'This Tuscan hotel has spa bedrooms and they're incredible'
It takes me a moment to stir, but I soon realise that I’ve awoken naturally with the sunrise. The same light that drenches the Tuscan countryside, near the quaint town of Cortona, is now peeking through my artfully draped curtains of my hotel suite. What’s more, there’s blissful silence. It’s a peaceful world away from the revving cars and drilling of construction work, outside by inner-city flat, that are usually the soundtrack to my mornings.
After a satisfying stretch and some of the best sleep of my life, I slip out from between the silky sheets of my grand four poster bed and walk along the oak floors to the top of my mezzanine. From there I head down the majestic wooden staircase - which makes me feel even more like a princess - to the ground floor of my suite. Past the elegantly restored Renaissance-style furniture, I’m already straight into my very own private in-room spa session.
First up, it’s a spell in the spacious futuristic-looking shower that also doubles up as a ‘Turkish bath’ - incorporating aromatherapy, chromotherapy and music therapy - with modes that include ‘relax’, ‘excite’, ‘purify’ and ‘tonic’. I enjoy the latter as part of a 20-minute 'experience’, accompanied by colourful lights and upbeat sounds, that involves applying a chocolate-scented scrub to my body, before being immersed in eucalyptus-scented steam, followed by a mint-scented breeze and a passion fruit-scented shower. I finish with a soak in the ginormous jacuzzi, leaving me utterly sensorially rejuvenated - all before breakfast.
La dolce vita (wellness-style)
I’m in the middle of a three-night stay at the picturesque hotel Relais La Corte Dei Papi. The rural manor house, which dates back to the 1700s, has been handed down through the Papi family for generations. Its current owner, David Papi, leads a small team who work round the clock to ensure guests in the 16 double rooms and suites on the property have their every need met. Like the cheese, fruit and focaccia I was presented with on arrival (Cortona is well connected by train to the airports of Florence and Bologna, and by car to Perugia’s airport).
Although, privacy is of the utmost importance here. My luxurious ‘spa suite’ is favoured by the numerous couples who choose to get married, honeymoon or mark another romantic milestone at the property. However, it is also perfect calm oasis in which to unwind solo, if you yearn for space to breathe without the distractions of another soul. There’s a whole 100-metres-squared of it across the suite’s two floors, which have been lovingly converted from an old stone barn, and I quickly get used to the headspace I didn’t realise I needed.
In fact, bar the aforementioned breakfast - served from the most ornate buffet I have ever seen, with eggs just as you like as well as plenty of fresh fruit, cheeses, charcuterie and pastries - the hotel ensures there’s little reason to leave. You can loosen up tense muscles with a one-to-one yoga lesson in the suite’s private garden, with the stunning view of the Papi family’s own vineyards providing the ideal backdrop. Want to supercharge your zen? They can arrange a number of personalised in-room spa treatments, including an anti-stress massage (€120 for one hour).
Life's all about #balance
That being said, if you decide to venture outside your suite, the hotel is home to idyllic grounds, peppered with olive and pine trees, that I discover are ripe for a wander around to up my step count. There’s also a large swimming pool, flanked by an al fresco dining area during the summer months and a marble-fronted bar primed for a sunset tipple. Throughout the property, there’s an air of serenity in the design, finished off with details like vaulted ceilings, mirrors and gilded boiserie. This is relaxation with a luxury twist.
The hotel, which opened its doors in 2003, also boasts a popular on-site restaurant where I enjoy some of the most delicious Italian food I’ve ever tasted. There’s a reason - all dishes are made from locally sourced ingredients, and the menu changed every two months to be as seasonal as possible. I devour the ‘drunken’ pici pasta - where the pasta is cooked in red wine rather than water, adding intensity to the flavour - along with a glass of the hotel’s very own Rosato di Toscana white wine. Other menu highlights include eggs infused with white truffle - famously harvested from the nearby forests - and the renowned Florentine steak, which come from the big white Chianina cows that are native to the region.
The passion for what is on my plate comes from the hotel’s head chef Giuseppe Masciopinto, who has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants both in Italy and abroad. All pasta and bread are made fresh by the kitchen daily, which has more than 150 pans at the ready to rustle up pretty much any order from scratch. Giuseppe shares some of his knowledge with me during a cooking lesson (€190 for three hours) where I’m taken the through the process of making several courses, including a ‘pecorino’ cheese flan with rosemary flavoured pear sauce and Italian trifle on dark chocolate ganache.
Stretch your legs (and go wine-tasting)
Keen to see further afield? There are numerous activities you can do outside of the hotel, including a bike tour (€490 for two people, for a half-day) that allows you to both burn off carbs and soak in the beautiful Tuscan countryside on two wheels - complete with a stop-off for wine tasting, of course. The hotel is also only a 15-minute drive to the edge of Lake Trasimeno, only slightly smaller than Lake Como, where you can do activities like windsurfing, kitesurfing and wakeboarding.
On the final day of my stay I head to Cortona itself, just a ten-minute drive away. The walled Medieval town sits on a hilltop that is so high up that I was above fluffy clouds on the December day I visited (on a clear day you can see for miles over the Val di Chiana). I learned about its Etruscan and Roman history at the local museum and lunched on gnocchi at the Ristorante La Loggetta, which is across the road from the Piazza della Repubblica. If it looks familiar, it is because it provides the setting for several iconic scenes from Under The Tuscan Sun.
From here it’s a 40-minute drive to another beautiful hilltop town, Montepulciano, which features Medieval and Renaissance architecture and is surrounded by luscious vineyards. These grow famous types of red Italian wine, namely Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Montepulciano d'Abruzzo - bottles of which are sold around the world. You can sip on the local produce at the 800-year-old De' Ricci winery, which stocks only organic wines and hold wine tours as well as tastings in their cavernous cellar. A suitable toast to a refreshing Tuscan mini-break.
Go there!
Rooms at Relais La Corte Dei Papi start from €250 (approximately £215) per night, based on two people sharing BOOK HERE.
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