Our visit to Cretaiole in May 2011 was awesome and exceeded all our expectations! The apartment was immaculate and well furnished. We easily made breakfast, snacks and one dinner with food from both the farm and the COOP in town. The property of the farm itself was unbelievable in beauty. It was an oasis to return to each afternoon after exploring Tuscany. It was a true experience of Tuscany! But the real charm of this place was Isabella and her family = her father in law Luciano who bought Cretaiole years ago and her husband Carlo. Isabella shared Tuscany with you in the most personal way so you felt after a week that you had a small understanding of what this remarkable part of Italy was like. There were well organized travel notebooks in all apartments to guide your explorations. There were many activities, some free and some a small charge, available to guests every week. Freebies includes a nature walk; guided tour of Etruscian ruins; pici (pasta) making and an Italian dinner; tour of a working Tuscan farm with wine, cheese, and meat tasting; tour of Siena; and olive oil tasting class. Isabella encouraged all of us to explore Tuscany the week we were at Cretaiole which we did!. Almost all the guests spent at least one day just hanging out at Cretaiole with the lovely yard with relaxing chairs (plenty for everyone=there were about 16 people at the agritourismo for the week), absorbing the views of Tuscan rolling hills, walking the 3 km trail across the hillside into Pienza, a wonderful Tuscan town, walking the vineyards, olive grove, and vegetable garden; or hiking to the ruins of a small chapel. You can do as much as you want with the other guests or do your own thing. From the organized activity list, We also did a tour and dinner at a local monastery, a tour and tasting at a local vineyard. We explored everyday, taking in local markets, hill towns, lots of Italian food and lots of gelato, everyday gelato! The week was leisurely yet full of fun and exploration because we didn’t go far each day but took the time to walk and absorb. This was our first trip to Italy and we chose not to do the tourist hot spots in the cities but rather to experience Tuscany from a homebase at Cretaiole. It was the perfect decision!!! Isabella and her family are wonderful and give you an experience of a lifetime in a place you will never forget.