Special Places to Stay - More than a bed for the night

Don't make elaborate sightseeing plans before you go: the moment you clap eyes on the wisteria-clad farm buildings, the hammocks hanging temptingly from the gables on the terrace, and the lavender and rosemary-fringed pool, any itineraries involving time away from Pereto will vanish in a instant. Sandro and Bruna ("utterly simpatici" says our inspector) have transformed the old stable and tobacco-drying barn into gorgeously rustic yet refined retreats. Incredibly old and slightly wonky throughout, they have dark chunky beams, low deep-sill windows, and flagstones shiny and worn from 400 years of farmyard activity; and there's something baronial about the drying barn's sitting room with handsome stone fireplace and worn leather armchairs. Walls are rich in colour (ochre, olive, burnt terracotta), brass pans decorate kitchen walls, nooks are crammed with books. Find homemade essential oils in the bathrooms, honey from the bees in the welcome hamper, bikes to borrow. And if you really must venture beyond the farm's 450 acres, Perugia, Montone, and Assisi are close by. Heavenly.