Showcasing the Beauty of Coastal Italy'La Dolce Villa' is the latest Netflix original rom-com
showcasing the gorgeous coast and romantic culture of Southern Italy
Teejay Small•Feb 17
you may be experiencing a great deal of FOMO after watching
now seems like as good a time as any to begin planning your vacation experience
We’ll outline a few key shooting locations for La Dolce Villa ahead
so you can visit the scenes where Olivia found her calling
where Eric found love and where thousands of years of history springs to life
We’ll also cover a few major tourist attractions you won’t want to miss
eateries and tips to get around the countryside
If you’ve been putting off a big vacation
or waiting for love to find you where you live
this is your sign to throw caution to the wind and explore the romantic getaway of the Italian coast
Key Scenes: Though portions of La Dolce Villa were filmed in Rome
the majority of the film takes place in and around the gorgeous central Italian locale of Tuscany
Olivia purchases a run-down villa for the staggeringly low price of just one euro
The tale mirrors real life offers from a handful of small Italian villages
which have employed a few chaotic methods to increase tourism and immigration over the last several years
As Olivia speaks with contractors and refurbishes the broken shack
her father manages to fall in love with the neighborhood
and with a beautiful local named Francesca
Best Time To Visit: There’s really no wrong time to explore Tuscany
as the large region offers mostly mild temperatures and plenty of outdoor activity year-round
first-time travelers may want to book their trip for the mid-spring
crowds are thinner and outdoor festivals are just kicking off for the year
Those specifically interested in the fresh wine harvest should check out Tuscany in the late fall
as the months of October and November are peak times for uncorking a bottle of fine local wine
Transportation Options: If you’re interested in staying within the major cities you can be sure to rely on Italy’s public transportation grid
if your plan is to travel to each of the shooting locations for La Dolce Villa
you’ll need a set of wheels all your own
car rentals are available near all major international airports and private drivers can be charted for a reasonable price
offering a look into La Dolce Villa as well as a variety of Italian classics and spaghetti Westerns
you may even find yourself inquiring about a low-priced villa of your own
just in case you’re really looking for a once-in-a-lifetime dining experience
which offers one of the most stunning views in all of Europe
there’s so much to explore in and around Tuscany that you may not want to spend the whole trip cooped up in one room
Those looking to truly squeeze the most out of their trip can find more affordable stays at a number of local bed and breakfast stops
be sure to venture into the coastal nation with an open mind
an open heart and plenty of room for good food and wine
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targeted the Cosa Nostra’s branch in Agrigento
It charged members with offences including drug trafficking
illegal possession of weapons and kidnapping
The suspected mobsters include Antonio Massimino
considered to be the new mafia boss of the Agrigento Villaseta family
the leader in an organised ‘ultras’ group of the Italian football club Juventus
“From the investigation, emerges the role of Antonio Massimino, the recognized capomafia of Agrigento Villaseta,” said Antonio Amoroso
head of Palermo’s Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate
A ‘capomafia’ signifies the head of a branch in Sicily’s organized crime syndicate
Among his allegations, Amoroso claimed Massimo ordered the sexual assault of a woman in retaliation for her husband’s fraudulent car purchase. The two members who carried out the attack were charged with sexual violence, the Carabinieri said in a statement
Amoroso described Massimino as "an aggressive character
Cynical to the point of involving children to assert his criminal authority.”
The Cosa Nostra mobster is considered to be one of the most ‘ruthless, bloodthirsty and unscrupulous' in all of Sicily, according to Italian media
Recent successes of the Italian police have dented Cosa Nostra’s authority in Sicily
newly elected leader Settimo Mineo was among 46 alleged mobsters arrested
"There is no more room for this type of scum in Italy," Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio said at the time
However former Sicilian prosecutor, Giuseppe Di Lello, believes the crackdown is far from over. ‘‘The mafia will never accept defeat,’’ he told the Guardian
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Gianluca Calì was threatened by the mob for years
but now he’s turning an old mafia villa into a holiday house
The view from the terrace is breathtaking
the ancient Greek ruins of Solunto; on the right
Sicily’s most powerful mafia bosses plotted the murders of countless policemen and politicians from this spot
part of a 400 sq metre villa in the coastal resort town of Casteldaccia
But the godfathers are now gone and in their place is Gianluca Calì
an anti-mafia businessman who is about to turn their former stronghold into a holiday house
or make an easy escape in case of a police raid
the villa will be equipped to receive up to 32 guests among its 24 rooms
but with a twist – in the living room hangs an iconic anti-mafia photo of Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino
the two magistrates killed in 1992 after their investigation of the Sicilian mafia
known colloquially as Cosa Nostra (our thing)
View image in fullscreenGianluca Calì holds the photo of the judges Falcone and Borsellino
he can count the number of vehicles he has had torched in the last 9 years
a few months before the purchase of the villa
when a successful year of used car sales did not go unnoticed in Casteldaccia
“Two members of the local mafia family came to our office and told my brother that they needed cash to pay for the clan’s legal expenses
We refused and shortly thereafter they torched the first car.”
Calì reported the incident to the police and decided to invest part of his profits in a villa on the coast of Casteldaccia that was going up for auction
View image in fullscreenThe BMW X5 of Gianluca Calì
is today parked at the Calì’s car dealership as an anti-mafia memorial
Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The GuardianHe had no idea that the previous owner had been Michele “The Pope” Greco
the head of a group of leading mobsters called the Sicilian Mafia Commission
Greco had purchased the land in 1965 and built his summer residence there two years later
a multiple murderer who had dissolved some of his victims in acid
one of the most powerful Sicilian mafia bosses
Greco used to hold summit meetings of the Sicilian Mafia Commission in the villa
planning some of the most infamous murders in Italian history
an Italian communist party leader who proposed a law making Mafia association a crime
The murder of General Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa
sent as prefect to Sicily to combat the mafia
was commissioned by the bosses while relaxing in the living room the same year
View image in fullscreenAerial view over the coast of Altavilla Milicia
Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The GuardianBut by the time Calì realised that the villa
“The police informed me that if I had turned back
leaving the villa in the hands of Greco’s heirs
I could have been accused of abetting the mafia
“His heirs came to visit me a few days later
to tell me it would be better if I got out of the way
I had already been through the first arson attacks for refusing to pay protection money
I then decided to transform the villa into an anti-mafia museum and a vacation home for tourists.”
View image in fullscreenThe villa
moved to Milan in the meantime and says he lost count of the threats
stated that he had decided to shoot Calì with a .45 calibre pistol that year
Fortunately the police arrested him a few days later
Calì sleeps with a gun under his pillow and drives an armoured car
was sentenced to 11 years in prison last September
A sign on the villa gate reads: “In the house
View image in fullscreenGianluca Calì’s assistant inside one of the rooms of the villa
Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The GuardianIf you ask him whether the guests will be safe spending the night there
after the hardships suffered by himself and his family
Calì points to the dozens of security cameras
who patrol this area and protect me and my customers
The mafia and the Grecos shouldn’t frighten anyone,” he adds
He joined hundreds of other defendants in a large anti-mafia trial that lasted six years and became known as the Maxi-Trial
Greco was charged with ordering 78 murders and sentenced to life imprisonment
View image in fullscreenGianluca Calì photographed inside his villa
previously owned by former mafia boss Michele Greco and now turned into a holiday house
Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The GuardianThe men who orchestrated his downfall are the same two depicted in the photo now hanging inside
“I could care less what Greco must be thinking from hell about what has become of his villa,” says Calì