Villa Pia: Our First Holiday Since Baby!

We were absolutely delighted by this wonderful review of our holiday at Villa Pia, that was first featured on the London Baby and Kids web site, and now shared here with kind permission from our recent guest.

Read Barbara Munro’s personal account of her first holiday since baby and why she’d like to keep Villa Pia our little secret!

How did you first come to learn about Villa Pia?
Via @LondonBabyMum on Twitter.

What was the biggest selling point to making your family holiday at Villa Pia?
That they catered for all food allergies/intolerances…our 18 month old is both gluten and lactose intolerant. And we both love Italy and thought with those 2 intolerances we’d never be able to return.

 

 
Did you have any reservations about going to Villa Pia?
I guess originally the fact that I heard about it via Twitter and then booked direct…so not booked via a travel company etc., and you do hear of scams etc. But…on the other hand, if it was a scam, Twitter would also be the place to hear about it! And despite constant assurances from VP via email, we were still a little nervous about what our daughter would be fed…so I did pack long life Lactofree milk and a couple of emergency ready made meals and snacks just in case…and I came home again with them!
 

If you have been on another family holiday, how did this compare to Villa Pia?
This was our first holiday since having our baby! The bar has now been set very, very high!

 
What was your favourite, secret discovery at Villa Pia?
The views! And the slide and other playground style equipment on the hillside above the tennis courts. When we arrived the bank there was covered in daisies…our daughter was mesmerised!

What did you enjoy most about your holiday?
The sheer and utter relaxation of being looked after and all food being provided..I read a book in 2 days! And there was no guilt!

 

 
Now that you have been, what advice would you give to another family thinking of going to Villa Pia?
Just go! If you have any reservations just email and ask…the team there are wonderful and will do anything and everything they can to help. One way to describe VP is, it’s like going on holiday with friends you’ve not yet met!

What age children do you think is Villa Pia particularly well suited to?
I did wonder whether 18 months was too young and whether there would be enough to do…but it was perfect. We were lucky with the other couple of families there at the same time as between us we had three 18 month old girls! Although I know that they have activities for older children, I would personally say that the core age is probably 0-6. Any bigger and they mow the little ones down!

Where are you going to go on your next holiday?
I can honestly say that we are already seriously considering returning…and we’ve always had a policy of never going back somewhere as our view has always been that there are so many places in the world to visit, why would you want to go back somewhere?! But, oh children change everything don’t they?! And there was so much to do at VP that we didn’t do it all! We didn’t play tennis, table tennis, use the gym…We didn’t even know about it until our return! We didn’t do Pilates, wine tasting…I did however have a massage (amazing) and my husband did a cookery afternoon (wonderful as they tailored it to be gluten/lactose free for our little one to enjoy daddy’s cooking!); and we’d do those again! Although we ventured out to a couple of local hilltop villages, again there is so much to explore – but then that’s Italy for you!

I could go on…but actually, you then have the dilemma of more people finding out about VP and going, loving it, and then telling their friends, and so on…So shush…it’s our secret!

 
Have you or someone you know been a guest at Villa Pia? We would love to hear from you! Drop us a line via our Contact Us page if you’d like to be featured in our Q&A. Also don’t forget to follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram and share your photos from your Villa Pia holiday using the hashtag #villapiamemories