Fattoria Il Milione Agriturismo

“Enjoy the real Florence”

This was the highlight of our trip. What a wonderful spot to stay and relax. Breakfast was delicious and plentiful. The grounds were wonderful. The restaurant serves the best food. There’s a pool and a small gym. Best to rent a car or know that you will be taking cabs up and down the hill to town.… more

This was the highlight of our trip. What a wonderful spot to stay and relax. Breakfast was delicious and plentiful. The grounds were wonderful. The restaurant serves the best food. There’s a pool and a small gym. Best to rent a car or know that you will be taking cabs up and down the hill to town. It’s definitely worth it. Highly recommend this lovely place

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“Just The Facts, Thank You”

Having stayed at more than 300 hotels, resorts, inns, B&Bs, etc, worldwide, Hubby and I decided to try something different during the Florence segment of our recent three-week European vacation - farmhouse accommodations. We were weary of city traffic and noise and hoped for a quiet, low-key stay.… more

Having stayed at more than 300 hotels, resorts, inns, B&Bs, etc, worldwide, Hubby and I decided to try something different during the Florence segment of our recent three-week European vacation - farmhouse accommodations. We were weary of city traffic and noise and hoped for a quiet, low-key stay. After reading TripAdvisor reviews about Fattoria il Milione, we thought this could be the perfect option. Upon arrival, we realized that reviews don't begin to address reality here. So I'll fill in some missing details. At check-in, approximately 4:00 pm, the receptionist was informative in explaining the hotel grounds, area restaurants, a grocery store nearby, etc. He advised us that the lone restaurant on the hotel property was under separate management and was closed on Mondays. He provided us with a map of the grounds and directed us to our cottage. At that point, I realized that Fattoria il Milione isn't a farmhouse inn but, rather, a collection of cottages scattered across the acreage in addition to the main building which houses the breakfast room and the "social lounge." We were assigned a very remote cottage built into the side of the hill, which we reached via a treacherous bumpy path climbing steeply. We were glad to be driving a rental car over the ruts and rocks and roots, rather than our own vehicle. At our cottage, parking was on the same level as the house, a few feet from our door. Some cottages require their guests climbing up/down to the entrance. Our cottage had no wi-fi signal whatsoever, but I require ongoing access to efficient wi-fi. So I phoned the front desk to report the problem. I was informed that nothing could be done about it after hours because the staff had left for the day and that I'd have to wait until morning to speak with someone who could address the problem. Next morning, still no wi-fi signal, so I stopped at reception to report it. I was advised that the cottage we were assigned was located so remotely that weak signal there was an ongoing issue, but that it was very strong throughout the rest of the property. So management was aware of our problem before I reported it. I was told that a technician would try to repair it. Meanwhile we could move to another cottage if we waited until later in the day after it was cleaned. Since we had just unpacked four bags for a 3-day stay, we were not inclined to repack everything to move. That evening, after touring all day, I inquired again. In short: the staff "technician" couldn't resolve the wifi problem, so a real tech would be summoned the following day - Day 3. We were advised to utilize the strong wifi signal in the social lounge, or go another night without. So we spent four hours in uncomfortable chairs in a cold, deserted living room, rather than in the comfort of our cottage, to have proper access to wi-fi. Turns out there's only one electrical outlet accessible near the lounge's sofas. The others are along the wall in the dining side of the room with the hard chairs. One of us sat in a hard chair. There is no restroom in the lounge, so Hubby inquired at reception. The night desk agent told him to walk down the uneven stone driveway (in the dark) to the parking area, and he’d find it in the back of the building, “right there.” Hubby couldn’t find it. There were no lights, and he walked past it and back again, finally turning on his phone flashlight. Eventually he found a tiny sign indicating a restroom. We didn’t get fuzzy warm feelings from any of the reception staff during our visit. We decreased our stay from 3 nights to 2 nights, though we had prepaid for three. We understood that the prepaid price was nonrefundable, but we were then denied access on the third day to the room we had paid for. We were granted only one additional hour after regular checkout time (10:00) in our prepaid room. Speaking of pre-paying, we were charged at check-in a separate tax of 14 euros per night, city tax. Compare this to 5-6 euros tax per night we had paid at four other hotels in four other European countries on this trip, as well as at a Rome hotel the prior night. Fattoria il Milione charged us more than double the typical tax. Moving on to our cottage, Casa con Vista has one large bedroom with a comfortable queen bed and two sofa beds in the living room whose useful date is long expired. The three extra pillows in the bedroom armoire provide enough support to make sitting on the sofas tolerable. In addition to the large armoire, the bedroom is furnished with a 3-drawer dresser, two 3-drawer bedside chests, a separate 3-tiered shelf, two soft chairs, a TV, bedside lamps, a small mirror, and a radiator heater. The living/dining room has a small fireplace (unsure whether it's functional), a small dinette with four wood chairs, 4-burner stove, sink, refrigerator, a credenza with the full gamut of dishes, cutlery, pots and pans, etc, and a real coffee maker with coffee pods, rather than a water kettle. One bottle of drinking water equivalent to the US 16-ounce size was provided for our stay. The bathroom was utile, except that there's no makeup mirror or full-length mirror (anywhere in the cottage). Shelf space for personal care products is minimal. Toiletries provided include single-use bar soaps and a liquid hair/body wash. There is no facial tissue - only toilet paper. The tub is very deep and very old. The water is very hot, so I had a wonderful soak. The jets no longer work, though, and I had to stuff a washcloth in the drain to keep the water in. The open side of the tub is bordered by a half wall in clear acrylic so you can use the hand-held sprayer to shower. There is no wall-mounted shower. Towels are plentiful. The thermostat in the living room is very complex, and we could not adjust the temperature in the cottage. We knew that the heat was working because it was warmer in the house than outside when we entered. But we were cold at night and couldn't warm up the house. There isn't enough lighting. The only light in the bathroom is mounted over tub, so you can't see well to apply makeup or to shave. I couldn't see in the bedroom to read at night. One of the beside lamps has loose wiring and kept flickering on and off. We enjoyed sitting outside on our private patio in the evenings. A PVC table and chairs are provided. The view of the mountainside is pretty. Fortunately, I keep insect repellent in my handbag because mosquitos are thick in the woods at dusk. Since I haven't yet covered breakfast, let's eat. The breakfast staff is lovely, helpful, cheerful. Breakfast is served only from 8:00-9:30. If you don't arrive early, you might not find certain items. Our first morning, there were no eggs because the egg delivery had not arrived. If you are vegan, your breakfast choices are a whole apple, or arugula salad with cherry tomatoes (if there's any left). Everything else is meat, cheese, dairy, and bread. There's a gourmet coffee machine with only traditional milk for your bean brews or hot chocolate. The ambiance here is very peaceful, quiet, private, remote, as we had hoped. You twist up a curvy mountain road for several kilometers before arriving at a one-lane road that turns into a gravel alley before you arrive at the farmhouse property. The grounds aren't well-kept. Grass isn't mowed, trees aren't trimmed, beds aren't weeded, etc. There is no mini-market or convenience store on the property, so bring necessities with you if you'd rather not maneuver the hills and curves at night to drive into the city. When I was checking out, the proprietor apologized for the lack of wi-fi and offered me a 10% discount on a subsequent stay. I'll pause here, so that statement can register. We already paid for a night we didn't use, and now we're offered a token discount if we return to subject ourselves to more nonchalance in regard to guest comfort? Since I reside 8,000 kilometers from Fattoria il Milione, a sincere apology would have entailed a partial refund of what we had paid for our current stay.

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