Chianti countryside
Hot air ballooning, gliding, para-gliding,
horse riding, mountain biking, trekking, cooking,
painting, winetasting tours, factory outlets tours, pottery classes,
and the experience of Tuscany in a real italian family home
Casa Cheli is an attractive stone farmhouse a charming bed & breakfast and is our base for most of the activities in this area.
Located 20 kilometres south east of Florence (500 metres above sea level), in the heart of the Chianti Rufina area with a breathtaking view over the Sieve river valley. Nestled amongst vineyards, olive groves, cypresses and hundred-year old chestnut trees, the view is one of the typical Tuscan countryside with rolling hills, woods and meadows.
A ‘real Italian family’ will show you Italian hospitality and offer their assistance to make your holiday enjoyable. With comfortable rooms, home-cooked meals and workshops, Casa Cheli offer their guests an authentic and memorable stay.
All of the rooms are spacious double rooms fully furnished with Tuscan furniture, private bathrooms or shared bathrooms.
The rooms share a kitchen, a terrace where guests may relax al fresco, or cool down in the pool on one of the old olive grove terraces. From this beautiful location, guests can chose to either take part in a great variety of activities or simply unwind by the pool.
Leisure: Cooking Course
Cooking course are set in a 13th century farmhouse in a valley surrounded by woodlands and vineyards and situated only 15 kilometres from Casa Cheli.
Your tutor will be Maîre (Maria) Lyons, a chef originally from the west of Ireland now a naturalised Italian after 30 years of cooking in Tuscany and collecting secret family recipes from initially secretive old Italian ladies.
Leisure: Painting Course
Painting lessons take place in a farmyard about 10 kilometres from Casa Cheli on the road to Rufina, along the river Sieve, very close to the famous Nipozzano castle where the Marchesi de Frescobaldi wine is from.
Your tutor, Marilyn Day, will be teaching the art of capturing the beauty of this countryside, translating it onto canvas. And of course… you can keep your masterpiece!
Activities: Gliding in Mugello
Tuscanynwild, in collaboration with Mugello Gliding, offers you the unique experience to fly in complete silence above the Bilancino Lake in the Mugello countryside and is 35 kilometres from Casa Cheli.
You will be able to enjoy the view and take pictures of an unforgettable experience in the comfort of a two seater glider, looking over the lake, the landscape and the Mugello MotoGP circuit home turf of Valentino Rossi.
Ballooning above the Chianti
Hot air ballooning takes place over the Tuscan hills with Ivan and is an unforgettable experience that you will treasure for the rest of your life.
You will be gently transported by the wind terminating your flight in a vineyard where a picnic with local produce and local wine will be waiting for you.
Leisure: Winetasting tours
If wine is one of the reasons you choose Tuscany, you will not be disappointed.
Castello Del Trebbio is situated 9 kilometres from Casa Cheli and used to be an aristocratic residence built by the Pazzi family and then restructured by the Medici family.
In this estate, you will have the opportunity to visit the cellar where you can follow the process of making wine and olive oil and, of course, sample the wines and a variety of local cheeses, cured meat, and the real garlic bread: Tuscan bread with olive oil and garlic (and maybe fresh tomatoes).
Leisure: Factory outlets
If you would like to take home some original Italian designer clothing, but you can do without shopping in the scorching heat of Florence, we can offer an easy solution. In the town of Leccio, only 18 kilometres from Casa Cheli, is a factory outlet selling many great designer brands at a decent price and all in one place.