What more could you possible want? Reasonable prices?
Farm fresh eggs and anything in the garden you want to pick fresh? A cozy
fire with plenty of firewood available? An Italian mother-in-law who sends
over a bowl of FRESHLY-MADE pasta? Well, Brigolante has all that too!
Even though this is the first rental we have ever done in Italy, I think
Brigolante will be the stick I measure all other apartments against. Our
apartment, "Il Focolare" is a one bedroom apartment on the ground
floor. It's even handicapped-accessible! Once you enter the spacious foyer,
just to the left is the huge bathroom with a whirlpool tub, and of course
a bidet. And then there are those huge, fluffy, genuine American bath
towels! Those waffled dishtowel things are awful! To the right of the
foyer, the large room holds the kitchen across the back of the room, and
a sofa bed opposite the waist-high fireplace. You can even grill in the
fireplace! Our landlord, Rebecca, who is an American married to an Italian,
was always there when we needed to ask a question, or two, or three. She
helped us out with everything from Where to eat in Trevi to how can we
find out about the train schedule to Naples? She was always there, but
never in our way. We felt as if we were the only people there, even though
there are 2 other apartments, in-laws, and various aunts and uncles living
on Brigolante. The bedroom has a beautiful iron bed, with a queen-sized
mattress, and a large armoire with an iron and ironing board hidden inside.
There's a washing machine in the kitchen and a clothesline out back....
We look forward to returning to Brigolante one day and do not hesitate
to recommend it highly."