High in the oak and chestnut forests above the Val d’Arno, Le Lappe is an 11-room house where the owner’s six dogs have the run of the place, fireplaces anchor each living area, and coffee arrives with cake still warm from the oven. There is no reception desk; you walk a wooded path to the door, take a seat by the fire, and tell the hosts what you’d like to get out of your stay.
Part of the family’s wider estate, the property was first restored into a country house hotel by Lorenza Benini Galeffi in 2000. This January, her son, architect Niccolò Calabrese de Feo, and his partner, the American AD100 interior designer Remy Renzullo, stripped it back to its bones and gave it a new look. It reopened in June with hand-painted forests climbing the walls, bathrooms modeled on the façade of Perugia Cathedral, and bedroom walls painted to resemble Sienese marble.
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Courtesy Le Lappe
Where
Le Lappe sits above the hamlet of Montegonzi, with views across the Val d’Arno to the Pratomagno mountains. It feels remote, but Florence and Siena are each about an hour away, and Chianti begins almost at the gate. The house can arrange airport transfers and excursions, but this is a place best experienced with your own vehicle and no set plans.
When
Spring is hard to beat. The woods come back to life, the hills turn green, and the terraces become somewhere you’ll want to linger over breakfast. Winter, though, has its own appeal. Deep bathtubs, wood-burning fireplaces, and the last of the autumn color across the valley make October through December an especially rewarding time to visit. The house closes each January and reopens in March.
The Proprietors
Lorenza Benini Galeffi still sets the tone. She lives up the hill, appears throughout the day with six dogs in tow, and treats guests more like visitors than customers. She runs Le Lappe together with her son, architect Niccolò Calabrese de Feo, and his partner, the American interior designer Remy Renzullo. Their renovation sharpened the house’s visual identity without changing its character, which still feels unmistakably like a family home.
Design and Rooms
The house is really two: a villa built on the ruins of a medieval watchtower and a former convent known as Il Convento. Remy Renzullo’s work is deeply researched and precise yet accessible: Oxblood is a visual throughline, a welcome departure from the pale palette that has come to dominate Tuscan hotels. Walls are painted to resemble Sienese marble, one bathroom is lined with handmade Moroccan zellige, and another room takes its cues from Ancient Rome. A ceiling carries the family crest in Assia Pallavicino’s hand. Her decorative painting appears throughout and culminates in a bedroom covered floor to ceiling in botanicals. Furniture was sourced from auctions across Europe and the family’s own collection, giving the house the sort of originality that can’t be ordered from a supplier.
The Crowd
For years, Le Lappe’s guests were overwhelmingly Italian, many returning year after year. Since reopening in June, the house has begun attracting an international audience: decorators, collectors, and design lovers drawn by the renovation. It suits couples especially well, though friends should consider taking over an entire wing. With 11 rooms sleeping up to 22 guests, it’s also an exceptional buyout.
Service
Le Lappe operates more like a maison d’hôtes than a hotel. There is no reception desk or major front-of-house operation. Laura and Matteo run the show day to day, looking after guests in English, Italian, and French, and are as present—or as invisible—as you need them to be. There’s a coffee corner to help yourself to and an honesty bar in the tower. Breakfast is included; lunch, dinner, wine tastings, horseback riding, and cooking classes are extra.
Dining
The property’s chef, Sara Gonelli, grew up beside the estate, learned to cook from her mother and grandmother, and now runs the kitchen. Bread, cakes, and pasta are made in-house, breakfast features the estate’s olive oil and honey, and lunch by the pool is reason enough to visit in summer. Dinner is served in the candlelit winter garden or on the terraces, depending on the season. Niccolò chooses every bottle on the wine list himself, so ask what’s drinking well. A small number of non-guests join for dinner. Sara also leads cooking classes and tastings upon request.
Beyond
The temptation is to spend your days crisscrossing the region—but resist it and settle into the estate’s rhythms. Spend a day on the estate, another exploring a winery or two in Chianti, and save one for Arezzo’s Piero della Francesca frescoes. Florence and Siena can wait.
