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Villa selection

Here at Essential Italy we visit all our properties so we will always have a member of our team on hand who can advise you and talk you through the intricacies of each property and match your requirements to a villa. Alternatively, you can use the filters on the Essential Italy website to select available properties which suit your needs. Whittle down your options according to region, number of people travelling, location and facilities such as air conditioning and private pool.

A selection of our properties can be booked on-line via our website — if you see the BOOK NOW button within the availability tab under the property details, you can simply enter number of people in your party, choose your dates and then click BOOK NOW and pay the relevant amount to secure the property for your chosen dates.

Alternatively call us on +44 (0) 1223 460100 or email info@essentialitaly.co.uk and we’ll very happily take your details and confirm your reservation to you by email.

Please note we will get confirmation from the owner before your payment is processed. This can take up to 48 hours, although usually a far shorter time.

You certainly can. We’ll happily hold your selected property (or properties) for 48 hours while you discuss your selection with your party.
We ask for a 30% deposit to secure your booking with the full balance due 12 weeks prior to your arrival. You can pay by Bank Transfer (wire), Visa or Mastercard.
We accept payments in British Pounds and euros.
Some villas have additional charges for services such as heating, air conditioning and extra cleaning. Any additional costs are clearly stated on the property page.
The minimum stay in a villa or an apartment varies depending on the season. Typically it’s 7 nights. If you are looking to stay in a villa for less than 7 nights, please contact us and hopefully we can make some suggestions.
Please check with us before making a reservation. We do have some properties where pets are accepted and there may be an additional charge applied.
We have a small selection of villas with heated pools. Please contact us with your requirements and we’ll happily send villa suggestions with heated pools. Kindly note that there may be a supplement for heating a pool.

Our cancellation policy is clearly stated in our Booking Conditions.

Most of our villas offer Wi-Fi. It’s worth checking with us if you plan to work while away as connectivity varies from villa to villa as does the speed of service.

Tourist tax is a tax imposed by each local comune (local council) and is payable locally when indicated on our website. This charge is controlled by the local comune. It’s worth noting that the amount due can be changed with little notice. If there is no tourist tax mentioned on our website it’s likely that the charge is included in the weekly rate and is paid directly by the owner to the local council.

Some local authorities in Italy ask for all overnight visitors to be registered upon arrival with passport/ID details. We have found it to be more convenient for you to do this prior to your arrival rather than wasting your time upon arrival recording passport details for each member of your party.
We aim to be as flexible as possible, please call us to see if a change can be made to your existing booking.

What’s included

Yes, all linen and towels are provided including pool/beach towels if applicable.
There will be a selection of cleaning products provided for your arrival. You may need to purchase additional dishwasher tablets, laundry detergents etc. during your stay. These items will not be replenished by the owner during your stay unless we specify otherwise.
There will be a supply of toilet rolls and hand soap provided for your arrival. Again, you may need to purchase more during your stay.
Yes, the contents vary from property to property, please check with us as to what will be at the villa for your arrival or refer to your pre-departure information pack on-line.
No, we do not book flights, however, we are very happy to assist with suggestions of airlines and airports local to your chosen property in Italy.
Some properties provide a shopping service and there may be a charge for this with the goods payable locally, please speak with us if you’d like to book this service.
Yes, cots and highchairs are available at all our properties. Please request these items when making your initial reservation.

We do not book car hire, however, we can recommend Zest Car Rental, a UK based broker who offer competitive car hire rates with all the recognised car rental companies in Italy. Click here to obtain a quote and book a vehicle should you wish to.

Arrival

Once you have secured your chosen villa you will be given access to an on-line account with Essential Italy. Within your on-line account you will find details of your property, a guide to the surrounding area together with directions and access details to the villa. Please note we update the information within your on-line account therefore it’s always worth revisiting it just before you travel.
Check-in time for most villas is 4pm. If your flight arrives earlier in the day, please speak with us and we will check with the owner if an earlier arrival is possible or if you can drop your luggage before heading off for lunch or a swim somewhere. Please note in some cases it’s not possible to arrive ahead of the formal check-in time and we will happily make suggestions so you can fill your day ahead of your arrival at the villa.
Check out is 10am at most of our villas. Sadly all good things come to an end and we do need you to depart by the allocated time. If your flight is later in the day, please speak with us. We can often suggest activities to fill the time between your check out time at the villa and your flight.
We are very happy to make advance restaurant reservations local to your villa.
We have a great network of people who can provide additional services such as cooks, cookery lessons, watersport activities, boat hire, yoga instructors, cycle hire and much more. Please contact us to discuss your requirements.

General questions

We recommend you book travel insurance for all members of your party. If you are a UK resident you can apply for a Global Health Insurance Card - A UK GHIC is not a substitute for travel insurance. It may not cover all health costs and never covers repatriation costs. You should make sure that you have travel insurance as well as a UK GHIC.

We are always on hand to assist you. Please call the contact number within your Essential Italy online account or call the UK office during office hours.
We appreciate the world is a little ‘review weary’ when it comes to completing feedback, however, reviews assist future clients to make their selection. We are always grateful if you will consider completing a review post-holiday. We have used review platforms in the past such as Feefo, however, we found clients were unhappy to log in to another platform and we will now send you an in-house review link so you can review your property. We will upload your review directly to the Essential Italy website.
The temperatures vary from North to South. Generally in July and August the temperatures can range between 30 and 40 degrees C. The most used Italian website for weather is www.meteo.it If you have any questions which are not addressed above please call or email us on info@essentialitaly.co.uk Tel +44 (0) 1223 460100