Belmond has announced happenings at its European properties for summer 2023.
WHAT’S NEW:
Belmond will expand MITICO, a series of art exhibitions in partnership with art gallery Galleria Continua - with the inclusion of seven Belmond hotels in Italy, Spain, U.K. and Brazil. Installations will kick off at La Residencia, Mallorca and continue to Sicily (Grand Hotel Timeo and Villa Sant’Andrea), Florence (Villa San Michele) and Tuscany (Castello di Casole). Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, Oxfordshire and Copacabana Palace, Rio de Janeiro will also receive artwork for the first time this year. The full schedule will be available soon.
WHERE TO STAY:
Splendido, Portofino: Splendido will unveil the first phase of a multi-year restoration on 08JUN. The hotel will show the transformation of the pool area, the Splendido Grill restaurant, and the Baronessa Suite.
Don’t Miss: Guests can tour two private palaces that date back to the 16th century and take a boat tour to the fishing village Portovenere overlooking the Gulf of Poets with a local guide.
Splendido Mare, Portofino: Following a complete restoration that debuted in 2021, Splendido Mare has views overlooking the harbor and 14 rooms filled with armchairs, marble surfaces, and works by Italian painter Gabriele Cappelli.
Don’t Miss: Off-property, guests can go on a complimentary ride aboard a traditional wooden gozzo fishing boat, or learn about the health-giving properties of wild herbs like sea hornbeam and myrtle on a botanist-led walking tour of the Mount Portofino Natural Park.
Grand Hotel Timeo, Taormina: This hotel in Taormina will celebrate its 150th anniversary with 150 limited edition bottles of volcanic wine in collaboration with winery Pietradolce Etna. Otto Geleng restaurant, with Michelin-starred executive chef Roberto Toro, will provide a range of food options throughout the season.
Don’t Miss: Guests can take a private tour of the grand Palazzo Castelluccio, which has recently undergone a restorationand have lunch at the private noble residence Palazzo Modica, and visit the private atelier of Catania-born artist Sergio Fiorentino.
Villa Sant’Andrea, Taormina: Villa Sant’Andrea on Bay of Mazzaro, is open.
Don’t Miss: Guests can see a show at the ancient Greek Theater with Mount Etna as your backdrop, take a tour on a Sicilian fishing boat (with stops at the Blue Grotto, Isola Bella, Cape Taormina, and more), or sail to the town of AciTrezza to meet members of the Rodolico family, who have been building handcrafted boats since 1908 and have lunch and spend an afternoon at the home of a local fisherman.
Villa San Michele, Florence: Villa San Michele is a former medieval monastery nestled in the Fiesole hills whose 15th-century façade is attributed to the School of Michelangelo. Opening date: 16MAY.
Don’t Miss: Guests can take an expert-led food tour of Florence’s grain markets, vegetable stalls, and pastry shops; learn the art of calligraphy with Florence-based calligrapher and designer Betty Soldi, and tour through the private archives of renowned landscape architect Pietro Porcinai in the hidden rooms of the Opificio delle Pietre Dure.
Castello di Casole, Tuscany: The former 10th century castle is located on one of the largest private estates in Italy, spanning 1,700-hectares and producing its own wine, olive oil and honey. This season, the hotel introduces Orti del Castello, or the Castello Vegetable Gardens, cultivating vegetables, fruits, and edible flowers, as well as a sustainable cooking class to highlight the property’s farm-to-table philosophy. Guests can also take themed workshops on how to make their own herbal teas and natural cosmetic products and botanical eco-printing masterclasses.
Don’t Miss: On an astrotour led by an English-speaking astronomer, guests will learn about nocturnal orienteering, discovering why the property has been awarded the “I Cieli più belli d’Italia'' quality astro tourism certification. They can also take an archaeology tour to learn about the Etruscans. The half-day excursion includes a restoration workshop and a tour of a tomb site at Casole’s Etruscan Museum followed by spa treatments based on Etruscan traditions back at the property.
Cipriani, Venice: Located on Guidecca Island just across from Venice, Cipriani offers exclusive before- and after-hours access to famous sites and private excursions to surrounding towns.
Don’t Miss: Guests can sail the Venetian lagoon aboard Edipo Re exploring areas like Pellestrina, a narrow sliver of a fishing village, or Torcello, known for its seventh-century cathedral and Byzantine mosaics. They can also go on a cycling excursion along the sandbars of Lio Piccolo or on Sant’Erasmo island, where the tour concludes with a visit to the il Miele del Doge apiary to visit the beehives and taste the Barena honey.
Caruso, Ravello: An 11th-century palace set on a cliff’s edge 300-metres above sea level on the Amalfi Coast, this property includes paintings by old masters, marble-clad hallways, and a pool that appears to drop into the sea below. New this season, the hotel offers coastline tours, a collaboration with UNESCO-recognized National Park of Cilento, and local ingredients for its restaurants from Vallo di Diano.
Don’t Miss: Guests can take a guided tour of recent discoveries of Pompeii, including the Domus del Frutteto (House of the Orchard), and a four-wheeled processional chariot from the suburban villa of Civita Giuliana. Guests can also go on a tour of the region’s grandest lemon grove, take a private tour of the Nettuno workshop that produces the area’s anchovy sauce, and visit the San Salvatore farm to stroll through the olive groves and meet the buffalo whose milk is used to produce creamy mozzarella.
La Residencia, Mallorca: Located between the Mediterranean and the Tramuntana mountains, La Residencia incluedes 800 works from local painters, 35 rooms and 32 suites set inside 16th-century manor houses, and access to the village of Deià. This year, La Residencia launched ‘Artists in Residencia’ in collaboration with Galleria Continua. Three emerging artists have been selected for two-month residency programs, resulting in artwork that will be exhibited throughout the hotel. Artists will have access to a room and studio at La Residencia, as well as a monthly living grant and production funding.
Don’t Miss: In a remote enclave near Alcudia, the Fundacion Yannick y Ben Jakober is a cultural institution comprising an underground art gallery, a sculpture park, and a rose garden with over a hundred varieties of old English roses. Guests can also tour a neighboring country estate and have a picnic on the grounds of the Sa Bassa Blanca Museum.
Reid’s Palace, Madeira: Guests of the Reid’s Palace have access to the whale-watching, deep-sea fishing, wine tours, and more.
Don’t Miss: Madeira has a month-long Flower Festival in MAY. In 2023 Reid’s Palace will host a complimentary Botanical Bliss weekend, 05-07MAY, featuring horticultural workshops led by Madeiran-born Mónica, including the drying of flowers, eco-printing and herbal vegan candles, all sourced on the hotel’s gardens and herbs. There will also be a full-day trip to the Desertas Islands on the Princess V50 yacht.
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