at Villa Stabbia
Places
to Visit
For Children
Those
small things
For Food
Lovers
Trekking & Biking
Well-being &
Spa
The Beach &
Skiing
Tennis & Golf
The Local
Markets
Activities at Villa Stabbia
The games room, with a increasing selection of games available besides the table-tennis and "table-football". Likewise, for your entertainment, we have Croquet, Giant Mikado and Petanque (Boule).
In addition, a small library has been started, which is steadily growing.
BBQ or Picnic
There are the bikes (mountain and normal) and although the area is hilly, it offers opportunities for wonderful outings - just remember to pack the picnic basket.
Time to Study and Learn
Some cooking time - a chance to try and taste true Italian dishes - why not take some cooking classes? Your own chef will come and cook with you - or even cook for you here at Villa Stabbia - www for more details and contact.
Always wanted to know how olive oil was made - we regularly make presentations with visits to our mill and tasting of our oil.
These events can last between 30 min and 2 hours - for more details have a look here www. For guests staying at Villa Stabbia, attending these presentations is of course free of charge
Then last but not least - there's our horses.
Riding lessons and treks are always available www.
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Places to visit whilst at Villa Stabbia
Besides the well known sites and cities Florence - Lucca - Pisa - Siena - Cinque Terra ..... there are hundreds of wonderful places and sights to explore - Just too much to do and see in a week!!!!
In each house you will find a binder with local information and general tourist information. However - below a small list of some of them...
Driving Race Karts indoor in Montecatini Terme
Although these karts are smallish, some of the great international drivers on the scene today in sports such as Formula 1, Indy cars, Formula GT, still love the fun and thrills of driving these electric vehicles.
The Karts can reach beyond 90 km / hour with accelerations from 0 to 90 in 4.6 seconds.
For those that have not tried driving an electric Kart before, courses are available with professional instructors. Minimum age for attending is 6 years old. There are 24 karts for adults and 8 karts for children.
Museum and House of Leonardo da Vinci
Most definitely worth a visit is the Leonardo da Vinci museum. The museum, located in the castle Conti Guidi, is filled with copies of Leonardo's drawings, and detailed (and working) models made from Leonardo's designs. The Romanesque castle setting adds to the flavour, with stone walls, wooden beams, and a tall bell tower.
About 3 kms from Vinci in Anchiano, the house where Leonardo was
born nestles into a landscape that has changed little since he lived
there as a child.
Pistoia Underground Museum
The Pistoia Underground Museum has several features that make it attractive to both children and adults. One of the most interesting is the Ceppo Hospital of Pistoia, one of the oldest continuously operating hospitals in the world since its founding in 1277.
The visitor, accompanied by a guide, which is included in ticket price, is led to the discovery of the oldest architectural remains of the city, now only visible along this underground route, which winds for about 650 meters, below the hospital.
Thereafter through the historic rooms of the hospital, a testament to the great medical tradition of the city. The Anatomy Amphitheatre, the world's smallest, has been perfectly preserved since its founding in 1785 and the Medical Academy Room “Filippo Pacini,” which houses a remarkable collection of surgical instruments from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries will be stops on the tour. Indeed, it was in Pistoia that an improved cutting tool, the modern knife or “Pistoian knife” was developed.
Minigolf - for the whole family
It is the perfect opportunity during the summer season for outdoor sports, relaxation and fun, in an original and enjoyable setting. Situated less than 2 km from Villa Stabbia, it offers great fun for all ages. During the summer, the opening hours are in the late afternoon until almost midnight.
The Padule
It is actually one of Europe's most important wetlands with over 200 species of birds and throughout the year guided bird watching Tours are arranged, however the best months to visit are February to May.
The Funiculare - Cable Car
This little medieval town has lots of interesting shops as well as wonderful restaurants and will give you a beautiful panoramic view of Montecatini Terme and of all the Valdinievole area. The Funiculare ride takes about 10 minutes.
