Last Minute - €550 week/6people July/August 08

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There are still a few weeks available at Villa Mimma for July/August 2008, some in self-catering accommodation and some in B&B. Lovely base for your holiday with children or to explore Piedmont, Liguria, the Lakes and the Alps. Also, great for golfing, horse riding or simply relaxing!

Amazing offer : €550 for a week for 6 people!

Contact us ASAP if you would like to take advantage of this promotion.

We would love to welcome you in our corner of paradise.

Natural Park of the River Po - Valenza

I have already written about the river Po and the natural trails that you can enjoy near Vercelli. You can also enjoy the river if you go towards Valenza from Casale Monferrato. We discovered this area because we were particularly interested to find a place where the children could dip their toes in the water without too many dangers.

We stopped at at the bridge over the Po, parking on the Valenza saide of it (be careful to park before the Natural Park sign because you may get a ticket - we did!, although it was only a warning). Here not only you can enjoy strolls along the banks, but you can reach the shore and enjoy the wide pebbly beaches and low water level.

This is a photo taken near the spot that we chose. We were there during a Spring weekly day, when Italian schools were still open so there was only another family on the other side of the river.

The weather was hot and the children enjoyed bouncing flat pebbles in the water. We dipped our toes in the chilly water, but I cannot say if it is safe to swim there as the currents can be quite strong. It was a lovely spot and very easy to find so we are planning anotehr visit at the first occasion.

Harley Davidsons meeting in Piedmont

There will be a Harley Davidsons meeting in Casale Monferrato on the 6th of July 2008. This is the 5th meeting of this kind in the Monferrato region where the bikes will travel around the villages and stop for refreshments before heading to Casale.

They will pass through Treville too, where they will be offered a glass of wine - cheers!

Villa Mimma will offer 15% discount on the accommodation price for bookings between the 28th of June and the 13th of July 2008 to people attending the meeting.

The Natural Park of the River Po - Fontanetto Po

The River Po is the largest Otalian River that starts from teh Monviso Mountain in Piedmont and stretches across Northern Italy from the West to the Eastern coast, where it ends in the Adriatic sea.

There are many walks and stretches of the river where you can enjoy peaceful strolls looking for natural beauty spots, searching for animals and plants, dipping your toes in fresh waters.

Here are some photoes to tickle your imagination so that if you are in Piedmont you may want to dedicate one day or half a day to this marvellous part of the region.

You can reach the river Po from Fontanetto Po, on the way to Vercelli. At the beginning of the walk that takes you along one of the banks of the river there is a map to show you where you are and what you can expect to see.


Not far from the end of the road where you can park your car, there is an old water mill with a picnic area where you can find some tables and benches if you want to stop for some refreshments before or at the end of your walk.

Lines of trees are growing along this stretch of the river and you can walk for miles along this sheltered lanes, listening to nature's sounds and the gurgle of the water of the river nearby.

You finally reach the river bank, although here it is not particularly suitable for bathing as the banks are quite steep and covered with wild vegetation.

Festival of the flowers in Piedmont (Italy) - 15th June

For the lucky who are in the Piedmont/Monferrato area on Sunday the 15th of June, you may want to take a trip to Cella Monte, near Casale Monferrato.

Cella is a lovely village with all the houses brought back to the original limestone bricks typical of this part of the world. In June they celebrate the fact that Cella Monte is proud of its flower-displays throughout Spring and Summer, so they have a festival dedicated to it. If you can go, do it because it is definitely worth it with many events organised throughout the day as well as the usual Italian music and food/wine.

Also the wineries and the private "infernot" (cellars excavated in the limestone) of the area are open to the public for visits.

Unfortunately the website of Cella Monte doesn't seem to have a detailed programme of the day, but I can assure you that it would be a lovely experience of the Italian life!

Weather - Rainy May!

Well, we cannot say that May has been the usual self this year!
We are used to lovely weeks of sunshine where people can take strolls in the lovely medieval villages that are scattered around the Monferrato hills.
Last week for example it constantly rained and when it stopped it was very cloudy and miserable.
We feel sorry for all those tourists who came to our Piedmont area on holiday in the past week or so and missed on the usual cheerfulness of blooming flowers and bright skylines. We hope you had a good time anyway and that this gives you a reason for coming back another time, when may be you will be luckier with the weather.

La Mandria - Regional Park in Piedmont

North of Turin, near the hunting palace La Venaria Reale, there is a beautiful regional park called La Mandria certainly worth a visit, especially on a beautiful day. La Mandria was created in the 16th century as a hunting reserve for the Savoy family and also was used as a holiday retreat for the King and his Court. There are several buildings that can be visited, including Royal apartments.

We went just for a couple of hours after visiting La Venaria Reale and we did have a relaxing time indeed. Scattered around the grounds there are farms that have been transformed in restaurants, bars and other attractions. One has a bike-hire facilities so for only a few Euros we got a bike each and pedalled around the park. The children absolutely loved it!

We spent a few minutes at the stables where there were two little foals and a few ponies and horses. We fed them straw that was around the paddocks and loughed at the little ones still struggling to stand steadily on their legs!

We ended up having an aperitif at one of the bars, enjoying the sunshine of 6pm. The children asked for some crisps. Since they didn't have any, compliment of the owner, they served us a massive portion of roasted potatoes with rosemary: delicious!

If I'd known it before, I probably would have spent the day at La Mandria, visiting the various buildings throughout the day. It is a much more child friendly environment than La Venaria Reale as you can have a mixture of sight-seeing and free-running!