Villa Bonifacio - Padova Countryside

Accommodates 10+ - 6BR, 4BA, Swimming Pool
Plus two gatehouse cottages - 2 BR, 1 BA each

Villa Bonifacio is a historic home still occupied by the Veronese noble family who acquired the terrain in the 16th century. They occupy one wing of the U-shaped villa, while guests like you occupy a beautiful 19th-century wing.

The villa is set in the midst of a particularly atmospheric 12-acre private park dotted with ancient trees and secondary structures—chapel, greenhouse, crenellated tower, aviary, belvedere, cottage, gatehouse—overlooking a charming little lake complete with swans, ducks, and other waterfowl flying and floating about. The scene could not be more bucolic.

And yet you’re practically in the city of Padova itself. City buses pass near the gates so that you don’tactually have to have a car to get into town. The distance is about 3 miles southeast from Padova’s center, with big supermarkets even closer to the property.

You’re about 40km from Venice and Vicenza, 70 from Verona, 100 from Bologna. Not to mention the smaller towns and villages worth visiting: the medieval walled towns of Cittadella and Castelfranco Veneto; Bassano with its famous covered bridge; elegant Asolo; the fortified towns of Este and Montagnana; charming Acqua Petrarca.

Any number of Palladian villas can be visited in the immediate vicinity. You can barge down the Brenta Canal from Padova to Venice itself or spend a day at the beach at Sottomarina, Jesolo, or Venice’s renowned Lido. Nearby, the volcanic Euganean Hills make a delightful daytrip, for scenery, local cuisine, and wines. Not to mention beautiful Lake Garda. Golf courses, tennis club, and riding facilities are located within 15-60 minutes’ drive from the property.

Most important, Villa Bonifacio’s owners, while discreet and unintrusive, exemplify the old-fashioned hospitality and courtesy of another age: They will welcome you warmly and give you whatever aid and advice you feel you need in exploring the land which they know so intimately. You want to find a good local restaurant? Or a morning flea market? Or where to have delicious risotto? Or to replace a spare tire? They will help.

The wing of Villa Bonifacio you’ll occupy is really quite grand indeed, with frescoed ceilings, period furniture and old family art and antiques throughout. It’s also quite old-fashioned. If you’re looking for something hyper-modernized with perfect everything, this is NOT it. Kitchen and baths function perfectly, but they will never appear in a design magazine. The house is NOT air-conditioned, and while the walls are thick, and therefore tend to keep the heat out, Padova (indeed all Italy) is hot in summer, and you’ve just got to deal with it.

The entire feel of the place is like someone’s private home: downstairs are the “reception rooms”, two living rooms, a games room, dining room with seating for 12, big old-fashioned kitchen, and guest bathroom. Upstairs are the exceptionally spacious bedrooms, 4 double, 2 single, plus 4 bathrooms. Mattresses could be better, but they’re definitely not instruments of torture. The place works very nicely for families or for 3 or 4 couples traveling together. If you’re more than 10 persons, additional bedrooms in the villa itself, as well as the gatehouses at the entrance to the estate (see Bonifacio Cottages) can be rented at additional cost.

Amenities include the above-ground swimming pool (6x12x1.5 meters), 10 bicycles, washing machine, dishwasher, satellite TV, stereo/CD, DVD (regions 0 and 2 only), telephone, FAX, internet access. Extra services can be arranged like airport transfers; a welcome basket; first-day shopping; arrival supper; midweek linen changes; extra bath linens; extra domestic help including cooking; fireplace wood; private drivers and guides. The owners go out of their way to make guests comfortable with both the property and the region.