Nightlife
For more lively music, the two most popular nightclubs are Lido, le Panteriaie and La Villa Resort.
Grotta del Vento - the Wind Cave
Immersed in these awesome surroundings, the Grotta del Vento offers an exceptional variety of underground karst aspects ranging from living and shining stalactites and stalagmites, to little lakes, water courses, forms of erosion, mud formations and even perfectly-vertical shafts which can be visited with practical walkways.
Grotta del Vento (the Wind Cave) has three natural entrances, at an
altitude of 600m, 800m and 1400m asl. The height difference between
the entrances and the temperature difference between inside and
outside, create a convection stream of air - hence the name.
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Mainly For Children - whilst staying at Villa Stabbia
Both are situated less than 500 m from the main gate; in the small village of Vangile.
Termeland
Collodi and Pinocchio Park
Collodi has become a major tourist resort thanks to four main
distinguishing features: the Old Borgo, the Garzoni Villa
and Gardens, The Butterfly House and Pinocchio Park.
These four different and independent sightseeing itineraries share
similar characteristics: they are in complete harmony with the
Tuscan landscape and stimulate the visitors' imagination towards
unusual, fantastic and fairy-tale dimensions.
www
The Collodi Butterfly House
A lush tropical garden with nearly a thousand butterflies from
all over the world. Inside, an audio-visual introduction prepares
the visitor to understand the animal and vegetable life that can be
admired within the Collodi Butterfly House. This educational
introduction then continues with insectaria and a formicarium
(ants). In the interior the visitor can admire a beautiful exotic
garden where around a thousand of the most beautiful butterflies in
the world, originating from Amazonian, Neotropic, Afrotropic and
Indo-Australian environments, feed, court and reproduce.
Pinocchio Park.
This park is not the usual amusement area but the stirring and
precious collective work of great artists where visitors, thanks to
the beauty of art and nature, walk through a living fairy-tale
enjoying themselves in a most natural and spontaneous way.
The Old Borgo.
It is a collection of small houses clinging to a steep hill: higher
up is the ancient Fort, while down below stands the imposing Villa
Garzoni. The houses along narrow streets paved with stones still
preserve medieval features. Ruins of age-old fortifications can
still be seen and tourists should not miss Saint Bartholomew's
Parish Church, Pieve di San Bartolomeo (13th century), at the top of
the village.
The Garzoni Villa and Gardens.
This Villa is famous all over Europe thanks to its amazing baroque
gardens, among the very few in Europe that have preserved their
original structure and features. The Gardens won immediate renown
due to their extraordinary visual impact. The steep slope of the
hill was cleverly exploited in order to create an ideal backdrop for
staircases, water fountain displays, allegorical sculpture sets and
a thousand minor paths with caves, small buildings, terra cotta
statues, etc.
Piccolo Mondo
Located near Pisa is the amusement park Piccolo Mondo. It can offer entertainment for children of all ages - actually it boasts of having the highest slide in Tuscany! There is free parking and free entrance – but you pay for each ride/activity you do.
Some information can be found here www
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Those small Things .... found at Villa Stabbia
...follow the path which winds through the fields, revelling in the experience of an early morning run among olive and fruit trees;
...lay a rug on the grass together with an old-style picnic basket containing all the essentials for an enjoyable light breakfast;
...read a good book whilst lying in a comfortable chair listening to the sounds which nature freely offers us;
...sip a cool aperitif beneath the olive tree, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere;
...taste a glass of good wine, whilst nibbling at cheeses, some bread - maybe even with some olive oil drizzled over;
...play ping-pong for fun;
...look at the horses grazing in the olive groove and sense how they live and enjoy the moment;
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For Food Lovers staying at Villa Stabbia - Pick your own fruit, herbs, mushrooms.....
Whether you visit Villa Stabbia in spring, summer, autumn or winter, you will always be able to find and pick fresh fruit and herbs - maybe even some mushrooms.
