Wow, this would be a perfect place to take the family.
Anyone thinking about this?
Castello Di Magona in Campiglia Marittima, Italy - Villa & Estate Travel Deals | Luxury Link
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Wow, this would be a perfect place to take the family.
Anyone thinking about this?
Castello Di Magona in Campiglia Marittima, Italy - Villa & Estate Travel Deals | Luxury Link
I saw it this past week--La Di DA!!! Extra E2000 for taxes gripes my cookies, tho. Plus heating surcharges...
But, what a beautiful property!
I've rented houses and villas in France, Mexico, the US and Costa Rico for a group of friends. Many were LL properties. Although this property is lovely, I would not rent it or bid on it. If you were successful in winning the auction at the minimum bid, the base cost would be somewhere between $8,400 and $17,000, plus there are just so many extra fees to be added on top of the winning cost:
- mandatory tax of 2,000 euros
- seasonal heating charges to be determined
- surcharges may apply for baby equipment like crib, high chair, etc
- domestic services are available for 15 euros per hour
- additional mandatory security deposit of 2,500 euros
I would want to know if the security deposit can be paid via credit card, or is cash, or a bank wire required? Security deposits can make me nervous. Then again, I can appreciate the need to protect the property from poorly behaved guests. Once we rented a villa from an owner who was difficult about several things, and I was concerned about getting the deposit back later. A credit card was not accepted; we had to wire the cash. It was a LL property. And I will say that the LL concierges were helpful in dealing with the owner issues. Everything turned out OK in the end.
Another reason this property would not be attractive to me is that the guests don't have access to a kitchen. We have several great cooks in our group so we always enjoy having a nice kitchen. We don't cook dinner every night. We enjoy the kitchen for breakfasts, lunches, "beverages", and the occasional special group dinners. We also enjoy eating out - sampling local cuisine - after all, that's one of the best parts of travel!
For me, too many additional costs to be added for the property - and no access to a kitchen.
Can honestly say, this bidding opportunity would never cross my mind. For the minimum bid + + + on this package, I can bid and likely buy a lot of luxury throughout this web site. We take holidays to get away from crowds (yes, after a few days living in the same confines with my friends, I would be looking for another location).Quote:
Originally Posted by kapper
But....different strokes.
We would have difficulties to find 20 family members and friends who would want to shell out that kind of money, even when divided by 20. The castle is beautiful and it is understandable that the owners want security deposit, etc., but I think the extras are excessive. Especially, not to be able to use the kitchen is a definite detraction. This offer is not in my league. Besides, as omegaet said, who wants to be with friends and family for that long a time. The rule of thumb for us always is "after 3 days, fish and friends, and even family, smell."
It would have been more appealing had they included the 2000 euros in the price and didn't tell us about it. I think it was included in the value of the package (over $20,000) since the package with the highest cost was just over $17,000. Including the 2000 euro tax, the cost breaks down to less than $600 per person for the week, which is pretty darn cheap for such luxurious accommodations. That being said, there's no way that I could come up with twenty people who would want to do this or, more importantly, whom I would like to spend a week with.
If we were going to blow a few bucks, I think we would be more apt to jump on a Bill Peach38-seat Dash 8 and flit about as opposed to hanging in a castle in Italy.Quote:
Originally Posted by kapper
Bill Peach Journeys in Tour - Tour Package Deals | Luxury Link
O, I agree. This would be more down my alley too. Very nice package, albeit a little pricey.
Now that IS NICE!Quote:
Originally Posted by omegaet
Not my thing at all. I spend 13 nights in Peru, most of them at Orient-Express properties and I have never been treated better.Quote:
Originally Posted by kapper
I have no interest in paying these prices and having a house full of people to bug me. Nope, this package is for another type of person. I'll save my cash and keep looking!