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.
