We have stayed in Peralta two times. First time three years ago with a baby girl aged one and a girl aged 12. We lived in La Foresteria, which is a very charming and special house with two terraces. There is a lot of space for one family here. One nice pergola outside the kitchen area, where we had all our meals and one balcony on the first floor with a view we have not found any other place in Tuscany. And we have been in the region seven times. It is just magical and you feel like beiing on the top of the world when you relax and enjoy the sundown while sipping on a glas of rosso. You actually look down at the fireworks in the valley from this balcony! This year we travelled with my brothers family. They have two boys aged 11 and 14. The eleven year old simply said: "this is the most fantastic place I ever have been to,I want to come back thousand of times". All the children fell in love with Peralta, also thanks to the dogs Elly and Frankie, which came to the house every day and played with the children.We stayed in Casa Luigi. The antique house has four big bedrooms, living room, library, three bathrooms and a laundry room. The kitchen is perfectly located on the ground floor and you have an amazing view while you are cooking. The location almost makes it fun to wash the dishes... (there is a dishwasher as well). There is plenty of space in front of the house and we spent every evening on this terrace. We loved Casa Luigi and it is an excellent house for family holidays. We have to mention the svimming pool. It is situated on the top, above the hamlet, and has the most spectacular location I have experienced for any swimming pool. It is not big, but the area and sourroundings makes it unique. If you are seeking a holiday away from it all, but at the same time close to the beaches and towns and sights, this is the place. You will never forget it. Thanks a lot to the staff for great hospitality and Laura who made such wonderful meals for us during our stay.

My wife and I were looking online for a Tuscan villa with a beautiful view in a relaxed atmosphere, and we struck gold with this one.

Have read some of the negative reviews here and understand their viewpoints; if you want internet access and a perfect wireless signal, Peralta is not for you, and the drive up the hill is certainly an adventure (small car recommended!) However, couldn't disagree more on the level of service; Kate was great, and the couple staying there for the summer to manage the day-to-day operations were very sweet and helpful. And our purpose was to get away from it all, so yes, if you're looking for a resort with a hopping bar and lots of social activity, then I would look elsewhere.

But what we got here was amazing -- absolutely breathtaking views, a beautiful accommodation, fresh, delicious food courtesy of Laura, the on-site chef, and many great cities (Lucca, Pisa) a short drive away, and Camaiore only five minutes by car to get groceries, beer, and anything else you may need (I even got a haircut!) Was great to be in a quiet, non-touristy town, and I loved that nobody spoke English, and we didn't speak Italian (a bit of Spanish and finger -pointing helps!)

We brought our infant daughter, which was great; however, wouldn't recommend bringing kids who can walk ... the landscape is beautiful, but as part of that, is a bit scary and not quite child-proof!

We highly recommend Peralta -- we were in Europe for three weeks, and by far our time here was the highlight of our trip.

My fiancé and I stumbled on this place over the internet whilst trying to find a great base to tour Tuscany. We fell in love with the pictures on the internet and when you get there it doesn't disappoint!!

The views are amazing, although the drive up there isn't for the faint heart, my other half loved (men - action - what can I say lol) but kept my eyes closed and stopped breathing due to the sheer drop on one side and the crazy locals speeding up and down the one car wide road!!! It is also a bit difficult to find we had a top of the range European sat nav and that told us we had got there just before the town, we later found out they we were technically there, they were just above us in the mountain...

The place its self is very rustic and ooze's Italian charm, we stayed in La Foresteria which was called the mansion so did feel a little king and queen of castle hehe

The only down side to this place is it is a little away from the world, which does add to its romantic charm but they don't offer food, so make sure you stock up, there is an open bar policy but there isn't really a choice of drinks. We went to a local supermarket and stocked up on supplies, which my other half cooked many lovely dinners.

There is a little village just below Peralta and the restaurants are amazing, we can't speak Italian and they can't speak English, yet they made us feel so welcome and would bring out different plates for us to try.

One night we had 2 large pizzas, numerous drinks and some desserts and John even took home a pizza to snack on later and they only charged us €10!!! They could of easily ripped us off but never!!

Peralta is a great base to visit Tuscany if you don't mind driving, we did and loved it!! We managed to visit Pisa, Lucca, Florence and numerous other towns within 10miles and get to see Italian lives day-to-day!!

I would recommend having a holiday in Italy but not too sure on Peralta, if you love the finer things in life this is not for you, if however you want a romantic hideaway with great charm and views go here!!

Now there are a few downsides:-

*as there is no restaurant or bar it can get very very quiet and the odd evening you wanted company, there was nothing

*hidden cleaning bill!!! Even though you are expected to clean the place and following a list of rules on cleaning the place, they then had a cheek to charge us a cleaning bill at the end of our stay!!!!!

*Staff - we found Kate a bit offish and like you were bothering her to ask a question, Dinah was never around only to charge this dam cleaning bill!!!

I stayed at Peralta many times, since staying there as a child. It is a magical, beautiful little 'village' and a very peaceful place to stay. The location is amazing - perched in amongst olive groves on a hill with a view to the sea at Viareggio. My room was comfortable, cozy and rustic - topped off with a view to the sea. The rooms are set amongst sculptures by Fiore de Henriquez and other artists - making it a truly wonderful setting. The food is fantastic, and the staff warm and friendly. The location is great for day trips around Tuscany, or for walks to local villages & hamlets. The local town, Camaiore is refreshingly not touristy - small and lovely.