Savor The Summer Season, Italian Style
La dolce vita never gets old, and this season promises to be one of the best. Visit new hotspots in Capri, Verona and beyond
Passalacqua, Lake Como
Perhaps the most anticipated opening of summer (or the year, for that matter) is Passalacqua, a historic private villa that has been lovingly transformed into a 24-suite hotel on the edge of Lake Como, just above the picturesque village of Moltrasio. Once home to composer Vincenzo Bellini, and host to literary and political figures including Winston Churchill, Passalacqua is the passion project of Paolo, Antonella and stylish CEO Valentina DeSantis—a family with multigenerational ties to the lake whose sister property, the iconic Grand Hotel Tremezzo, has set the standard for understated elegance for decades.
With majestic terraced gardens dotted with centuries-old trees and fountains, the villa is an ideal destination for those seeking a quick, quiet respite from the bustling world beyond. Other painstakingly perfect details include a lush rose garden, a vegetable garden that supplies the hotel’s creative kitchens, an open-air gym and exquisitely restored glass houses—complete with flowering fruit trees. But it is the 24 suites—set within the original villa, the original stables and Casa del Lago—that are truly stunning. From a double-height suite where Bellini once played to the sumptuous marble-clad bathrooms (each single slab hand-chosen from the Breccia Pontificia in Verona—the same found in The Vatican) and vivid, frescoed ceilings, Passalacqua is a relaxing retreat like no other. For shimmering lake views, a game of tennis at the water’s edge or a sunset sail in one of the villa’s beautifully restored vintage boats, book in at Passalacqua and leave the world behind.