Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli: The Jewel of Italy’s Lake Garda
August 20, 2006 | 12:00am
When Hitler set up Benito Mussolini as the head of northern Italy’s Fascist Republic of Salo, he lived in what was once the grand family villa of the influential Feltrinelli family on Lake Garda. The vacation home was seized by the Nazis in 1943 and basically turned into a military outpost before Il Duce was essentially placed under house arrest there for the last couple of years of his life. It must have been a mixed bag of emotions for Mussolini to be a prisoner on beautiful Lake Garda in the summer retreat of a family he has long had a falling out with. By the time the Feltrinelli family was able to regain control of the property after the war, it had suffered from years of neglect. No longer was it the grand dame it used to be. No longer was it the crown jewel of the lake.
Fast forward to 1996 when the dilapidated property came to the attention of über-hotelier and Regent Hotels International founder Robert Burns. He had a vision of restoring the property to its old glory and once again making it the grand villa it was. Burns originally wanted to turn the villa into his own home, but after learning how much it would cost – fortunately for the rest of us – he decided that the only way the restoration could be justified was to turn the property into a hotel. Five years and $30 million later, the Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli opened its doors in July 2001.
Much less commercialized and not nearly as well known as Lake Como, Lake Garda is actually the biggest of Italy’s lakes and is blessed with relatively mild climate all year round. Among the towns dotting its coastline is Gargnano, home to Villa Feltrinelli and hardly where you would expect to find such a top-caliber hotel. After driving off the quiet town’s main road onto one of the side streets, you need to keep your eyes peeled for the small signs that discreetly say "Feltrinelli" to find the nearly invisible hotel. Following the signs, you come upon a small innocuous iron gate with a winding white pebble path behind it which seems barely large enough for a mid-sized car. As the villa’s unremarkable walls blend into the town’s background, they do not scream "Stay out! No trespassing!" as many exclusive properties with their imposing ramparts often do. Instead, the outside view seems to let out a tiny whisper, saying "actually we would prefer that you did not know we were here at all."
Feltrinelli consists of 21 rooms, 13 in the main house and eight in the surrounding gardens which include a swimming pool, boat docks and an original limonaia which was built in the 1800s to protect a grove of lemon trees. With every room having its own unique décor, we were fortunate enough to occupy one of the property’s signature rooms, La Torre. Although not nearly the largest room, it is located on the top floor of the villa’s tower, which gives the room its name, with distinctively round windows acting like portholes overlooking the eight-acre property and the lake in an arcing 180-plus-degree view.
Standard facilities in Feltrinelli far exceed luxuries in most other hotels. Frette sheets and Pratesi bedspreads comprise the finest bed linen you will find anywhere. Acqua di Parma bathroom amenities, like nickel-plated Lefroy-Brooks fixtures, spare no expense in the bathroom and a state-of-the-art sound system with a flat-screen LCD television hooked up to a 100-channel satellite system ensure that you will have plenty to do while enjoying your complimentary mini-bar.
In the June 2006 issue of Travel and Leisure magazine, its Editor’s Picks section singled out Villa Feltrinelli’s laundry service as taking laundry "to new heights of luxury: each article of clothing is folded perfectly, wrapped in tissue, and tied up with a silk ribbon and a sprig of lavender." However, the magazine forgot to mention perhaps the most important thing – the laundry service is also complimentary.
Although the hotel does provide its guests with numerous alternatives in the towns surrounding Lake Garda, dining in Feltrinelli is as much a delight as any of the other experiences the hotel has to offer. Excellent food with many local flavors and a large selection of Italian wines combine with an unbeatable ambience and stellar service for a gastronomical experience that can rival many one-starred Michelin restaurants.
In such a hotel of superlatives, what could possibly be its most lavish luxury? Without a doubt it was the rose petals placed in the toilet during evening turndown. Make whatever jokes you feel are appropriate, but somehow, flowers in a bathtub will just never cut it anymore.
A villa restored to all its grandeur with frescoed ceilings and antique furniture blending seamlessly with the latest in technology. Immaculately maintained gardens, topnotch dining and service combine with little touches such as washing your car prior to its return. And with nothing to sign – except when you check out – all that is left is for you to conveniently forget to turn on your cell phone as you enjoy what really feels like a vacation at your very rich friend’s house.
The Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli is located in Gargnano, Italy on Lake Garda and is open from spring to autumn. Visit www.villafeltrinelli.com. Tel. 390 365 79 8000. Fax 390-365-79-8001. Email grandhotel@villafeltrinelli.com.
For comments, e-mail me at omniumg@yahoo.com.
Fast forward to 1996 when the dilapidated property came to the attention of über-hotelier and Regent Hotels International founder Robert Burns. He had a vision of restoring the property to its old glory and once again making it the grand villa it was. Burns originally wanted to turn the villa into his own home, but after learning how much it would cost – fortunately for the rest of us – he decided that the only way the restoration could be justified was to turn the property into a hotel. Five years and $30 million later, the Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli opened its doors in July 2001.
Much less commercialized and not nearly as well known as Lake Como, Lake Garda is actually the biggest of Italy’s lakes and is blessed with relatively mild climate all year round. Among the towns dotting its coastline is Gargnano, home to Villa Feltrinelli and hardly where you would expect to find such a top-caliber hotel. After driving off the quiet town’s main road onto one of the side streets, you need to keep your eyes peeled for the small signs that discreetly say "Feltrinelli" to find the nearly invisible hotel. Following the signs, you come upon a small innocuous iron gate with a winding white pebble path behind it which seems barely large enough for a mid-sized car. As the villa’s unremarkable walls blend into the town’s background, they do not scream "Stay out! No trespassing!" as many exclusive properties with their imposing ramparts often do. Instead, the outside view seems to let out a tiny whisper, saying "actually we would prefer that you did not know we were here at all."
Feltrinelli consists of 21 rooms, 13 in the main house and eight in the surrounding gardens which include a swimming pool, boat docks and an original limonaia which was built in the 1800s to protect a grove of lemon trees. With every room having its own unique décor, we were fortunate enough to occupy one of the property’s signature rooms, La Torre. Although not nearly the largest room, it is located on the top floor of the villa’s tower, which gives the room its name, with distinctively round windows acting like portholes overlooking the eight-acre property and the lake in an arcing 180-plus-degree view.
Standard facilities in Feltrinelli far exceed luxuries in most other hotels. Frette sheets and Pratesi bedspreads comprise the finest bed linen you will find anywhere. Acqua di Parma bathroom amenities, like nickel-plated Lefroy-Brooks fixtures, spare no expense in the bathroom and a state-of-the-art sound system with a flat-screen LCD television hooked up to a 100-channel satellite system ensure that you will have plenty to do while enjoying your complimentary mini-bar.
In the June 2006 issue of Travel and Leisure magazine, its Editor’s Picks section singled out Villa Feltrinelli’s laundry service as taking laundry "to new heights of luxury: each article of clothing is folded perfectly, wrapped in tissue, and tied up with a silk ribbon and a sprig of lavender." However, the magazine forgot to mention perhaps the most important thing – the laundry service is also complimentary.
Although the hotel does provide its guests with numerous alternatives in the towns surrounding Lake Garda, dining in Feltrinelli is as much a delight as any of the other experiences the hotel has to offer. Excellent food with many local flavors and a large selection of Italian wines combine with an unbeatable ambience and stellar service for a gastronomical experience that can rival many one-starred Michelin restaurants.
In such a hotel of superlatives, what could possibly be its most lavish luxury? Without a doubt it was the rose petals placed in the toilet during evening turndown. Make whatever jokes you feel are appropriate, but somehow, flowers in a bathtub will just never cut it anymore.
A villa restored to all its grandeur with frescoed ceilings and antique furniture blending seamlessly with the latest in technology. Immaculately maintained gardens, topnotch dining and service combine with little touches such as washing your car prior to its return. And with nothing to sign – except when you check out – all that is left is for you to conveniently forget to turn on your cell phone as you enjoy what really feels like a vacation at your very rich friend’s house.
The Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli is located in Gargnano, Italy on Lake Garda and is open from spring to autumn. Visit www.villafeltrinelli.com. Tel. 390 365 79 8000. Fax 390-365-79-8001. Email grandhotel@villafeltrinelli.com.
For comments, e-mail me at omniumg@yahoo.com.
BrandSpace Articles
<
>
