Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli – Lake Garda
This exclusive villa is set in impeccably kept grounds and offers outstanding service and Michelin-starred cuisine to match. The rooms are elegant and cosy with the living areas seemingly melting into one, and meals are served anywhere on the property.
The Art Nouveau, 20-room villa oozes intimate elegance yet exudes a welcoming and relaxed feel. It was built in 1892 and has a highly decorated façade painted in warm terracotta and golden hues, topped by small castle-like turrets. It has witnessed its fair share of history too. Between 1943 and 1945 it became the home of Mussolini and his family. The interiors are elegant, sophisticated and tastefully furnished, with intricate frescoes, high ceilings and a wide staircase leading up to the rooms that adds to the villa’s grandeur. It’s exceptionally cosy too, with a library and wood-burning fireplace, and shelves lined with classic works of literature.
It has a gorgeous location set in immaculate grounds on the lakefront and shaded by magnolia, oak and olive trees. It’s a short walk north of Gargnano, a tranquil town on the lake’s western shore. The elegant town of Salò is a 20-minute drive south and has a pleasant waterfront promenade and a charming old quarter sprinkled with boutiques.
The rooms are spread across the main villa and four cottages dotted around the gardens. The rooms in the main villa have the feel of a bedroom in a very grand country house, complete with oil portraits and historic prints above wooden antiques, silver-framed black-and-white photographs displayed around the room, with a hand-printed Venetian paper desk sets adding a personal touch. The finest suites are in the park cottages. They’re more contemporary in décor, with stylish rustic interiors and private covered patios. The spacious marble bathrooms have heated floors and Acqua di Parma toiletries.
The superb cuisine is one of the highlights of the hotel. At the two Michelin-starred restaurant, Chef Stefano Baiocco uses over one hundred types of herbs and edible flowers in his creatively presented dishes, all picked from the hotel’s very own herb and vegetable garden. There’s even a 100 per cent Green tasting menu.
You won’t have to rush to breakfast here – it’s served all day and anywhere you like on the property, with virtually whatever tickles your fancy, from croissants and eggs Benedict to caviar and a glass of champagne. For an evening sundowner, sit back at one of the lakefront tables and enjoy a glass of vino to the sound of the waves lapping against the shore – it’s a hugely romantic spot.