Borgo della Marmotta

Hotel review

Borgo della Marmotta is a cluster of restored farm buildings set in the Umbrian countryside, with 11 bedrooms and 7 suites/apartments, some of which have small kitchens. Rooms are spacious and furnished with oversized Italian country pieces, and plenty of original features included beamed ceilings and exposed stone walls. Inside the main building the rustic Italian theme continues. There's a large sitting room with a huge open fireplace and a couple of vast sofas covered in faded linens set around it and French doors lead to a small paved terrace overlooking the gardens. Plus there's an honesty bar and coffee station set up in a corner for helping yourself. The gardens are well-kept and overflowing with scented blooms during the summer, and throughout you'll find chairs are arranged in groups of two or three, under trees and in shady corners.. There’s a magical restaurant with indoor and outdoor dining where you can indulge in a buffet breakfast with a fabulous selection of pastries, breads, yoghurts, fruits, meats and cheeses. The restaurant also offers a light lunch (you need to pre-book) with a short menu that changes daily and a more sophisticated supper with a wider menu to choose from (such as homemade pasta with a ragu sauce, or slices of beefsteak with seasonal greens sautéed in garlic). Everything they produce is fresh and delicious. The wine list has local wines (very drinkable) plus choices from further afield. Staff at Borgo del Marmotta are friendly and discreet.

All this combines to make a blissful Italian refuge where you can eat, sleep and relax in easy comfort and style. Do nothing more than laze around the pool topping up your Umbrian tan while immersed in a good book. Alternatively explore the surrounding Italian hillside cities of Todi and Orvieto to the South, or Assisi to the North. Climb the steep streets to the town square and eat sweet tomatoes with basil and fresh bread in the sunshine, before returning to Borgo Della Marmotta for a glass of prosecco in a shady spot in the garden.

Caroline Townsend Review published: 08/02/2019