$1099—Spend 5 nights at a Tuscan villa, reg. $3086

The location is beautiful and the apartment is spacious

The check in process, hotel staff, and overall experience was lackluster at best. The hotel needs work and the staff need courses in service.

It was a pretty location.

The communication from the staff about your stay and experiences was very limited. We also had issues with eating at the resort as there always seemed to be a problem, particularly to do with staffing. Before our arrival apparently the bartender/server left and the rest of the staff didn’t really help cover that position. They website also said that this was a rural location, but didn’t really describe how rural - it was almost a mile of dirt road and then a 20+ minute drive to the nearest area for anything to eat or do. We also noticed that the room was sort of dirty still and there was a lot of bugs, which you expect in a rural area, but again the lack of communication really got to us. The staff did both contact us and was difficult to reach to ask basic questions. This is more of a limited B&B than a resort.

Our overall impression is that Cignella is not really a “resort” but more like a bed and breakfast. The staff is very welcoming, friendly and helpful. The location is rural and the housing accommodations are spacious and cozy. It would have been nice to have paper towels or kitchen towels and dish soap provided. They did provide the materials for making a fire. There was an outdoor pool, which was closed for the season. Breakfasts were amazing with many options. The yogurt was especially delicious as is their espresso coffee! They also made eggs to order and homemade bread. The three pasta making classes were fun but repetitive and this is a problem for two reasons. It’s a bit boring to make and eat essentially the same dish for three nights. The sauces may have been traditional but also were nearly the same. It would have been nice to make pizza and focaccia in one or two of the classes. They also really need to look into a larger variety in their dinner menu; dinners were basically pasta each night. Our special meal was overcooked. The best part of the meal was the pork chops, but after all the other food we couldn’t eat it. The dining room was adequate but minimally functional, for both staff and guests. There really is no “front receiving desk” on the premises, only a small office in a back room. Their front desk hours were only 8:00 am to 8:00 pm, which is not what one would expect from a “resort.” The wine tasting was really good. They did appear to be understaffed at times. Some of the staff did not speak English very well, which was somewhat of a problem seeing as all of the guests were English speaking. They did have a “happy hour” most nights but you have to pay extra for a charcuterie board. We definitely would not book this Travelzoo deal again. After reflecting back, we would also say that it is somewhat overpriced for what you get (i.e., not a typical Travelzoo deal).

Spacious villas and rooms. Romarino, bright, with light decor tiled flooring. Heated from the floors, comfortable beds, clean, except for the stains on our couch. Too in cold in October to use the pool. We had the included dinner tonight. Antipasto -tasty salamies, delightful cheeses, crostini, pate platter, a linguini with beef ragu, roasted pork topped with bacon and sweet plum sauce with roasted rosemary potatoes. So delicious! This is our first day after driving to Siena after an ample provided breakfast of eggs, an array of impressive pastries, apricot, chocolate croissants, any kind of coffees, teas, juices, meats etc, etc. A car with a navigation is a must. Prepare for narrow, unlite winding roads.

The gravel road in to the resort is a tad rough.

This property is gorgeous and the staff are helpful and accommodating. The chef is amazing and the food is remarkable. Would highly recommend to anyone and hope to visit again.

Cooking classes were only about making pasta. We didn't make sauces or other Italian food items, If you have to have a gluten free diet, they provided pre-packaged items for breakfast so bring your own breakfast bars, etc. Rooms were nice but didn't include items like facial tissues or paper towels. No maid service unless you stayed for more than a week, but towels were changed and trash removed when we requested. The "candle lit dinner" was in the same room as the cooking classes. Staff was pleasant and helpful.

Great experience. Great location. Food and cooking classes was good. Communication at check in was thin.

1. The staff were friendly. 2. The wine tasting included was wonderful. It exceeded my expectations (and I work for a winery, so I am very familiar with winery tours and tastings)

1. This is not a "resort". There are no amenities. 2 The 2 hour "cooking class" was a 45 minute pasta class. 3. The 3 "dinners" consisted of pasta with some type of sauce. Some "dinners" had no protein. The dinners were lacking any type vegetable. 4. The grounds are full of weeds and poorly manicured. 5. The was not enough staff to meet the needs of the guests. 1 person making coffees, eggs, and managing breakfast. 1 person serving dinner and 1 cook at dinner 6. They said the $240 for extra persons in the room was 240 euros. We had to send them the information from travelzoo that specified the charge was in US dollars.

Amazingly beautiful and well worth the adventure

Pretty location.

The food. The classes were basic and the food coming out of it was inedible. The breakfasts were all sweet stuff. The dinner was ok. We expected much better. They seem understaffed as well..we're actually going to cut our visit short. The beds are so hard, we all have sore backs. No supplies in the apartment whatsoever. Its not a resort.

Great experience. Really enjoyed the wine tour and wine tasting in Montepulciano. Arriving was a little difficult and there was a gate across their road. Fortunately a delivery driver let us in. Be prepared to call them when you arrive. Apparently there is an intercom but we were not told of it. They sent agenda before arrival but you can change it if doesn’t align with your plans. Wi fi good but cell service bad at resort. Was too cool to use pool but that looked very nice. Breakfast and dinners were good. The 3 course dinner was spectacular and we took a lot of food back to room for later. Bar menu and prices were good. We had large villa Cigno with fireplace that was very nice. Central location to Siena, Montepulciano and Pienza.

Beautiful 2BR/2BA place that was all the space we could possibly need.

