Ciao Tutti

2009...........A year for reflection
This year, we battled the recession, the poor exchange rate and challenged the Italian health care system, dealt with floods, famine (only Pam trying to diet), hosted several hen weekends, launched our very different villa rental service and attended our son’s wedding. We also learnt that we are to be grandparents next year – arghh, and we celebrate 35 years of marriage.

  35 years!                Today                      Simon & Jacky          Nigel, George & Ian

We also dived into the World of Facebook! Do join our Villa Sibillini and Le Marche Weddings Groups.  Whilst it’s been a challenging year for commerce across the globe, being quieter gave us some time to look at our business and subsequently changed a number of the things we do as well as how we do them. Later on in this newsletter we have some new breaks for you to consider as well as some of the old ones.

Some of our plans will take some significant investment and we are currently looking for an investor, or indeed a group of investors to come on board and join us as we look forward to 2010. Some of these plans are still under wraps but if we can find the partners we need then the coming few months will be a very exciting time. If you know anybody who maybe interested in joining us please let us know.

Whole Villa Rental
Whole Villa rental on an exclusive use basis with staff has been an outstanding success. We can comfortably accommodate 14 Adults and with children sharing, we can take up to 20. So for a large group looking for total relaxation this is the perfect option. Please see our 2010 price list on our web site.

In addition we have added a rental service where you pay less, and which offers lots of ‘self’ but no catering! So ‘NO shopping, NO preparation, NO cooking, NO serving’, and best of all that includes NO washing up! The main difference here is that we will stock your drinks fridge and shop, prepare, cook and serve your meals, plus we take care of the washing up. Two hours cleaning a day is also included leaving you to enjoy that ‘self’ time. For an e brochure, send an email to villarental@villasibillini.com

There are a whole bunch of other new ideas so read on........

Special Occasions at Villa Sibillini
Are you or someone you know celebrating a milestone birthday next year? Has the big five zero caught up with you or a friend? Or maybe you are about to celebrate a major wedding anniversary next year? For those of you getting married, let us organise your last weekend of freedom – Luxury Hen weekends are our speciality, with plenty of pampering and designer shopping. Why not let us help you to celebrate in style?
You can rent the Villa for your exclusive use to celebrate in style. It’s ideal for up to 14 adults and it need not cost a fortune. A long weekend of three nights can cost as little as 50Euro per person per night.

   
Any celebrations, birthdays, anniversaries or hen weekends

Looking to Get Married in Italy?
We recently launched Le Marche Weddings to help plan and organise weddings in this part of Italy.  Take a look at the new web site at www.lemarcheweddings.com  Italy is one of the easiest countries in the World to get married in, and won’t break the bank, and recently a modest wedding totalled just 9,000 Euro to include a Rolls Royce, music, reception, flowers, photos, hair and makeup. We are the only English speaking wedding organiser in this part of Marche and we don’t charge the silly wedding planner fees asked by some companies.

    

Special Breaks for Autumn/Winter 2009 and Spring 2010
We have decided to focus on a small number of specialist ideas that may interest you, or some of your friends and family.  Here are a few of them we would like to bring to your attention.

Learning Italian - 4 or 6 Day Courses in Italy
Have you decided that 2010 is the year to learn Italian or maybe you are looking to improve your Italian vocabulary? Maybe you are going to enrol at a local night school to help pass the time this coming winter, or maybe you are going back to college? Whichever route you decide upon the same problem exists and that is you learn a little but because you are in the UK, using the new language is very difficult. We may be able to help you.

We have teamed up with a first class language tutor who is currently teaching English, to Senior Italian Executives and Italian to English business people. She is available to help those who are new to the language right through to those looking to polish up their skills. Pauline has an easy manner and can give the newest beginner, confidence to actually start using their language.

