I Borghi dell'Eremo

I Borghi dell'Eremo

On the highest point of a five-hundred-hectare estate in Umbria, where a Camaldolese abbey stood in the twelfth century, I Borghi dell'Eremo now holds fifteen suites built into that old stone and silence at San Giovanni, in Piegaro. Breakfast runs as a complimentary continental spread until half past ten, useful for guests who keep their own hours rather than a schedule set by reception. This is an adults-only property, and it reads that way: a seasonal outdoor pool, tennis court and gym sit alongside a sauna and spa, not a kids' club. Couples wanting to disappear into a hillside for a few days will find hiking trails and bike rental straight off the estate, plus a picnic area for lunch eaten outdoors. What sets it apart from other converted Umbrian properties is the Presidential Suite's private spa, an entire wing with its own Turkish bath, nebulized and Scottish showers, chromotherapy, a whirlpool tub facing a cinema wall, and two electric fireplaces, tucked behind a private garden and gazebo, an element unique to that one suite. Elsewhere the fifteen rooms vary rather than follow a fixed template: some overlook Lake Trasimeno and the Sibillini range, others carry hydromassage tubs or private patios. The property is sustainability certified under GSTC criteria and keeps an electric car charging point, though there is no elevator, so the first-floor rooms mean stairs. Pets travel for an extra thirty euros a stay. Business groups get a 300-square-metre conference and meeting space, though this is not really built for spreadsheets. It is built for people willing to drive into the hills and stay there. Fifteen suites built into a twelfth-century abbey on a five-hundred-hectare Umbrian estate, adults-only and centered on a spa wing that includes a Turkish bath, sauna and outdoor pool. The Presidential Suite adds its own private spa with a whirlpool tub and two fireplaces.