Il Borgo

Luigi Brega’s dream

Once upon a time, there was an ancient village and a young boy who grew up among its unpaved lanes and stone houses. There was a village surrounded by vineyards, home to farming families and people who were straightforward, genuine and deeply rooted in the land.

The boy loved his village, his mother’s village.

He knew every corner of the great courtyard by heart, where people danced under the summer sky on August evenings; the haylofts; the old inn, where a glass of wine could make you forget the weariness of working the land.

As the decades passed, the village slowly emptied.

The boy, too, had to leave. But when he did, he carried a promise in his heart: one day, he would return and bring his village back to life.

Sometimes, roots can become wings.

And today, that dream is more alive than ever.

The story of Borgo dei Gatti

The story of Borgo dei Gatti begins with a return.

Luigi Brega was born in Golferenzo, but as a young man he left these hills to build his life and pursue his entrepreneurial path elsewhere. Many years later, he returned to the village where he had grown up, this time with a different perspective and a desire: to give something back to the place where it had all begun.

At first, there was no grand plan. There was a house to restore. Then a restaurant to bring back to life. And finally, La Bütega — because, as Luigi likes to say, “you cannot imagine bringing a village back to life without bringing back its village shop.”

From there, almost naturally, everything else followed.

One by one, some of Golferenzo’s old houses were acquired and restored, with the aim of preserving what time had left behind: the stone walls, the floors, the wooden beams, the original proportions of the rooms, and those small imperfections that tell the story of a house far better than any decoration ever could.

And so the first homes of Borgo dei Gatti came to life.

Each one different from the next, scattered along the village streets and given a new life without erasing the one that came before. Because from the very beginning, the idea was never to turn Golferenzo into something else, but to bring it back to life.

Over the years, that small initial dream has grown. New homes have joined the Borgo, along with its restaurants, Adàsi Spa, the swimming pool, and new places to meet, eat, linger and spend time together. And Borgo dei Gatti continues to evolve, one step at a time.

New suites, new spaces dedicated to wellbeing and new services are expanding the project, but the idea at its heart remains exactly the same: to restore, preserve and share.

Because Borgo dei Gatti is not a finished project.

Are there really cats at Borgo dei Gatti?

It is one of the questions we are asked most often. And the answer is yes: the cats have always been here, long before us.

So much so that, to the older residents of Golferenzo, the street where our houses stand is still known as “via di gatt” — the street of the cats.

Proud and stray, they once roamed freely among the narrow lanes and haylofts. We decided to take care of them, and today they have a home, food and shelter. But, respecting their feline nature, they remain free, independent and a little mysterious — just as they have always been.

The cats of Golferenzo do not reveal themselves to everyone. You have to know how to slow down, notice the quietest corners, and move through this little world with gentleness.

In a way, it is a challenge.

If you can forget the frantic pace of city life, even just for a weekend, and live as though this place truly belonged to you, then perhaps they will let themselves be seen.

And that will be a rare privilege: a sign that you have truly found your rhythm with the Borgo, with nature and, perhaps, even with yourself.

Il Borgo

Luigi Brega’s dream

The story of Borgo dei Gatti

Are there really cats at Borgo dei Gatti?

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