This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
ITALY Le Marche


MAGICAL


With stunning hilltop villages, exciting mountains, unspoilt beaches and cheaper homes than the neighbouring regions, Le Marche in Italy should be on the radar of anyone in search of la dolce vita


WORDSCHRISTOPHER NYE D


riving around Italy, it’s not uncommon to come across the most beautiful hilltop village, little changed since


the days of Michelangelo and the Borgias, its church with medieval frescoes and its homes built from warm local stone, with green shutters and Juliet balconies. You settle on a café terrace with views over the valley, order your espresso and gelato and reach for the guidebook, and it doesn’t even rate a mention. It’s just a perfectly average, jaw-droppingly gorgeous Italian community. In Le Marche you can buy a home in these villages at around 20 per cent cheaper, and with fewer crowds, than in the neighbouring provinces of Umbria and Tuscany. It’s a region that combines mountains of up to 2,500 metres, with rolling hills, forests and pastures leading down to 173 kilometres of sandy beaches and fi shing villages on the Adriatic. As local agent Anna Rita Cella (www.cellashirley. com) explains: “That geography gives Le Marche two seasons; summer and ski, and much


34 A PLACE IN THE SUN APRIL 2011


Above main The stunning village of Carassai


Above inset A typical village square – or “piazza” – in Le Marche Below Palazzo Sacconi development in


Montalto delle Marche


milder weather than the harsher areas of Italy.” Le Marche is also easy to reach, with budget fl ights from the UK into Rimini, just to the north, Ancona at the centre of Le Marche on the coast, and Perugia just to the west. Cultural highlights include Urbino,


an important Renaissance city and the birthplace of the painter Raphael. There’s world-class opera at Ancona and Macerata. The varied coast combines sandy beaches with tucked away coves that are only accessible by boat, and the resorts of Gabbice Mare and Pesaro. There is also the busy port at Ancona, with ferries to Greece, Turkey and Montenegro. Inland, the Apennine Mountains


offer skiing in winter and walking or mountaineering (or just some really spectacular drives) in spring and summer. Especially beautiful is the Monte Sibillini National Park, where Anna has her estate agency, in an area that’s increasingly popular for British buyers: “It’s called the ‘Golden Triangle’,” she says, “between Gualdo, Sarnano and San Ginesio, very close to the national park. Many British people buy a property to enjoy for their own holidays and rent out as a holiday home too, with a view to moving out here permanently or to retire here later,” says Anna. “A good example is a British buyer who bought a watermill in need of restoration, together with


one hectare of land, for €200,000 [£171K]. Now it’s a B&B worth €700,000 [£598K]!” Another major restoration project is


Palazzo Sacconi, an imposing palace in the ancient hilltop village of Montalto delle Marche. A fi rm called Cocoon Sacconi is restoring and converting it into 20 apartments, with an indoor pool and gym – prices start at £180,000 for two bedrooms. Cocoon Sacconi’s CEO, Fran Kruc,


says: “Italy’s magnetic charm keeps it consistently high on the property investment ratings and the Marche region’s popularity is growing, because it offers a truly authentic Italian experience, at an affordable price, and with scope for investment growth.” (www.cocoonsacconi.com). For anyone hoping to bag their own


restoration project, Anna Rita Cella has spacious properties from €60,000 (£51K), and says that the Marche authorities manage to protect the environment without stifl ing growth: “The area has fl exible planning laws which allow for the purchase and restoration of historic property, while being more more sensitive to the environment than the Spanish Costas.” Finished property starts at around €110,000 (£94K) for a restored apartment in an attractive town such as Sarnano. Country villas are go from around €300,000 (£256K). Le Marche straddles that gap


between the pricey perfection of Tuscany to its north-west and the rural rough-and-ready-ness of Abruzzo to the south. It’s the best of both worlds, and well worth exploring.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100