4 bedrooms villa, 300 m²

Passignano sul Trasimeno, Perugia (province)

Lake Trasimeno

This is not what you expect to find in Umbria.

It is a genuine alpine chalet, built in 2002 using the Rubner Haus system, by craftsmen who came down specifically from the mountains around Bolzano, in South Tyrol. At 650 metres, it makes complete sense here: the air is mountain air, the summers are breathable, and snow does occasionally arrive. From the terraces, though, you look down on Lake Trasimeno.

How it is built. Reinforced concrete base clad in Trani stone, ventilated floor slab, glue-laminated timber structure with double ventilation and internal insulation. Double-glazed windows with insect screens, galvanised and powder-coated steel grilles. This is not timber as a finish - it is built the way houses are built in the Alps, with twenty-four years behind it and no structural unknowns.

The house. Around 300 sqm over three levels. Ground floor: living room, kitchen, one bedroom and bathroom, opening directly onto the terrace. Upper floor: further bedrooms, bathroom and a second terrace, both facing the lake. Lower level: cellar and storage. Seven rooms, four bathrooms, garage included. In the annex, an outdoor hot tub.

The land. Three thousand square metres in total, of which fifteen hundred are garden and living outdoor space, among the trees and facing the lake. Centuries-old oaks, stone pines and Austrian black pines, birch, chestnut, holm oak, strawberry trees. And the orchard: cherry, plum, pear, apple, chestnut. A wisteria. A garden that changes colour four times a year and puts fruit in your hands in two different months.

Water. Private well, officially registered, with a flow of 40-50 litres per minute - more than enough for the house and the entire grounds. New water softener. Complete water independence, which in an Italian summer is not a footnote.

The village. Castel Rigone is 900 metres away, on foot. It is not a postcard village that closes in October: post office, bank, ATM, pharmacy, doctor, grocery, restaurant. People live here all year, and the village keeps its own calendar - the Festa dei Barbari, Christmas markets, concerts.

Distances. Lake and Passignano 12 minutes. Perugia 30. Perugia International Airport 40. Cortona and Tuscany 40. Assisi 50. Florence 1h45, Rome 2h20. Driving down from home: Innsbruck 5h30, Zurich 6h30, Munich 7h.

You can walk to buy bread and drive to dinner in Florence. That combination is rare.

€550,000