For an overview of what is growing in our fields and when, have a look here www.
Picking the fruit directly from an organic grown tree, not only has the
bonus of avoiding all of those pesticides and chemicals that simply
aren't healthy for us, but also connects you with the food you eat.
For children that may not be too fond of fruits, once they have
enjoyed picking the fruit of the tree, they are more than likely
also to check out how good it taste.
On a small side-note, a study released in the American journal
Paediatrics concludes, exposure to organophosphate pesticides at
levels common among America's children are more likely to develop
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) that is common in
today's children..
Fresh eggs, cheese and milk directly from the farmer
The available cheeses change regularly, but usually there are various types of pecorino and almost always ricotta. The milk is right from the cows and the eggs freshly laid.
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Exploring the area around Villa Stabbia by Foot or Bike
Silence and peace reign all over the place.
Valdinievole offers a variety of hiking routes and itineraries.
Mountain, hill, plain, river routes, forest, marsh, historical,
natural and gastronomic routes. There's something for everyone,
for all ages and all needs.
Villa Stabbia is suitable for its natural vocation to be a
point of departure and arrival for a large number of hiking trails
on foot and by bicycle to see the ancient villages of Buggiano
Castle, Massa, Cozzile, Colle, Monsummano Alto, on the Tuscan
countryside with beautiful olive groves and vineyards, enjoying the
birdsong and the faint roar of streams.
Valdinievole is a distinctly Tuscan territory located in the
westernmost part of the Province of Pistoia and confined to the
north by the heights dell'Appennnino Tuscan-Emilian Apennines, east
and west respectively by torrents Nievole and Pescia and from South
Fucecchio Marsh. It is a fairly large territory that includes areas
of high hills, terraced land, vineyards and olive groves, and
cultivated and urbanized floodplains that makes this corner of
Tuscany an area rich in history and nature.
All the routes are indicated by signs with white and red stripes, placed on trees or rocks, however should you prefer to go "slightly away from the beaten track", just ask us for suggestions.
Villa Stabbia has 8 bikes available for free usage for
our guest. Should you prefer a more "professional bike", they can be
hired from
cicloidea in Pieve a Nievole.
For guided tours in the area, we collaborate
with two guides (one specialises in
hiking, but also cycles, the other specialises in bike-trips but
also does the occasional hike - look here
www for more details). Just ask us for more details...
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Well-being & Spa in the vicinity of Villa Stabbia
Terme di Montecatini is probably the better known and with it's 9 spas, health therapies, beauty treatments and general well being programs, there is something for everyone. www
In addition to the steam baths, the Spa offers mud therapy, ozonised baths in thermal water, massages, inhalation treatment, a new area for Oriental Disciplines, a gym centre, an avant garde Aesthetic Medicine Centre and a spacious relaxation zone.
The new open-air thermal swimming pool, a high-tech facility measuring 750 sq. m., with a large and spectacular waterfall and underwater hydromassage in spa water. www
Guests staying at Villa Stabbia can enjoy a reduced entrance price at Grotta Giusti.
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The nearest Beach & Skiing in the Apennines whilst staying at Villa Stabbia
This public beach is set in the beautiful nature reserve of San Rossore Massaciuccoli and here, visitors can appreciate breathtakingly picturesque views all year round and sample some of the local culinary delights at the various bars and restaurants situated at 3 of the small public beaches.
The beach was formed in the course of the millennia through the changing of the tides.
The sand dunes, which are still present, form a line of great banks almost parallel to the coastline. The most ancient of them reach a height of 18 meters and are still intact within Palazzetto Nature Reserve in San Rossore.
The skiing complex is divided into the centres of Abetone, Val di Luce, Sestaione, Lima and Scoltenna, which are all linked by a single ski pass.
