Essential Italy

We know car choice is important for the enjoyment of your holiday, our supplier – Maggiore Car Rental – will guarantee the following:

• highly competitive prices
• no major tour operator is working with them, therefore we are quite sure that queuing will be kept to a minimum, even in high season
• all cars have air conditioning
• a full and comprehensive back-up system

Request Car Hire quote ›

We do not book flights, we leave it to you to choose the best departure point and flight times to suit your party. We have compiled a list of airlines flying to those regions in which we offer accommodation.

Flights are from the UK, if you are travelling from elsewhere, please don’t hesitate to contact us, we will recommend an airline flying from your departure point. If you are unsure which airport in Italy is closest to your accommodation, please call us on 01223 460100 or email

Subscribe to our monthly newsletters to recieve all the latest on Special Offers, Properties and Regions, fabulous Italian recipes plus much more.

Ai Cedri near Cortona

Ai Cedri is everything one could wish for. The stone house boasts marvellous views across the valley below and is surrounded by lush gardens. The British owners have ensured that their guests stay in a very comfortable home.

The house is reached by a sweeping driveway and there is parking to one side of the house. In front of the house is a covered terrace from where the whole house can be accessed. On the ground floor is a reception room and huge sitting room complete with an open fireplace. The kitchen is well equipped with a dishwasher, washing machine, oven, hobs and large fridge freezer. All the rooms on the ground floor have direct access to the garden. There is also a reading room which has a double sofabed in and has been used on several occasions by a couple or an older child.

A wooden staircase leads up to a large landing. There is one double bedroom, one twin/double bedroom with an en suite bathroom (shower) and the third bedroom is a twin bedroom. The main bathroom is large and has a bath tub. All the bedrooms are very comfortable and all enjoy the splendid view across the valley towards Montepulciano. Throughout the house there are lovely paintings which have been collected by the owners whilst on their travels through Italy – from Venice to Amalfi.

The garden is well established (and has a vegetable patch, from where you may help yourself to whatever may be in season). About 20 metres from the house, the new swimming pool will inevitably be central to your holiday – with plenty of space around the pool to relax, and a barbeque, you could be tempted to spend all day here enjoying the privacy and views.

Ai Cedri is accessed along a country lane and is positioned just above the village of Pergo where there is a village supermarket and pizzeria. Just a kilometre further, is an excellent restaurant. Day trips to Arezzo, Siena and Florence will be on many guests agenda but Ai Cedri is excellently located to explore the attractions of Umbria (Perugia, Assisi and Gubbio being a few) and even the marvellous smaller villages of Montepulciano, Lucignano and of course Cortona itself.

New in Puglia for 2012

Helen & Sarah have just returned from a very fruitful trip to Puglia...

Read more ›