Eremo Delle Grazie

I will remember our stay at this beautiful historic place for the rest of my life. We travel often, and its rare to find hotels that can still provide a sense wonder, but the stay in this quiet old coverted monastery in the forest above Spoleto did just that. The stories abound, be it Mussolini's dentist owning the place, or Michelangelo supposedly having found peace and quiet in his stay, walking these woods.... the many books, documents, photographs, records strewn throughout also tell stories of the residents, the area and the home. One could spend a week exploring the items in the house. This is still a famiy-owned place, and it certainly has the incredible charm of a lifetime of collections. The short-ceiling small windowed rooms are converted monk cells, filled with antiques and various touches -- beautiful and interesting, but hardly the place you want to spend your time. It is the view of the town below, the valley and the unbelievable sunset in the midst of utter peace and quiet, with birds flying by and the aroma of herbs that stays with you. The public spaces, the walkways, the pool, the dining room: the views from every corner of the property are magnificent. Italy has so many beautiful views everywhere... a land that seems second to none-- and somehow despite no body of water in sight, this view combined with its peace and quiet, is also second to none. The staff tries very hard, but they are locals who do not really have too much of a sense for some of the services at a luxury hotel that certain clients seem to expect- and from their crooked old uniforms (which only make an appearance at meals), to the not as clean as one would like rooms, some guests find fault.....but never mind. You should not come up here to be pampered. You come up here to take in a place that somehow still feels quite alive with history, in the most quiet way- and to walk these woods. The most important information you need, noted in the many reviews is that to get to this magical place, you MUST have an experienced driver who can navigate a winding mountain road that eventually has a last 200 meters or so on a one way dirt 'cliff' with zero protection from toppling down (this is if you do not miss the tiny yellow sign to take this side path, which you will think cannot possibly lead anywhere). Two cars cannot fit on this dirt cliff road. One car can barely manage. You never see the property at the start of the journey on this stretch, and it is harrowing. The property would so benefit from installing some sort of sensor based red light so drivers do not attempt to enter this driveway if another car is coming down. The experience was such that we opted not to leave the property for two nights, simply to avoid the drive down. But again, no matter: I would not have given up the chance to stay in this beautiful place even with the perils of ten such roads.