Villa Lavanda, Countryside Casale near Todi, private pool in the heart of Umbria

First the positives. Luca, house the owner, is very pleasant & helpful. He explained everything about the property on our arrival, but we were of course extremely tired after a long drive and much of what he told us was quickly forgotten. A written account to refer to would have been appreciated. The outdoor area is verdant and mature, and the pool area is tranquil and private. This is where we spent most of our days. Unfortunately, the house did not live up to expectations. Unlike the photographs, it is actually very dark and cluttered, with old, uncomfortable furniture. The sofa is horribly hard, (in fact a very old wooden sofa bed) and the armchair is ancient with several tears in the fabric. If we had only been visiting for a week it probably wouldn't have mattered as we would have been out every night, but we booked the house for two months. I love cooking but all the kitchen appliances have also outlived their natural life and badly need replacing. The washing machine and sink exuded a stagnant water smell, the fridge was not cold enough and the hob / oven reminded me of my student days. When one of the toilets broke twice during our stay, we were told it was 'fragile'. Overall, Villa Lavander is a wonderful short break, but not a place one can stay for any length of time. We cut our trip short and left after a month. Despite great inconvenience at having to find alternative accommodation, we could not have stayed longer.

If you want a relaxing vacation in the country, this is the place. Beautiful, peaceful location away from it all. House has everything you need to cook meals and enjoy quiet nature.

This was my first time booking a VRBO and was a little nervous, especially in another country! I was making arrangements for my husband and self along with my daughter, her husband, 3 yr old and their 6-week-old baby so I wanted to make sure the accommodations were nice. Luca responded to everyone question I had within a timely manner. I asked him for recommendations for dinner and he gave us a detailed list with descriptions and locations. Due to a language barrier, there was some confusion with one of our reservations. He went above and beyond by contacting the location for us and making the reservation for us. Getting to the villa was quite an adventure as we had a large van and the road up the hill was very narrow, bumpy and at times we wondered if we would even fit, but we made it! My son-in-law became an expert at navigating it! The villa was clean and appeared just as it was on the website. The pool is not heated but the weather was hot, so it felt good. The only recommendations we have would be to provide additional garbage bags (we didn't have any extras other than what was already in the garbage cans which was needed with a newborn and diapers), and all of the glasses in the hutch were really dusty, so we ended up having to wash most of them. I would recommend this villa to anyone who is looking to stay in the Umbria Todi area. I want to thank Luca for being so helpful and being so quick to respond to all my questions or requests!

This is a beautiful villa in a wonderful setting. Luca quickly replaced some missing items when we arrived and then we relaxed and enjoyed the views, the pool and the local area. It doesn’t really matter when the setting is so great but the internet is poor and the wifi not available through the whole house. Air conditioning is appreciated though sometimes simple fans would be enough.

Fantastic property with beautiful grounds, a very nice house and a large pool. Despite unseasonably hot weather, the air conditioning in the bedrooms kept us nice and cool! Excellent communication from Luca, who was extremely welcoming and helpful. Highly recommend this rental!