It Takes A Village...
... to renovate in Italy
Forget what they say about raising children, it takes a village to renovate a house in Italy.
I’m not just talking about the *literal* village, although we seem to have completely lucked out on moving into a place with some of the best neighbours we could’ve hoped for.
I’m also talking about our family & friends from home who’ve come and helped us along the way, the online renovating community, and the people we’ve met online, who’ve become IRL friends.
I ‘met’ Tom in the Renovating Italy Facebook group.
He had already bought & renovated one place in the Susa Valley, and was on to his second project by the time we started looking at properties in the area.
Plenty of people online tell you that living and renovating in Italy is too hard, too expensive, impossible!
But Tom was full of useful tips, words of wisdom and had a genuine ‘can do’ attitude.
Over winter, we met up, showed him our place, and had a nosey around his home & village, Exilles.
The current reno project is going to be phenomenal, but what I really wanted to see was his first, completed project: The Little Tower…
It’s an absolutely joyful home & he’s managed to maximise every bit of space.
Fast forward to this year, and we’re now great friends with his wife, Aileen, too.
Last weekend, we got to hang out in their garden, soaking in the sun & the views, drinking wine, eating snacks and marvelling at the hidden gem of the Susa Valley.
While many Brits & Americans buy properties in Tuscany or the South, for Tom, Aileen, Ash & I, the Susa Valley, in the Piemonte region, is truly the greatest place to live in Italy.
I’m torn writing this. Because it’s such a perfect, secret, hidden gem of a place, I want everyone to know about it & love it as much as we do. But then, selfishly, I want to keep it all to myself.
Here, you can walk in the mountains for hours without bumping into anyone but a local farmer. There are no endless queues on the climbing routes.
The weather is warm, but not humid, in summer. Half the valley is the protected Gran Bosco National Park. Almost every time I go for a walk, I see eagles or deer.
In winter, we have one of the biggest ski areas in Europe (the delightfully named Via Lattea, or Milky Way).
The house prices aren’t inflated for ex-pats & communities are welcoming of new, foreign people.
The valley is open-minded and has a strong history of progressive movements.
There’s an insanely good train service that gets you to Turin in less than an hour, and Milan & Verona in two hours… and of course, that means easy access to four (or is it five?) international airports.
If you love nature & the outdoors, but don’t want to live in the middle of nowhere, if you want an open-minded mentality but an area steeped in culture & tradition, if you can’t stand the humidity of the South & the cities in summer and want to breathe fresh air…
…And if you’re still researching & searching for where to live in Italy, I hope I’ve piqued your interest.
And if you are interested, but don’t fancy taking on a major renovation project, Tom’s just put his first, completed renovation project on the market.
Send me a message if you want to see more!
I love that you’ve chosen Piemonte! My husband’s Italian roots are in San Germane Chisone and Melle. We spent a year living near Cuneo, but couldn’t manage the winters. We just bought a house in Umbria with a 12th century tower.