The house is big except for the kitchen which is small. The bathrooms have been redone and the bedrooms all have an individual AC unit. In extreme heat, the downstairs will be hot since only the bedrooms have AC. The game room is nice and the backyard is nice (again if not too hot). It is an old property that has some updates to it. it could use some love and attention to furnishings and decorations to make it feel nicer and more guest friendly. Hirning Marco was the best thing we did. He was able to suggest restaurants and he knew where to drop us off in the cities we visited.
We had such a great stay for almost two weeks. As two family groups with young children we were able to spread out as the rooms are very large.
Itâs one of the rare places that is better than the photos! Great to get the Tuscan experience and still be able to drive into central Florence.
Our group of 4 couples loved everything about the villa. Lots of room, 4 bathrooms, clean, good kitchen, room to relax inside or outside. Great views of the surrounding Tuscan valley. We highly recommend using the driver services we would not want to drive or park at any of the Tuscan regionâs cities
It is highly recommended
Stayed a week. The host was great helpful and solved and issues we had. The location is out side of Florance. 10 minutes to the city and easy access to highwayys to Pisa Siena etc. The house is lovely, well kept and all the bedrooms have AC. Yhe garden is lovely but mosquitoes ate an issue ( and there are 4 turtles in the garden). There are 6 bedrooms 5 bathrooms a amall pool equiped kitchen, dining room livingroom and game room. Highly recomend the house!
We had a wonderful stay. We used Marco's driving service and he was excellent and always on time. The villa was spacious and well stocked. We really enjoyed the turtles. The only con was we didn't realize the downstairs bedroom headboard was covered in ants and my mother was severely bitten all over her face and hands, which left her unable to enjoy the trip.
If you are looking for peace and quiet, this is the perfect location. The property was magnificent. Every area was well stocked (kitchen, dining room, bathrooms, bedrooms). The hint of home was everywhere. The surroundings were comfortable and the furniture was beautiful, providing plenty of room to store items! The "Park" with lemons and limes, offered many sitting arrangements, and the host even left the pool available for the 2 weeks of our visit. We fed the turtles wandering around and RELAXED! Marcos, the driver - was truly exceptional and always on time! He drove us to Pisa and a few of our trips lasted several hours. He patiently waited and always greeted us with a smile! From games and books in the study to a perfectly stocked china cabinet - there was nothing more that was needed to make this a superb vacation location!
All the ameneties were provided, everything you needed to cook including fresh vegetables. Villa was beautiful, great character, courtyard was amazing. It was a picture perfect and enchanting location to stay. We took advantage of the driving service and Marco is absolutely wonderful. Using Marco's driving service made every part of the trip better. We went to Lucca, Siene, various vineyards and restaurants and having Marco drive made everything easy. Retiring to the coutyard at the end of every evening for some wine was just perfect. 5 stars all the way.
We flew to Florence and started our visit with a great pickup from the airport by Marco. We hired him as our driver for the whole 15 days. He was punctual and easy to work with. We planned his time at least 1 day in advance.
The villa is old and does have some mold in shower and not hot water in all of them but overall we loved the property. It was hot so we used the pool daily. Itâs not heated so itâs very refreshing! We cooked our dinner most nights. Marco took us to the grocery store multiple times.
Beds were comfortable. We asked for clean sheets and towels after the first week and Enrico and his crew were very accommodating.
We walked to the Locande Colazzi restaurant for lunch one Sunday. Only 1/2 mile away. Good food.
Thanks Enrico and Marco for a wonderful stay at your villa.
We had a great time! The garden was ideal for all 4 children and we really enjoyed the pool. Having the game room was a great outlet for the children while the adults lingered at the oversized patio table.
Marco was an added bonus! Thank you for driving us all over Tuscany!
Our group of two older parents and two daughters with their families (total 10 with 4 children under 8) had a great time at this lovely home for a week long stay. Beautiful location and a large older but updated with modern conveniences home was perfect for us. We hired the 8 passenger NCC taxi with driver during our stay.
We rented this villa for 7 days at the end of July. The place is great for a large group with spacious bedrooms, dining room and bathrooms. The owners were responsive and brought us fresh veggies from their garden. The only downside was the lack of transportation - so better to have a car and not rely on buses or Uber (not available in that area).
The property is outside Florence near Botai. This is a wonderful retreat away from the bustle of Florence. The narrow lanes are fun to drive until you meet another car and must negotiate who goes first. The owners were eager to meet our needs and did repair/replace some items we called to their attention. Grestvfor a large group!
My family of ten stayed her for one week. We had everything we needed. Alessandro was very helpful with providing information and planning our trip. Would recommend.
I have no words to describe how lovely the villa is. It was such a incredible experience to gather family in this beautiful historic mansion. Each room is beautifully furnished. It has so many bathrooms that even with the bedrooms filled, we never had to wait for our turn to shower. We spent a lot of time most days in the lovely garden area. We especially enjoyed the pet turtles that patrol the grounds. It is a ways from the nearest town (1 mile on foot on a narrow road) so Iâm very glad we rented a car to do day trips. We also hired the ownerâs brother one day to take us to Pisa and Lucca. (He has a huge passenger van) If you wanted to just hang out at the villa a car wouldnât be necessary (can call taxis too but that was sometimes challenging for we non-Italian speakers). It should be said that the road up to the Villa is very narrow (the kind where you have to pull over to the side if a car comes the other way) and itâs very winding and steep. I was tasked with being the rental car driver but even with my nerves of steel, I found it a little harrowing. The upside is you are high up in a remote area (yet close to Florence and nearby towns) and you have an incredible view.
