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We have medieval defensive architecture to thank for many of Italy’s Borghi Più Belli, and Panicale, a fortified village overlooking the fertile hills of Umbria’s Nestore Valley, is a fine example: just a handful of staggered, concentric streets, flanked by high walls, looping around a few small piazzas.
It seems as though Rastrello, which sprawls across two neighbouring palazzos on the Lake Trasimeno-facing side of town, takes up at least a third of this little hamlet. That’s saying something for a 16-room hotel, but the place did double in size after acquiring the next-door property in 2025 (and again, Panicale is really quite small, home to a permanent population of under 500 people). The nice thing about Rastrello being built into the town proper is that it feels like it belongs to Panicale and plays a big part in local life here, an effect only enhanced by the fact that the hotel is run by an olive oil-loving family who’ve lived in the village for over 30 years and filled the once-abandoned adjoining buildings with a warm, passionate and exclusively local team.
What’s the vibe like at Rastrello?
With a gracious living room, a sun-dappled belvedere-style terrace and a guest lounge laden with coffee table books (Assouline travel tomes and shiny art catalogues), the vibe is very much make yourself at home. Evenings of communal aperitivo and monthly spaghettata nights bring guests into the fold of the community, but you’re also welcome to be left alone and enjoy the quiet of small-town Italy. Late afternoons are particularly special here: it’s easy to spend hours on the terrace, a glass of Grifo di Boldrino in hand, watching trees cast long shadows over the landscape.
What are the rooms like at Rastrello?
The sixteen rooms at Rastrello are spacious and simple, with original stone walls, exposed timber beam ceilings, oak floors and windows that swing open to take in the never-gets-old view of undulating Umbrian hills and Lake Trasimeno beyond. Furniture and art are sourced from local artisans – in some rooms, you might find sculptures from Umbrian artists, in others, statement mirrors with a halo of handcrafted raffia. You can expect all the comforts of a luxury hotel, too: plush four-poster beds, a generous lounge area, rainfall showers and his-and-hers sinks.
What’s the food like at Rastrello?
On-site farm-to-table restaurant Cucina & Giardino is an intimate, classy space, populated by a mix of guests, hotel personnel, locals and their dogs. Start with the punchy cocktail menu: I recommend the rum-based sour, finished with a few aromatic drops of the hotel’s own extra virgin olive oil. The à la carte menu draws its produce from the hotel’s fertile surrounds and serves up delicious twists on Italian classics: take the onion parmigiana, made with Cannara red onions from Rastrello’s farm, a pile of crispy, savoury-sweet layered onion under a generous blanket of parmesan. The restaurant also hosts monthly spaghettata nights, where locals, guests, the team and their families are invited to gather, chat and share some simple, traditional Italian cooking.
Breakfast in the garden annex is a compact, help-yourself spread of overnight oats, seeded bread, salami, mozzarella, pecorino, muffins and granola (eggs and omelettes can be ordered from the kitchen). It’s here that the hotel hosts its daily aperitivo hour, with small bites and local wine left out for guests to help themselves. Far from your average gluttonous hotel buffet, Rastrello’s bounty is thoughtful and waste-avoidant, only accommodating the guests present.
What’s the area like around Rastrello?
This patch of the country is pure Italian idyll – so nice that Ed Sheeran has a house nearby. Panicale is as quaint as it gets, but lively, too; join the locals for alfresco drinks outside the couple of cafes on Piazza Umberto I, the square Rastrello overlooks, and follow the loops of the town to see the local Cesare Caporali Theatre, pick up a souvenir in a local shop and admire the renaissance frescoes in the Church of San Sebastiano.
We were told it’s not possible to walk to Lake Trasimeno, but if you’re anything like me, a 3-4 hour walk on a pleasant spring day in the Italian countryside is more than manageable. Do the same – straight down the winding road from Panicale to lakeside Sant’Arcangelo – and take in olive groves, vineyards and the sound of cascading church bells.
What is the spa like at Rastrello?
The new garden annex brings a basement spa and a small yoga room to Rastrello. It’s certainly an experience to receive an olive oil and lavender-scented massage in a hollowed-out fourteenth-century room; a bit like getting pampered in a wine cellar. There’s also a poky sauna, which should be booked in advance.
DETAILS
Address: Via Antonio Grossi 10, 06064 Panicale (PG), Italy
Price per night: Rooms from €250
Closest transport: Perugia San Francesco d’Assisi – Umbria International Airport (PEG) is a 1-hour drive away