The buildings of the Estate Monticelli are surrounded by almost 10.000 square meters of gardens and lawns of which about 1.600 are “private gardens” of suites and apartments on the ground floor. The rest of the gardens are at the disposal of our guests who are free to choose where they want to sit and relax. On the top of the hill which is quite large and flat there are squares, lawns and terraces with spectacular views on the underlying valleys, on the forests nearby and on the medieval hamlets around. Perugia with its Ertuscan walls and its main monasteries is visible at a 16 km distance from one of its terraces and from one of its pools, from several private gardens and from many windows of the apartments. At only 2 km one sees the forest Sereni-Torricella, protected by the Italian Government and by the EU.
From the hill of the estate one enjoys the sun which rises in Umbria and sets in Tuscany. The Estate Monticelli is thankful to have an amazing location, not only can you enjoy Umbria, but you can also visit Tuscany, Latium and Central Italy. The estate has 2 pools with good views on the underlying valleys. The largest pool is on the north-western side of the hill and is 16 meters long and 6 meters wide. The smaller one, which is 8 times 4 meters, lies on the north-easten side of the hill and has a good view on Perugia.The Estate is composed of 8 listed buildings located on top of a hill, 3 of which are military towers with stone walls of up to 1,60 meters thickness. These 3 towers date back to the end of the 6th century AD and they were part of a large fortress built by the Eastern Roman Empire in 593-5 to defend the city of Perugia and the Byzantine Corridor form the Longobards. The latter are a Scadinavian-Northern German tribe which invaded Italy in 568 and occupied within a short time 80% of the country. The Byzantine corridor was a narrow strip of land linking Rome to Ravenna which the Byzantines managed to keep under their control from 570 to 774.
The Estate once was a castle was built by the Eastern Roman Empire 40 meters from the border with the Longobards on the top of a lovely and green hill with a beautiful 360 degees view all around. One sees at a 15 km. distance the Etruscan city of Perugia, now the capital of Umbria, at a 30 km distance Monte Subasio, the mountain behind Assisi, the religious capital of Italy and at a distance of 60 km. Monte Amiata, the highest mountain of Southern Tuscany. At least other 15 medieval hamlets and listed buildings are also visible.
The church of Saint Pietro on the grounds of Monticelli must have existed well before 1115, because the Benedictines had taken over the hill and the land around it aboout 150 years before. They commissioned the painter Meo da Siena, a student of Giotto, well known to art-historians to paint two walls of the church. This church is consecrated and can be used for weddings.