Our course is different to most on the market. We balance classroom learning with a large amount of practical language use. Every day we take you out to use what you have learned that day and we have structured the practical experience so you gain the maximum benefit. Then over dinner you can discuss how you got on with the tutor and find out how you can improve still further. The course is open to anyone wishing to immerse themselves in the language and if their partner is not so keen then we can always find ways to entertain them whilst you concentrate on the learning. E brochure available, and more info here 

                       
Try out your new vocabulary on the locals, shopping & ordering lunch

Walking the Sibillini Mountains
That sounds like something Edmund Hilary would be doing! Rest assured it can be as easy or as difficult as you want it to be. Again we have found a guide that knows the Sibillini Mountains like the back of his hand. We call this the ‘Secrets of the Sibillinis’

The walks take in parts of the Sibillini national park that most visitors to the area will never see. None of the routes have been published and they take in breathtaking scenery and areas of outstanding beauty. The walks are designed to suit you.  They can be short or long, easy or difficult.  The choice is yours. We meet up with you and your guide at lunchtime with a buffet lunch to include a chilled glass of wine to help you tackle your afternoon stroll. These excursions are run in the Spring and Autumn when the weather is a little bit kinder and more suitable to this kind of activity.

Photography
As you can imagine this part of Marche is a photographers dream. There is everything from outstanding architecture through to stunning countryside. Beautiful hill top towns and many ancient sites where Roman ruins are still being unearthed to this day. Then there are the people, everyone telling their own story in their faces. The colourful markets are always worth a visit and a few frames. During the Spring, Summer and Autumn there are many attractions taking place from Palio’s to Sagras all celebrating something local. It may be a famous Battle or a celebration of Cheese. It could be a festival of Ice Cream or a local Wine. There is always something to record and enjoy when you return to the UK. We are currently looking to run a competition in 2010 with some wonderful prizes.  Keep an eye on our website for further information. E brochure coming soon

Shopping Breaks
No - not for fresh fruit and Veg! ‘Designer shopping’ - the serious stuff. We have many outlets here, and for those of you that don’t know – this is the region that makes all the designer shoes and handbags, many of which are not exported to the UK. So if you are someone that loves to be different – come to Le Marche. This is Pam’s specialty.  Forget the walking and taking pictures.  Show her the shops.  Trust me: she’s an expert. Why not join her for a shopping extravaganza that not only includes the outlets but also one or two markets where there are so many bargains to be had you wouldn’t believe it. Arrive on a Thursday and spend Friday and Saturday hitting the outlets, returning home on Sunday. To make this even more tempting we have secured a 10% discount on the already unbelievable prices for anyone staying at Villa Sibillini.
Why not make it a date for some fabulous Christmas offers!  More info

Christmas 2009
Sorry but it will happen, like it or not. Why not decide on a stress free Christmas this year?  Let us do it all!
For the first time we are opening the Villa for a Christmas special. Pack your bags and arrive here on Sunday 20th December and enjoy a week long Christmas celebration departing on 27th and home in time for New Year.

We will help you prepare for Christmas with a little shopping, relax with some sight-seeing, visits to some medieval towns to see the lights and enjoy a glass or two with the locals. Enjoy a semi- traditional Christmas dinner where we combine the best of British with a turkey dinner, plus a little of what the Italians do best: their antipasti and dolce. Enjoy a pre-lunch stroll around the beautiful Lake Fiastra, then after lunch simply relax and let us clear it all away. All of our rooms will be decorated to get you into the festive spirit, along with small gifts for everyone. This is a fully inclusive package which includes all meals both here at the Villa and in the restaurants you will visit while you are here. For prices and itinerary please email for our E brochure on christmasbreak@villasibillini.com

                              

So that’s our first newsletter!  Yes I know........... it will never win a literacy prize but it is our first one and it will get better! If anyone you know would like to receive future newsletters, please send us their email and we will copy them in.  Do please make sure its OK with them before you commit their email address to a mailing.

Warmest regards

David and Pam (AKA. Basil and Sybil)