Garden Relais le Fontanelle

Stayed here with 3 other family members for a week from 17th July. My partner and I stayed in apartment 6 in the main house which was a double room - no self catering facilities. Great value for money. Apartments are old but clean and equipped with what you need. The air conditioning was fantastic and essential in the July heat. One pool very close to apartments. Free car parking which was great for our hire car. Perfect for a quiet and authentic Italian holiday. The winning factor is the superb location in Montescudaio. A very short walk uphill approx 40metres, takes to into the heart of the small town. The town is beautiful. Very quiet, authentic Italian during the day and we enjoyed the local festivities at night. Four restaurants close-by and in the heart of the town (all walking distance) and had fantastic food at all four - great prices. One Michelin star restaurant which was outstanding. The wine bar at the top of the village also had fabulous views and great charcuterie boards. One bar in the town which was open all day as well as a lovely gelato place. Most other places closed during the day from around 1pm-7pm including shops/pharmacy/bakery so be aware of that. In the evening, there was a mix of live music performances at the castle or on the main street which is pedestrianised from 8pm onwards. Important things to be aware of: - little staff present on site. There is no ‘reception’ or member of staff always on site. Different staff members come and go throughout the day ad hoc. Be prepared when you arrive that no-one is there to greet you and you may have to ring. We saw this happen a-lot with other guests. - One main building and then further apartments on site but quite a distance away from main pool along a stoney wooded path. We walked to see these one day as this is the walk to the 2nd pool and the walk was longer than expected to these other apartments and 2nd pool. - Staff that did visit on site at times did not speak English well - we used Google translate to help. One member - I think Marcos spoke great English and was very helpful. - Winery/wine shop and on- site bar closed/non existent. With no staff on site, we did not see the winery or onsite bar open once during our stay - non existent. There was a sign to say to call to arrange a time if you would like these opened for you. - Breakfast very poor. Choose self-catering. On arrival we were presented with a menu and asked to choose what we wanted for breakfast. We were then presented with the same sandwich every day for breakfast - very plain and basic. - Insect bites - with lots of greenery, be prepared for insect bites and bring repellant and plug in devices. Even with, we were all bitten by we assume mosquitos over the course of the holiday. Unsure what the apartments can do to stop this, all windows do have nets, but be prepared. Overall, we had a superb holiday and would return staying in a self catering apartment in the main building.