Bugs bugs bugs everywhere. You can't stay outside or else you get bit. You are constantly swatting away something.

We really enjoyed our stay! I would say it wasn’t quite as advertised, but it was still a great experience! The villa was phenomenal, very spacious. The pool was nice as well. The cooking classes should be clarified to be noodle-making classes. The website advertises that the classes are led by an older Tuscan lady but are actually led by a young man in his 20s. He’s very nice, but certainly not as into it as I’m guessing she would have been. We made the noodles, but not the sauce or anything else. Still fun, just not as expected/advertised.

Staff were all really nice and were trying really hard to make things work, but seemed to lack resources. With some work the place could be beautiful The breakfast offered at the hotel was excellent

Should not be called a “cooking school “. Cooking experience was next to nothing. Staff was trying to, but all were really new. The chef had been there only 9 days and knew nothing about teaching a class. No recipes were given. Resort was difficult to find. Our car GPS could not recognize the rural address. Luckily I was able to sort it with some difficulty on my phone. Resort needs to provide some type of map??? Pool was beautiful, but was never cleaned while we were there.Grass around the pool was getting overgrown with weeds and the pool was full of leaves and bugs. The corners of the pool were starting to grow green algae! The property could be amazing- the 2 bedroom apartment was really nice - roomy and modern. Needs some upkeep and TLC

We are enjoying our experience here at Cignella, and find it to be a comfortable home-base for exploring the Tuscany region. The resort grounds and suite we were assigned are quite charming, however there are some aspects of the resort we find lacking such as: supplies in kitchen, pool maintenance and cleaning of areas around pool. The access road is also a little on the “rough” side which wasn’t a problem for us, but may be for other less confident drivers.

We enjoyed our time here and find the location to be ideal in the central Tuscany area. Spectacular views of the surrounding countryside and beautiful sunrises and sunsets to behold!! The cooking classes were also fun and interesting. Grazia Mille to the staff and Travelzoo for providing this package!

Comfortable resort in a stunningly picturesque setting. Villas are clean, spacious, well equipped and the beds very comfortable. Staff is warm, friendly and eager to accommodate requests.

Would love to return to Cignella for a longer period of time to fully take advantage of the breathtaking setting in the countryside ( and the pool ! ). Perfect base from which to explore Tuscany.

Location except you had to travel on a unmaintained gravel road to teach the hotel. Despite her lack of English, the cook, Michaela, tried hard and was very pleasant.

Facilitate was rundown and unkept. Appartment while large was minimally furnished and minimal accessories. There was suppose to be a gourmet chef with full cooking classes but we had a cook with no teaching experience who showed us how to make pasta through actions since she did not speak English nor had written instructions. The screens were broken on the windows which you had to open because they would only turn the AirConditioning on at 24c and sure to the lack of care for the facility, the grounds had may bugs which came in the window

Girls trip

Staff went out of their way to be accommodating. Great breakfast and away from it all.

Resort is in a beautiful quiet area. We love our apartment. Breakfast was very good with lots of choices. The dirt road off the highway needs to be levelled and pot holes repaired.

Cignella Wine Resort is in a good location but was far from perfect. Upper level apartment had a wonderful view and was well appointed for extended stay. However the main queen bed was poor and as a couple we push the single beds together in room #2 to get a good nights sleep. The package included a wonderful winery tour about 40 min. from the hotel that we thoroughly enjoyed, but I would not label this as a "wine resort" as this is not a vineyard or winery. Meals were ok, while "cooking class" we took was poor. The bartender Lorenzo was wonderful and helped us navigate our time in the area. We visited during what was an important week long holiday in Italy so the staffing was sparse.

This is the most brutal review I have ever left regarding any "resort" I have ever stayed at...My wife is a good cook who wanted "cooking classes" in Tuscany to learn "tricks of the trade" ... instead the cooking class was basic & consisted of mixing dough by hand, rolling it out thin, using a shot glass to cookie cut round dough pieces and putting pre-made filler on the dough and pinching the edges of two pieces of dough to make individual ravioli. We did not cook the items as staff cooked the 11 I made for my dinner. That's it. Was this the cooking class/dinner your reviewer had? The dinner of 11 ravioli was cooked properly with butter/seasoning but was truly not good (because I made it from flour, egg, water, salt) . So we opted to find excuses to avoid the remaining "cooking classes" during our stay.

Nothing like the website. A car is a MUST, and the staff was a joke. NO hospitality, no chef to teach the "cooking classes", no organization what so ever! Nobody seemed to care at all. How is this a wine resort?? Who sets up a wine tasting but does NOT provide transportation?? It was a beautiful prison...we left early

Staff and warm and helpful

They could have been more timely on the events and features of our booking but in the end it worked out.

Staff and friendly and helpful

The staff are really friendly and the space is very appealing. There is no explanation of the service. We had asked months ago for the itinerary so we could plan the rest of our trip around the activities that were part of the package, however they were not able to deliver this until days before the stay. It made it impossible to plan anything else. There should be an information packet that explains how things work. Maybe additionally there should be a set of welcoming instructions (i.e. how dinner works, how breakfast works, how to use the facilities in the rooms, etc.). We enjoyed our time here but it could have been so much better if they performed some simple customer service. We never knew how things were going to happen. As we met other guests and discussed the Cignella property, EVERYONE we met said the same things. With such a beautiful property, it is really a shame that they are missing such an essential understanding of 1) How to welcome guests, 2) how to properly inform guests, 3) simple documentation to help the guests know how things work.