I did get a few bug bites but they have mosquito coils and bug repellent available in a supply closet. I saw lots of tourists with bug bites so I think it was just mosquito season there (I donât know why but I didnât expect mosquitoes in Italy). The dinner made by the ownerâs mother was amazing and truly memorable. We were celebrating my momâs 80th birthday and had originally planned to cook a big meal. The kitchen is completely adequate but not super big or set up for a lot of food prep. So, a few days before we asked if the mama who lives next door could make a meal for 13 people and luckily she did! Best decision we ever made. For âŹ30 each we got a four course meal with wine.
Everything about our stay was beautiful. We would absolutely go back.
Wonderful property , as advertised. Beautiful country setting and very convenient to Florence. Great location for our various day side trips. Hosts were exceptionally gracious and helpful, even bringing us vegetables from their private garden. Dinner in the garden every night. Thoroughly enjoyed every minuet of our stay. Would highly recommend this property to anyone!
We very much enjoyed staying at Villa Berni. The hospitality was very responsive anytime we needed it. It was so relaxing, rustic and beautiful. We entertained many family members and friends as guests throughout our month stay with ease. Everyone had enough space. It is not far from Florence but we recommend having a driver if you can get one. Otherwise you can find a taxi or drive to the wall of Florence and walk or e-bike. We loved the turtles and the refreshing pool especially in the hottest days of the summer. We will miss it! Don't miss the restaurant around the corner called Locanda Collazzi. Amazing food. Thank you Berni family!
Lovely property in the hills near Florence. The garden and house is beautiful. The only thing that would have been helpful is some information on the local area and restaurants, information about the property (bins etc), anything the owners expected from us during our stay. We used the taxi app Apptaxi which was great to get into Florence as we tried to call a company but they couldn't understand us. We would definitely visit again.
Absolutely perfect location, great for groups, with a well appointed kitchen and lovely bedrooms. Alessandro and his family could not have been better hosts. We felt safe and cozy each night. And when we unexpectedly had to extend our stay, we were so well taken care of and Alessandro was so thoughtful and kind. Villa Berni truly felt like home and we canât wait to come back! If you have the chance for mama Mina to cook for you, TAKE IT. Her pizza was the best we had our entire trip. Thank you Alessandro and family!
Having married and united our two families we decided to include our four children, their other halves, our two new grandchildren and our mother on our 'familymoon'. The house layout and location was perfect for our group and it was exactly as described. We decided to book Marco's mini bus taxi for the week - what a great service, Marco was fantastic. He was punctual, friendly and patient if we were a little late! We also took advantage of the wonderful dinner service provided by Mina and Enrico. We would totally recommend this - the food and wine were amazing and it made for a really relaxing evening for our family and a lovely surprise for our daughter's birthday. We found the property to be in a quiet and safe location with wonderful views from all the bedrooms, especially the tower room. The garden was perfect having both sunny and shady areas, the small pool (although a little cold) was a welcome escape from the heat at times. Our hosts were excellent and friendly - nothing was too much trouble and any questions were answered quickly. We would totally recommend this property and location and would love to return in the future,
We have just returned from a week at Villa Berni...3 generations of a family of 10...deciding to ignore the warnings that even the locals tend to leave in August due to the heat.
We were greeted late in the evening by Enrico who was charming, despite our flight being delayed by 2hrs. The communication between guest and owners couldn't be better. It made things so easy for us.
The Villa is huge and as the other reviews comment, the garden is absolutely gorgeous - the photos really do not do it justice.
I can't say too much about day trips as we were all happy relaxing in the gardens, using the lovely pool, hunting for baby tortoises (which Enrico lovingly rescued to put in a safer place!), and eating delicious local produce...some from our hosts and some from the local shops. A word about that...the closest shop to walk to isn't far...about 2km I think (Tavernuzze) but it's entirely downhill on the way and therefore no walk in the park on the way back!
We paid approx âŹ35 for taxis into Florence which was a doddle to organise, again thanks to Enrico - he really was a brilliant host.
Thank you for a wonderful holiday! We have all come home refreshed and relaxed đ
This is a fantastic house for a long stay with a big group. The occasion was a milestone birthday for me, and we hosted a rotating crew, totaling about 30 over the course of a month, very pleasantly. The beds are comfortable, the bathrooms ample, and there's generally plenty of room. The garden is lovely; we ate outside most evenings when we ate in.
It's easy to get into Florence by taxi, bus or house car service. It's also great as a base for day trips to the coast, wine country, Bologna, etc.
The three brothers who own the place are easy-going and very responsive. They had good restaurant recommendations, day trip recommendations and, when unfortunately I needed it, medical clinic recommendations.
It is an extremely good value.
Nothing is perfect:
As with all vacation rentals I've ever signed up for, the kitchen is poorly laid out and poorly equipped. It will frustrate you if you plan to do much cooking, which you will want to, because the available ingredients are so fabulous.
ASK about housecleaning plans: there is none unless you ask, which seemed odd for a month-long stay, and then you have to specify what services you want. A really thorough cleaning never occurred. Someone more assertive than me about this probably wouldn't have this problem, however.
But those are minor quibbles. It's a great place, with great hosts at a great price.