Torre Palazzone

This is a wonderfully evocative setting, redolent of the Tuscan landscape and culture, hidden away in a setting that gives complete privacy while being only a short hop from all the wonders of Siena. The rooms are spacious, well appointed and furnished with an array of suitable antiquities and art works.
There is a complex of buildings around a courtyard, giving ample opportunity for exploration and discovery. We were there for 4 days in January and were very comfortable with the heating system and the open log fires. Facilities are top class and the whole premises is very spacious. An ideal break away for a quiet retreat or as a centre ro explore the surrounding wine country and historic buildings. Highly recommended.

Our family and friends totaling 18 people recently spent an amazing week in Tuscany staying at the beautiful Torre Palazzone.
From the minute we drove up the long, winding driveway, which has lavender fields on both sides, and unpacked our bags we felt like we were transported back in time in such a magical, serene setting.
Beyond the sheer beauty of this property, I think the key factor that made this stay exceptional was the staff that owner, Kitty Walsh, employs. Chef Antonella is on top of her culinary game while offering up spectacular menus to choose from that rival any fine restaurant.
There is a beautiful outdoor terrace where we dined alfresco every evening tasting her delectable culinary creations. She and her sous chef Lolita were extremely accommodating and there was no request that they did not accept with an eagerness to please their guests. The menus/food that we enjoyed are too numerous to list here but suffice it to say that all of us were extremely impressed with every dinner that Antonella prepared for us.

The highlight of our week was a wedding celebration dinner which was held outside on the open stone patio near the granary, under a full moon. Chef Antonella offered a wide selection from several menus to choose from and the meal that we ultimately chose was nothing short of delicious. With Kitty’s suggestion we utilized a couple of servers and started the evening with a beautiful cocktail hour and delicious appetizers. Kitty had suggested a local florist, and this florist’s flower and candle arrangements on the table made the celebration dinner feel all the more special. We hired a local DJ/Musician who plays vinyl records out of his restored VW van and this choice added an element of whimsy coupled with a very unique style of entertainment for this spectacular evening. As we finished dinner everyone was dancing under a full moon. It was truly magical. I highly recommend this venue for a small wedding celebration; our expectations were blown away when it all came together and Kitty was extremely helpful in making this all happen. She answered all of our questions via email and phone as we prepared for our trip to the Villa. Having such a responsive proprietor takes away all of the stress surrounding planning such a unique and exceptional event. The service for this evening was outstanding and there was no detail left undone.

On our last night at the Villa we requested that Antonella make wood fired pizzas in the ancient outdoor pizza oven on the premises and this was the perfect way to end the week. She must have made a variety of at least 12 different pizzas and we were all able to watch her work her magic at the oven as she rolled out the dough and put the pizzas together. This sounds like a very simple meal but I cannot emphasize how special it all felt to witness this art of pizza making with the freshest ingredients and to enjoy the meal on the outdoor terrace dining alfresco under the Tuscan moon bringing all of us together on our final night.

We were initially worried that it would be a challenge to entertain 18 guests but there was so much to do at the Villa. There is ping pong, bocce ball court, a pool table, a beautiful pool where guests enjoyed a relaxing day away from the busy touristy hilltop towns of Tuscany.
We also rented 4 bikes from a local bike shop with Kitty’s assistance and she arranged for those bikes to be at our disposal at the villa all week. It was fun riding the quiet back roads surrounding the Villa.

All of the bedrooms are exquisitely decorated and clean- each with its own personality! A casual continental Breakfast was served in the old farmhouse kitchen every morning. The staff was pleasant and accommodating to guests’ requests.

To end the week we had asked Kitty to put together a gift bag with olive oil and lavender sachets for our guests and she put them in small burlap bags with an ink stamp of the Villa outline on each bag. It was a lovely memento for guests to remind them of their magical stay at Torre Palazzone.

Notre famille reste à Torre Palazzone depuis quelques années, et à chaque fois nous sommes subjugués par la beauté des lieux… La bâtisse médiévale avec ses volumes imposants nous transporte dans le temps… Les collines dorées toscanes n’ont pas bougé depuis la Renaissance. Et la décoration des lieux est colorée, accueillante mettant en valeur des objects du folklore de l’Europe de l’Est. Les peintures murales sont splendides sans parler de l’accueil chaleureux que nous recevons à chaque fois. Je recommande !

We stayed here for a week and throughly loved the place, the friendly staff, and location.

The owners organized a number of activities and accommodated last minute changes.

So, why 3 stars? The issue is value. For the way it is priced, things have to be perfect. They unfortunately are not: insufficient capacity air conditioning units that mean warm rooms at night, no towel changes (except if paid for extra), no bathroom amenities, no room cleaning (except if paid for extra), poor wifi. The food good, home made Tuscan cooking, the wine is fine.

But even though we had a magical week with our friends, seeing the additional bill at the end lmeans we’ll not come back, unless the pricing is adjusted or the experience becomes the 5 star quality that the price demands.