28 January 2008 – Exploring Italy’s rural charm with babies or young kids in tow just got easier with the launch of Tots to Italy (www.totstoitaly.co.uk). The site builds on the success of its award-winning sister brand - Tots to France – by providing holiday properties in beautiful Italian locations fully stocked with child-friendly kit, ensuring a relaxing holiday for parents with young children.

Tots to Italy has properties in Northern Tuscany and the largely undiscovered Marche region, with others in Siena and Sardinia to be added soon. The villas are located in and around small picturesque hilltop villages with cobbled streets and traditional architecture, and within easy reach of mountains and the sea. Visitors  experience ‘real Italy’, without hordes of tourists and where restaurants serve whatever fresh, local produce is available on the day.

“While the romance of staying in a remote village appeals to parents who desperately want to get away from it all, they have to consider the practicalities if they’re travelling with young children. We’ve done that for them by personally visiting and vetting every property to ensure that they’re suitable for families,” explains Wendy Shand, founder of Tots to Travel, parent company of www.totstoitaly.co.uk and www.totstofrance.co.uk.

Every property provides the necessities that parents take for granted at home like sterilisers, blenders, booster seats, cots, plastic crockery and cutlery, baby baths, bath mats and potties. The properties also focus on safety, with enclosed swimming pools and stairgates where possible, electric plug sockets and baby monitors.

“As many of these traditional properties are built into hills or set over different levels, it can be difficult to enclose every stairway. But any areas that we think might be a potential hazard for young movers are highlighted on the site so that parents can judge the property’s suitability for their family in advance,” says Shand. “These parts of Italy are definitely for more adventurous parents who are prepared to head off the beaten track with their children. We’ve just made it far easier for them to do it.”

The company also provides baby packs on request that include the right size nappies, nappy sacks, wet wipes, jars of baby food and full fat milk. English-speaking babysitters can also be arranged.  Most properties are about an hour’s drive from an airport so that travel time from the UK is kept to a minimum.

You can search for properties at www.totstoitaly.co.uk by size, location or availability.

The site also features a video tour of one of the properties so that parents can get a clear picture of what’s available. Prices range from £1550 to £3200 per week depending on the dates chosen.

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About Tots to Travel
Tots to Travel is the parent company of Tots to France (www.totstofrance.co.uk) and Tots to Italy (www.totstoitaly.co.uk).

Tots to France was set up by Wendy Shand, mum of two, in April 2006 as a holiday lettings agency with a range of family friendly properties throughout France. The company specialises in providing accommodation to meet the very specific needs of families with babies and young children.

The concept proved enormously successful, with the company now offering over 50 French properties. Building on this success, the award-winning formula has been replicated in Italy with the launch of Tots to Italy. Roll outs for other countries like the UK, Spain, Australia and South Africa are currently being planned.

Wendy Shand won the Mother@work Best Mumpreneur Award 2007, the Enterprisenation Home Business of the Year Award 2007 and the BT Essence of the Entrepreneur Award 2007.