Borgo Pignano

Just your typical, everyday 750-acre Tuscan estate, a centuries-old villa on the site of an Etruscan-era hamlet equidistant from Florence, Siena and Pisa, now converted into a warm, welcoming, slightly bohemian and remarkably green country-house luxury hotel. If there was one of these on every Tuscan hillside, we wouldn’t complain — but of course Borgo Pignano’s appeal depends on the fact that such a complete fantasy package is in fact vanishingly rare.

Not only is the villa something rather extraordinary in itself, its fourteen rooms and suites outfitted in a perfectly art-directed period Italian style, but the estate has some surprises up its sleeve as well — it rambles over acre after acre, comprising woods, gardens, farmhouses, stables, and the ace in the hole: a gorgeous infinity-edge salt-water swimming pool.

Essentially, it’s the perfect blend of old and new for which Italy is so well known. The character, the atmosphere, the aesthetics are all impeccably old-world, but in function it’s as modern as can be. An elevator serves the higher floors, wi-fi is ever-present, and the charming marble or travertine bathrooms are totally up to date.

Activities include yoga, horseback riding, bicycling, and anything you can get up to on the grounds of an Italian country estate, from a solitary stroll through the gardens to a rousing game of bocce. And this being Italy, there’s a strong accent placed on the cooking, which is always simple but never short of extraordinary.

How to get there:
Pignano is one hour and 15 minutes from Florence, 40 minutes from Siena, one hour from Pisa and one hour from the coast.