Salento - Casa vacanza di Diana Carcagni

We had a wonderful stay at this apartment in Nardò. The property is exactly as shown in the pictures: spacious, bright, comfortable and exceptionally clean. It has everything you need for a relaxing holiday. We really appreciated the thoughtful welcome from the host: fresh fruit, bottled water, beach towels, a beach umbrella and a cooler bag with ice packs. These little touches made us feel immediately at home. The apartment is in a quiet and safe neighborhood, with free parking always available right in front of the entrance. The large private terrace is another great feature, perfect for relaxing or enjoying a barbecue. The Wi-Fi worked well, and the town center is only about a 10-minute pleasant walk away. There are several restaurants and supermarkets nearby. We particularly recommend the "Salento" and "Santo Basilico" pizzerias, as well as Conad for fresh products and good offers. The location is also perfect for exploring the Salento coastline. Within 20–30 minutes by car, you can reach beautiful beaches such as Santa Maria al Bagno, Porto Cesareo, Punta Prosciutto and Torre Lapillo and so on. Gallipoli and the famous beaches of Pescoluse, the “Maldive of Salento”, are also easily accessible. Having your own car is definitely recommended to explore the area freely, including the spectacular Adriatic coast. A special thank you to Mrs. Daria, the owner, for her kindness, availability and excellent recommendations. Many thanks also to Mrs. Florina and her husband Mr. Remus for their warm welcome, handing over the keys and giving us all the essential information at arrival. Highly recommended! We would happily stay here again. Grazie mille, a presto! Walter and Marianna

L'appartamento è grande e spazioso, anche se datato ha assolutamente tutto quello che serve, anzi di più! Borsa frigo, tutto per il mare, teli.. basta chiedere e Diana ti aiuterà ! Due passi dal centro di Nardò, ma fuori dal caos

Il parcheggio è la parte che mi è piaciuta un po' meno, non c'è un vero parcheggio, si parcheggia lungo la strada (di trova sempre sempre posto comunque!) l'appartamento vale comunque il possibile fastidio

Loved this apartment. It was spacious with Italian charm. I had a rooftop terrace for sunning and to hang out my laundry. There were plenty of options for cooking in the well stocked kitchen which was great since I made a lot of my own meals. My host gave me ideas of things to do around town and checked in on me to make sure everything was going well. The train and bus system worked well to get to neighboring towns and there was a bicycle for my use also. Would come back here again if I am in this part of Italy!

The host spoke English but all of the instructions were in Italian or German (?) so I used my google translate a lot. It would have been nice to have the instructions in English since that was one of the languages listed. But I am just being picky, lol

The property is conveniently located within easy walking distance to historic center of Nardo. Parking is available on the street for free - and more often than not, there is a space to be found nearby. Diana, the owner is very responsive to questions and the apartment which is her family's home has everything you could possibly need for a comfortable stay. The apartment is spacious and clean and also has a fantastic terrace area on the roof of the building to relax or watch the street action below.

The property has cellular wifi which is pretty slow and sporadic. If you need it just for casual use, it is fine. If you need it for actual work as I did, you will find it frustrating. Check-in was not until 5pm which is unusually late compared to most places. However, the biggest unnecessary - and easily-avoidable - disappointment was that the owner insists on a €150 security deposit which in our experience of travelling around Italy for several months is very unusual. While this also involved the inconvenience of having to obtain extra cash, the biggest inconvenience was having to inspect and video everything and all damages (like a car rental) late into the day after a long days travel and super-late check-in. To add to the issue, the Owner has no inventory list and no damage list, so unless you document everything to protect your deposit - eg the refrigerator door was badly dented and looked like someone had punched it in - or trust a random stranger - you risk losing your deposit. The final irritation of the security deposit comes when you leave. Now you cannot simply leave when you want to, you have to pre-arrange a time for the Owner's assistant to come round, and inspect the place before deciding if you get a refund. I raised the issue with the Owner who insisted people take better care of the place when they pay a deposit. Perhaps some do and perhaps others might simply not mention something important doesn't work or is broken for fear of being blamed for it. Oh ... and if you're a guy ... there are several diagrammatic signs encouraging you to sit down to pee - which of course is fine if you already do that! ... and if you're not a guy ... you'll have no idea why I even mentioned this.