Lifestyle: Borgo San Felice

For many years, San Felice has been considered one of the important wine producing estates of Italy's Chianti Classico. It's also home to Borgo San Felice, one of the world's unique resorts. Set in a working hamlet that dates back to the Middle Ages, Borgo San Felice is atop a hill a few minutes from Siena, an hour from Florence and two and a half hours from Rome. A week there was one of the most refreshing travel experiences of my life.


A member of the Relais & Chateaux chain, the hotel has 43 suites and rooms furnished with hand-crafted Tuscan furniture. Guests stay either in the main palazzo on the hamlet's small piazza or in stone houses on the side streets.


The hotel's restaurant, Poggio Rosso, specializes in Tuscan cuisine built around the area's wine and oil. Other facilities include tennis courts, a putting and pitching green, the swimming pool, a chapel, gym and botanical trails. And, of course, Tuscany lies all around.

Room and full board rates range from 310 to 850 euros per day, including VAT, or about $450 to $1,300.