The Borgo Orfeo Project
Where history and possibility meet
At the heart of Borgo Orfeo lies a simple yet powerful intention:
to create a place where people can experience a meaningful quality of life, together with the land, the community and the natural rhythms that surround them.
What we are creating is not a model for how people should live.
It is an environment in which different people can bring their own way of being, their talents and their passions — and discover what becomes possible when these different expressions meet.
This is the living heart of Borgo Orfeo.
Harmony at the heart of Borgo Orfeo
Harmony is the guiding intention behind the project.
Not harmony as something perfect or fixed, but as a living quality that can emerge when people, place and nature are in relationship with one another.
We imagine a place where you feel safe, welcomed and free to be yourself.
A place where everyday life can unfold at a more natural pace.
Where there is space for quiet and connection, for creativity and sharing, for being together and for being alone.
The restoration of the buildings is therefore an important part of the journey — but it is not the whole story.
Natural materials, carefully considered colours and architecture that respects the existing character of the hamlet will help the buildings settle naturally into their surroundings.
Shared spaces and places for quiet reflection will create opportunities to meet, pause, connect and simply enjoy being here.
The physical environment becomes a container for something more subtle:
a quality of living.
The people bringing the project to life
From vision to manifestation
Borgo Orfeo is being brought to life by a Belgian couple who have lived in the hamlet since 2021, together with a trusted network of local professionals, builders and technicians.
With more than a decade of experience in Umbria, they have developed a deep connection with the land, the local community and the culture of this region.
What began as a dream has gradually become something tangible.
Plans have been drawn.
Buildings have been restored.
People have joined the journey.
New ideas have emerged.
And with every step, the vision has become clearer.
Yet the next chapter cannot be created by one person or one couple.
It will be shaped by the future custodians and residents of Borgo Orfeo — people who each bring their own experience, passion, creativity and way of contributing.
This is where the project becomes truly co-creative.
We are not looking for people who fit into a predetermined picture.
We are curious about the people who feel something here and wonder:
What could I bring?
What could I create?
What could become possible if my life and my gifts became part of this place?
A community that was already here
Remembering the life of Castelvecchio
The story of Borgo Orfeo did not begin with us.
The buildings we are transforming once formed part of a lively rural community.
The three houses and several outbuildings that make up Borgo Orfeo are among the last parts of the hamlet waiting to be transformed. Other homes have already found new life over the past decade, and another house is expected to open in the summer of 2027.
But long before these buildings became part of our dream, they were already places of connection.
The houses once belonged to one family who ran a large village bazaar — much more than a shop.
It was a meeting place.
People from the surrounding countryside would come to the village with their wine, vegetables, flour and other produce. Neighbours met on the piazza. Bread was baked in the communal oven. Pizza was shared. News, stories and everyday life were exchanged.
From the 1940s through the 1970s, Castelvecchio even had its own small school, post office and telephone booth.
The village was a place where people came together.
A place where everyday life happened in relationship with others.
In many ways, the community we dream of is not something completely new.
It is a new expression of something this place already knows.
Perhaps this is why the memories of Castelvecchio matter so much to us.
They remind us that places carry stories.
And that sometimes transformation is not about starting from zero.
Sometimes it is about listening carefully enough to discover what is already there — and giving it space to live again.
From idea to action and manifestation
Borgo Orfeo is a journey of hope and connection.
A journey from an idea into action, and from action into something that can be experienced in the real world.
We are sharing this journey through our blog — not because we already know how the story will end, but because we believe there is value in sharing what happens along the way.
The discoveries.
The people.
The challenges.
The unexpected encounters.
The moments when an idea suddenly becomes possible.
And the many small steps through which a dream gradually takes form.
This is Borgo Orfeo as it is today: a place in transformation, and a story still unfolding.
“The dream of Borgo Orfeo is an expression of hope and connection — a journey from idea to action and manifestation.”
The co-creators of Borgo Orfeo