Lazio, Frosinone, Arpino, Italy

Villa Ludovica is a fine old stone 300 sq.mt. house dating from the 1890s, fully restored and brought into the modern era, set in 1,200 sq.mt. of its own land with terraces, garden, extensive olive groves and beautiful panoramic views.

In the countryside just outside town, in the triangle created by elegant and cultured Arpino, buzzy and fashionable Isola del Liri and the administrative regional centre of Sora, Villa Ludovica is positioned on a ridge with commanding views of the valley and the mountains that ring it.

A wide paved driveway sweeps up from the attractive electronically-controlled gates to the property. There is a large independent garage unobstrusively set into the slope of the land. In front of the house are two terraces with stone balustrades, one to the left of the driveway and one to the right.

The smaller of these two terraces, ideal for a quiet morning coffee or a reflective afternoon tea, has a spectacular view of the sunset over the distant hills. The larger one, looking in the other direction over the expanse of the valley, is ideal for outdoor dining, BBQ, etc, and is a favourite with the current owners for parties and easy summer entertaining. Below the terraces, the villa's land stretches out, with a vegetable garden, many olives, fruit trees and a variety of useful outbuildings. There is, naturally, ample space for a swimming pool (subject to the normal planning consent).

There is also a large paved yard behind the house, and a more formal side garden with views over the valley.

Villa Ludovica is an old stone house - a date stone found during the renovation is from 1890 - but was fully and carefully restored some 20 years ago by the current owners and provided with all modern conveniences. It has been excellently maintained and a purchaser could move straight in without needing to undertake any further work.

The large entry room at the top of the driveway was originally a covered open-air balustrade area, but some years ago it was walled in with large windows, leaving the stone balustrades visible, creating a charming winter/summer sitting room.

On the ground floor, as well as the large entry room, there is a spacious study with wood ceilings, a very large living room (likewise with wood ceilings), a powder room, a modern kitchen, and another very large room not currently in use, which could be an impressive dining room, a hobby room, or be broken into smaller rooms to create a walk-in pantry, large laundry room etc. (Indeed it would be possible to create some of these and still leave space for a formal dining room. Alternatively, the current study could become the formal dining room, and a new study be created in the currently unused portion.)

On one wall of the living room, a section of the wall has been framed and left unplastered, to show the original stone as a charmingly unique feature.

Up the attractive wooden stairs is an upper floor with four bedrooms (two with balconies), two bathrooms and a large room with lovely views, currently used as a the owner's gym. The layout of the floor means it would be easy to put in a door to create a very fine master suite, with large bedroom, balcony, dressing area, ensuite bathroom, and a gym / private study / morning room / painter's studio.

The property is secluded but not isolated and there is excellent road access. All utilities are connected.

Energy classification: G


ARPINO AND THE CIOCIARIA

Arpino is one of the major medieval hilltop towns in the area of Italy called the Ciociaria, the name given to the fertile land that lies south of Rome but north of Naples, situated inland in the hills in the heart of Italy.

The Ciociaria region is within easy reach of both Rome and Naples and their respective airports. A day's shopping in Rome is a common pastime, while an even shorter drive brings you to the charming beaches south of Rome. Alternatively, drive east, and the mountains of the Abruzzo National Park await with horse trekking in the magnificent beech forests, and sparkling mountain lakes and rivers where you can swim in the heat of the summer. And at the other extreme of temperature, although Arpino itself is temperate, less than an hour's drive brings you to the winter ski slopes.

Often overlooked, both by tourists and by those foreigners in search of an Italian home, in favour of the more publicized regions of Tuscany and Umbria, the Ciociaria remains largely an unspoilt gem with beautiful scenery and medieval hilltop towns. A home or second home in the Ciociaria, in the hilltop towns of Arpino, Veroli, Alatri or in the rolling countryside that surrounds them, will afford you a setting where over two thousand years of history combine with an idyllic rural Italian lifestyle, where you can still discover the 'real' Italy and take time out from the busy crowds of the larger tourist cities, while being less than ninety minutes journey from central Rome or either of Rome's two airports.

VIA ROMANA Srls and CASE & CASALI REAL ESTATE AGENCY

Via Romana Srls is an Italian-incorporated company owned by a British/Australian Chartered Accountant and her photographer daughter, and offers a package of services to facilitate all aspects of the purchase and restoration of Italian property by overseas clients. The Via Romana team works in collaboration with various fully-licensed Italian real estate agencies including Case & Casali Real Estate Agency represented by Sig. Ciro Tomei. Sig. Tomei has been enrolled in the register of real estate agents at the Chamber of Commerce in Frosinone, Lazio since 2007 and has much experience in the international marketing of Italian real estate.