In each location there are ski schools with experienced and skilful instructors. Ski lifts go up to 1892 m and can carry a total of 18,000 people per hour. The numerous runs are of varying difficulty and have a total distance of 50 km.
There are two routes for cross-country skiers, with a total length of 13 km. There is good skiing on a number of attractive routes for Alpine skiers as well, including traversing the Libro Aperto, the Tre Potenze climb and the Cimone, which is the highest mountain in the Apennines (2165 m) and the route that most skiers want to be able to do.Number of blue runs: 20 - Number of green runs: 8
Number of red runs: 12 - Number of black runs 1 .
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Tennis & Golf under the Tuscan Sun - all near Villa Stabbia
The art deco building itself is fully decorated with amazing paintings and murals. Actually the inside of the building is under the protection of the "Fine Art". www
The Sporting Club is situated outside Montecatini Terme, around 2 km from Villa Stabbia - in the countryside and also offers tennis lessons. www
Villa Stabbia is surrounded by golf courses, where the closest is the Montecatini Terme Golf Course (just over 15 km away).
The course follows the natural hilly form of the area and each of the 18 holes has individual features. It is famous for its splendid landscape, where the natural obstacles such as the old stone walls, the brooks, the bushes and the hills, and the often available dog-legs require a savoir-faire of high level, that must be able to adapt itself to the continuous different situations. This course makes the heart of all golf-players beat faster and is a must play once golf course. www
But there's plenty more golf course to try...... A
different golf course each day
Golf Club Poggio dei Medici (18 holes: 6,220m: par 72.)
The purest of Tuscan settings for this great test of golf. A modern
design which utilises the contours of the sweeping terrain. Scene of
the Italian Ladies Open.
Cosmopolitan Golf Club (18 holes: 5,830m: par 72.)
Close to the sea just south of Pisa the Cosmopolitan is a level
course on reasonably open land that starts fairly easily and then
toughens up as more and more water comes into play on the back nine.
Golf Club Fontevivo (9 holes: m : par 31)
The numerous and most various types of trees alongside the fairways
could render the game difficult on this hilly course. Most of the
greens are up-hill and surrounded by bunkers. This 9-hole course was
designed by Sergio Baldi.
Golf Club Tirreneia (9 holes: m: par 36)
Since its opening in 1968 the Golf Club enjoys an excellent
reputation. One of the reasons is its exceptionally beautiful
position in the middle at the centre of the "Macchia Mediterranea".
The tall pine trees and the old oak trees accompany the player with
their shade and their scent along the narrow "fairways" make this
course so unique. The total silence is only disturbed by the singing
of the birds and the sound of sea-breeze.
Golf Club Pavoniere (18 holes: 6,137m: par 72m)
On the estate inspired by Lorenzo dei Medici. Among green fairways
and splendent lakes, fruit of a Renaissance fancy. The 19th century
villa houses the Club House.
Golf Club Montelupo (9 holes: m: par 36)
Alongside the Arno river lays this rather flat 9-hole course. The
course features a most beautiful view on the Montalbani hills of
Chianti and the lake alongside the 4th hole can play a decisive role
in one's game.
Golf Club Ugolino (18 holes: 5,676m: par 72.)
In the very heart of Chianti country, Ugolino is the birthplace of
Italian golf, occupying its current site since 1933. A club rich in
tradition.
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The Local Markets in the neighbourhood of Villa Stabbia
| Tuesday | Borgo - piazza Coluccio Salutati |
| Wednesday morning | Margina Coperta - piazza della Resistenza |
| Thursday | Montecatini Terme - P.le Pietro Leopoldo Zone Stadio |
| Friday | Ponte Buggianese - piazza XXIV Novembre |
| Saturday | Pescia - piazza Mazzini |
| Wednesday & Saturday | Pistoia |
In addition - last Sunday every month, Pescia holds a market of antique furniture. The atmosphere is lovely, filled with antiques but also other stalls in the old Piazza Mazzini.
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