Villa Alta Langa

Villa Alta Langa is at number 5 of the provincial road 31, just outside the built-up area of Cravanzana, in the province of Cuneo, at 585 metres of altitude. It is the heart of the Alta Langa, the stretch where the Piedmontese plain has already given way to the hills, inside the Bormida valley: the house is on a hilltop, surrounded by woods and hazel groves, and Cravanzana is the village that calls itself the capital of the round hazelnut of Piedmont. In its own brochure the property notes two distances that explain the position well, thirty kilometres as the crow flies from the Ligurian riviera and half an hour by car from Alba, and it credits the area with a Mediterranean microclimate.

How it is built

It is a historic residence in Langa stone, restored, with a tower. The rooms listed on the website are five, all doubles and all with independent access and a private bathroom: Kalahari, with a mezzanine; Napoleone, in the tower on the first floor; Hambletonian; Cuor di nocciola, on the ground floor of the tower, with a bathroom also fitted for people with disabilities; and Sei Sensi. The official brochure, though, speaks of six themed rooms with a bookcase and a fridge and additionally mentions a gypsy caravan, that is, a separate unit in the grounds: the two pages do not agree on the count, and it is worth having the real availability confirmed when booking. The house can be rented whole or by the single room, which makes it suited to a group travelling together. There is a breakfast room in Langa stone for some twenty people, where you can cook or have breakfast served, there are wide reading rooms and there are well-kept outdoor spaces, which the owners also make available for parties and receptions. The wifi is free, there is parking, and the property declares itself pet friendly: pets are allowed. Check-in is from 15 to 18 and departure between 8 and 10.

The wellness area and the pools

There is a single pool, an infinity one, outdoors, facing the panorama of the Alta Langa, and the property declares it always available to those staying, without, however, publishing an opening period or hours: being outdoors, anyone travelling out of season should ask a direct question. On the wellness front the house has a massage room fitted with a steam bath and a jacuzzi whirlpool. No sauna is declared, and no indoor pool is on record, but the website does not explicitly deny them: anyone who cares should ask for confirmation rather than take them as ruled out. The rest of the relaxation here is what the house itself puts at the centre: the walks and the cycle routes among the woods and hazel groves, and the reading rooms.

The rules of access

The booking portal states that children are not allowed, and gives no age in figures. Villa Alta Langa's official website in turn publishes no threshold and does not use the adults only formula. In other words neither source says from what year upwards you may sleep here: all that is known is that minors are not admitted. Anyone travelling with a young person, even an older one, should ask for written confirmation before booking. Pets, unlike minors, are welcome, and the Cuor di nocciola room on the ground floor of the tower has an accessible bathroom, a useful detail for anyone with mobility difficulties.

Who it suits

It suits couples who want a silent base in the hills for touring the Langhe, the Roero and the inland villages, with Alba half an hour away and Liguria not far. It also suits a group of adults wanting to take the whole house, perhaps for a party, since the outdoor spaces are designed for that too. It suits less anyone expecting a structured spa, because here wellness comes down to an outdoor pool, a steam bath and a whirlpool, and anyone who wants to get around without a car, since the villa is isolated on a hill outside the village.