Hotel Villa la Vedetta

Villa La Vedetta is a glorious Tuscan hotel in a beautiful setting, with a well-tended Italianate garden that borders onto a more natural park. The swimming pool is in a panoramic position, and it includes a large whirlpool tub, surrounded by a luxuriantly soft lawn. The hotel's 18 Rooms are evocative for their period ceiling mouldings and colour-themed décor, and the Suite Bellavista is remarkable for the view onto Santa Maria del Fiore. When it comes to the panorama, the superb terrace is unmissable, with its spectacular 360° view over Florence.

The Onice restaurant at the hotel pampers its guests with a fine dining experience, with a setting of refined luxury, impeccable service, a wine list that includes some of the finest red wines of Tuscany, and a menu that has won it awards and listings in the most important Italian and international guides. It is a candidate for the prestigious Michelin star for 2011. Wellness is ensured by a fitness and sauna area on the top floor. An unusual feature is that the hotel offers a range of services for pets. Villa La Vedetta provides a luxurious experience at the heart of Italian's Renaissance.
 

Onice Restaurant
Chef Stefano Santo of Onice Restaurant has achieved what many chefs set out to do: create the perfect blend between traditional recipes and modern, innovative methods, and enhanced by striking presentation effects. Creating elaborate, yet balanced, modern Tuscan cuisine served in the elegant surroundings of Villa La Vedetta, it is no wonder that the restaurant’s culinary brilliance has won it awards and listings in the most important Italian and international guides.  Set in a unique venue as a result of its exclusive panoramic location and immersed in a centuries-old park and Italian-style garden with a breathtaking view of the city of Florence, the Onice restaurant seats its guests around crystal and crocodile tables. The seasonal menu features such items as a celery risotto with a hint of lime and topped with a peppery morel sauce, or a monkfish fillet topped with nori seaweed, beetroot paste, pumpkin seed oil and Adzuki beans, or the Chocolate Pear Wasabi dessert, a masterpiece of 65% Amedei Dark Chocolate mousse, topped with fresh pear extract and wasabi gelato. The restaurant is open every day for both lunch and dinner.

Terrace and Park
Paved in pietra serena, and presenting stunning panoramic views, the terrace at Villa La Vedetta is surely the hotel’s most distinctive feature. Offering guests unique 360-degree views of the city and countryside below, the terrace is equipped with tables and umbrellas so guests may truly relax and enjoy the view.

The Villa is entirely surrounded by lush greenery and parkland. An Italian Garden with central fountain greets guests upon arrival, while the large garden behind the Villa offers a fantastic panorama, sloping down into the natural park below. Replete with natural paths surrounded by cypress and olive trees, flower gardens and scenic benches, the park is a welcoming natural retreat for hotel guests. The park’s pièce de résistance is the swimming pool and Jacuzzi area. Overlooking the entire skyline below, the pool is the perfect place to unwind, while enjoying a cocktail from the small poolside bar.

E.B., 8.6.10