Get away from it all in the hills of Italy's Tuscany.
By Tom Phebey
At Podere Consani, a small group of traditional farmhouses on a plateau in the Tuscan hills, there's never a doubt you're getting away from it all.
You reach the estate via a narrow lane that zigzags its way up wooded hills before petering out into a bumpy dirt track. This tranquil haven is a million miles from crowded airports where only hours before we had queued and jostled.
But the beautiful medieval city of Lucca is only 20 minutes away by car and a little further, in the opposite direction, lie the coastal resorts of the Tuscan Riviera.
First to greet us was turbine-tailed Tabata, the black and white collie-style dog who surveys all comings and goings on the estate. He was followed closely by a miniature version called Quartuccio, just three months old and experiencing the joys of a Tuscan summer for the first time.
Podere Consani is more than just a holiday retreat - it's an active equestrian centre, a wine-making business and grows loads of its own provisions.
Running the whole enterprise is Susan Beeby, who comes from a farming family in Nottingham and trained as a teacher in London and Leicester before taking a job with an English family in a beautiful villa near Lucca.
Susan married a local geometra (mixture of an architect and surveyor) who specialises in restoring old buildings and they eventually bought Podere Consani (literally a smallholding farmed by the Consanis), slowly creating the scenic estate it is today.
Shooing away the dogs, Susan led my wife and I to La Capanna, one of two rustic holiday homes adjacent to the family home in the main farmhouse.
La Capanna, a converted barn with plenty of beams and terracotta tiles, sleeps four in two double bedrooms and is set on two levels.
The main floor consists of a large sitting room and a kitchen leading directly onto the attractive swimming pool terrace where we spent many lazy hours. Downstairs, both bedrooms have ensuite bathrooms and access to secluded gardens.
A complimentary basket of groceries awaited us in the kitchen and Susan handed over a bottle of the house red before leaving us to our own devices, but with the option to call on her for help or advice at any time.
It would be incredibly easy to pull out the sunbeds, uncork the wine and not leave tranquil Podere Consani for a week. But there are sights to be seen, places to explore.
We slipped into a routine that involved exploring the local area and stocking up in the excellent local supermarket, while ensuring plenty of rest and relaxation beside the pool and strolling through the olive groves of Podere Consani.
A short walk to the stables in the early evening was a regular fixture, to inspect horses with very non-Italian names like Flapjack, Golden, Chancy, Chocolate and Lady Jane.
A day out in historic Lucca is de rigeur for any visitors to this north-western quarter of Tuscany.
Lucca was originally a Roman military camp and little has changed since the Middle Ages when a network of narrow alleys and squares was constructed.
The city of 85,000 inhabitants boasts some of the best preserved Renaissance defences in Europe - massive walls built in the 1500s with roads around the top and barracks for soldiers inside.
In baking sunshine we walked through a gate in the imposing walls to find ourselves facing a labyrinth of little streets, mainly given over to pedestrians and cyclists, which are worthy of some serious exploration.
Surprises abound - an innocuous passageway suddenly gives way to the Piazza dell'Anfiteatro, a huge enclosed oval space occupying the site of an amphitheatre built by the Romans in the second century BC.
There are no less than 100 churches in this compact city and plenty of specialist shops to browse. While visitors are welcomed, Lucca is thankfully not spoiled by tourism.
In the other direction a 10-mile strip of beachside resorts, stretching from Viareggio to Forte dei Marmi, is about 30 minutes by car from Podere Consani. With acres of flat golden sand overlooked by craggy mountains inland, it's an ideal playground for young children.
Viareggio is one of the most popular seaside resorts in Italy. The long broad beach has some public areas but many sections are reserved for the residents of the seafront hotels.
This theme continues as you drive north to fashionable Forte dei Marmi, popular with artists and the Italian jet set. All the way the seafront is occupied by beach club after beach club, each promising multiple delights within.
The one essential service on offer is access to the beach, where a mini-city of sunbeds and parasols, separated only by each club's boundary fences, stretches as far as they eye can see in both directions.
We paid 15 Euros for a few hours on sunbeds in this vast arena, and another 40-odd for a surprisingly good lunch of salad and seafood spaghetti, plus nicely chilled wine. Afterwards my wife took up the offer of a massage (10 Euros) from one of the Chinese girls who work the beach, and pronounced it the best she had ever had.
A day's drive into the craggy Garfagnana area to the north of Lucca takes us to medieval Barga, known as the most Scottish town in Italy. There was a mass exodus from Barga to the central belt of Scotland in the early 19th century and many Scots trace their ancestry back to the Tuscan hill town.
Cultural links flourish, and the cafe owner who served us cappuccinos in the tiny central square demonstrated perfectly the adage that anyone who speaks English in Barga does so with a Glasgow accent.
Driving back along the tight and twisty lanes, we resolved to stop for a late lunch. The exterior of Valentino in the high hamlet of Fiano, not far from our holiday base, was inauspicious to say the least and we almost turned away.
I'm glad we didn't because this turned out to be the culinary highlight of the holiday.
Ushered through the cosy main rooms packed with noisy locals, we were seated in a pleasant (if a little empty) conservatory and served interesting antipasti followed by succulent homemade ravioli with butter and sage, then a selection of the best ice cream I have ever enjoyed. Including wine, it cost 16 Euros a head.
Back at Podere Consani it was time to chill out again on those sunbeds. And time to reflect that there can't be many other parts of Europe where spacious beaches, scenic mountains, lush countryside and medieval towns are all clustered together within such easy reach.
Key facts - Podere Consani, Tuscany
:: Best for: Couples and families who want a peaceful base to explore Tuscany's many delights.
:: Time to go: All year round. The climate is pleasant and there's a distinct lack of tourism's excesses.
:: Don't miss: A visit to beautiful Lucca and a walk around the old walls.
:: Need to know: Driving in this area can be challenging.
:: Don't forget: A detailed local map to navigate your way around the countryside.
Travel facts
:: Tom Phebey was a guest of Simply Travel, which offers seven nights' self-catering at Podere Consani this summer from £599 (four sharing), incl return flights and car hire. Ex-Manchester from £624.
:: Although Simply Travel doesn't offer a Glasgow departure for Tuscany, it flies from various regional airports including Doncaster, Sheffield, Newcastle, Glasgow, Inverness, Belfast, Norwich and Exeter.
:: Simply Travel reservations: 0871 231 4041 and www.simplytravel.co.uk.
