Villa Durando

Lovely place with a kind innkeeper and his wife. First off, Senior Giaconne only speaks French and Italian, no English but, even though my wife and I speak high school French, communication was not a problem. He was able to direct us to a restaurant that served the finest meal we had in Piedmont (called Albero Fiorito, more on that in a separate review). This inn is the former summer home of an Italian general Giovanni Durando and it was restored by Senior Giaconne and his family. As such, there are lots of antiques and unique details, like the painted ceilings in each room and giant ivory tusk in the hallway. If you like history and charm couple with a bit of eccentricity, this is the place for you. The inn does have a small pool but it was too cold for us to swim there and it’s not heated. There’s also an exercise room. But one of the highlights is the breakfast room and the breakfast. My wife and I were the only guests at the time but Senior Giaconne and his wife put out a spread that could have fed a dozen people easily. There was home made cake, a frittata, fruits, croissants, cheese, sausage and on and on. A breakfast fit for a kind, truly. We felt guilty that we could only eat a small portion of it all. The effort showed us what kind of innkeeper these people are. Highly recommended for one night if you’re passing through and more if you’re working in the area. And have dinner at Albero Fiorito and read my separate review.