Villa Savina - Elegant Family Villa Overlooks Amalfi Coast

This villa, among the finest in the village of Nocelle, is not a typical tourist rental property.
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This is a beautifully designed house. Its owners have created comfortable and tasteful surroundings. Filled with light, it's rooms resonate with positive energy. It is elegant and spacious, with high quality material finishes.

The villa is a two-story structure. On the ground floor, there is a large, airy and luminous L-shaped living room/ dining room, sitting alcove, large, professional kitchen and a two-piece bathroom. A winding staircase leads up to the second floor, where are found three bedrooms, three bathrooms and a balcony overlooking the ground-floor terrace and the Mediterranean beyond.

The fully equipped kitchen has a large built-in electric oven, a six-element gas cooktop, double sinks and a full-size fridge/freezer combo. In this kitchen, the owner and her relatives prepare family meals for festive occasions, for as many as 30 people at a time. French doors lead directly from the kitchen onto the terrace. Adjacent to the kitchen, there is a laundry room with laundry sink, washing machine and two large folding clothes-drying racks.

Upstairs, are three bedrooms with three bathrooms. All three bedrooms are equipped with air-conditioning. There is ample closet and storage space.

Each of the bedrooms has French doors opening onto the second floor balcony running the entire width of the house. The master bedroom has a queen-sized bed (190cmX150cm) and an ensuite bathroom with hydro-massage tub. One of the additional bedrooms has a full bathroom with tub/shower, while the other has a full bathroom with shower. In addition, each of the 2 additional bedrooms has a queen-sized bed(190cm.X150 cm.) which can be separated into 2 beds with advanced notice.


Directly in front of the house, spanning the entire width of the property is the splendid terrace, consisting of two sections. The large main area, reached through French doors from either the kitchen or the living room offers a comfortable, shaded relaxation area and a central “alfresco” dining area. At the far end of the terrace is a smaller, more secluded area, beneath a fragrant orange tree.
The terrace furnishings include an attractive, cushioned rattan sofa and armchairs in the shaded area under the second floor balcony, as well as an outdoor dining table and 5 chairs. Other features include: Large sun umbrellas, sun-chairs. Magnificent, wide open view of the Mediterranean spread out below, all the way to the horizon. Traditional brick pizza oven.

Guest access:
The entire house and terraces are for the exclusive use of guests.




The Neighbourhood:

Immediate Surroundings
•The house is situated in the village of Nocelle, on a terraced hillside, 450 meters directly above Positano, with an awe-inspiring 180 degree unobstructed view of the sea, from Li Galli (the enfabled islands of the Sirens) on the north, to the village of Praiano below and the coastal mountains of a vast regional park to the south as far as Salerno.

•Perched on a rocky ledge at the end of winding road of incredible vistas, Nocelle is a centuries-old village, with 3 restaurants and a small grocery store. The village is part of a natural park reserve, the Regional Park of the Monti Lattari, encompassing the entire Sorrento-Amalfi peninsula. Laced with enchanting pathways through small villages, the park extends from Nocelle 19 km, as far as Amalfi. It is the starting point of the world famous Sentiero degli Dei (Walk of the Gods).

Access to the village and Villa Savina:
The road to Nocelle terminates at a parking lot (please see photos). From the parking lot, stairs descend 100 steps to the main walkway of the village. The villa is located approx. 150 meters from the parking lot along walkways with small sets of descending steps. Approx.8-10 minute walk.

Parking:
The road to Nocelle ends in a parking lot, at the entrance to the village. From there all access to and around the village is by steps and footpaths. There is some metered parking in the lot for visitors: 1.50 Euros/hour, between 8:00am and midnight. No charge between midnight and 8:00am. Most visitors and residents park along the road outside the village in designated areas, which are free.

•Between Nocelle and Positano(5km) below, is the village of Montepertuso (2km), with 1 grocery store, 1 cafe and 3 outstanding restaurants.

Getting around:

Nocelle is centrally located on the Amalfi Coast, enabling easy day trips to Sorrento(18.5 km), Ravello(28 km) , Pompei(36km), Capri(30 min. by ferry from Positano), Amalfi(22 km) and Paestum(90 km).
Taxi service, as well as the regular Sita bus service, is available for day trips.

Distances
5 km from Positano, via Montepertuso @ 2km.
(Regular bus service from Nocelle-stopping at Montepertuso-to Positano: 25 minutes).

Other things to note:

The Story of the Villa

Villa Savina was built by Maria Grazia Cinque and her husband Francesco, on land that had been in Maria Grazia's family for generations. Its name derives from a particularly large and robust juniper tree that grew on the approach to the property. According to local legend, a juniper has magical properties, offering protection against the evil eye. Small branches from this tree were tied between the horns of cows when taken out to pasture, in order to protect them from evil spirits.
The site was also the location of the family bread oven where Maria Grazia’s parents, Angela and Giuseppe, would bake bread for their large family, using 100 pounds of flour, and flavouring the bread with the seeds of the wild fennel that grows on the mountain side. The bread was dried after baking and kept for consumption for many weeks, sometimes months. For centuries, each family in the village had a huge bread oven of this kind, since the village was completely isolated from the outside world, being connected by road to Positano only in 2002.

Francesco's father, Giovanni, had emigrated to America in the 1920s. There he opened a store in the Bronx, selling fruit and vegetables. He was later joined by his 2 Sons, Francesco and Antonio, and all three of them continued to work in America for many years. At a certain point, they returned to Positano, where they purchased an18th-century villa and turned it into what is now one of the town's principal hotels.

In the years following Maria Grazia's and Francesco's marriage, they realized a dream by building their family home in the village of Nocelle, perched on the mountainside over the sea above Positano. This home is Villa Savina.