Lake Como's western shore — the so-called Riviera delle Azalee — has long been the lake's most sought-after address. And gazing across the water towards Bellagio's sparkling promontory, sits the Grand Hotel Tremezzo, an Art Nouveau palace built in 1910 and still family-owned today. Greta Garbo summered here and Clooney's been spotted on the terrace, but for all the celebrity connections, it's the personal warmth of the De Santis family that lingers longest. Five restaurants (including one honouring Italy's first three-Michelin-star chef), three pools and a Santa Maria Novella spa in an 18th-century villa make it rather difficult to leave.
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Belle Époque salons with silk-draped windows and antique furnishings set the tone, but there's nothing stuffy about Tremezzo whatsoever. The candlelit La Terrazza restaurant and velvet-clad T Bar both feel genuinely inviting, and L'Escale wine bar stocks over 1,300 Italian bottles in a converted cellar. For something more relaxed, try Da Giacomo al Lago for seafood on the sand, or T-Bar, where Naples-trained pizzaioli work a wood-burning oven. And breakfast? Served in a frescoed room overlooking the lake and regularly voted as one of the finest hotel breakfasts in Europe.
Spread across five floors of the original palace, the 77 rooms and suites are decorated in Liberty style with high ceilings, muted tones and period furnishings. Lake-view rooms are the ones to go for (garden-facing rooms look inland), and the named suites, including Suite Greta, an ode to Garbo, are lovely pieces of history. But it's the rooftop floor that steals the spotlight: six contemporary suites with private terraces, heated Jacuzzis and panoramas to die for. Throughout, marble bathrooms are stocked with custom Aqua Como products.
Hop aboard one of the hotel's vintage Venetian launches for a spin around the lake and gaze at the villas and mountains from the water. Villa Carlotta's botanical gardens are literally next door, while the famous Villa Balbianello (you'll recognise it from Casino Royale) is a short ride away. Catch the ferry to Bellagio for an afternoon of browsing and gelato, or hike a stretch of the scenic Greenway trail along the shoreline. Seven top-tier golf courses sit within driving distance too. At the hotel, the T Spa's indoor infinity pool, hammam and sauna with lake views provide all the relaxation you could ask for.
That floating pool. Heated and sitting right on the surface of the lake, it's the most photographed swim in Italy — and even better in person.
La Terrazza is the only restaurant in the world still serving Gualtiero Marchesi's legendary dishes. The gold-leaf saffron risotto is unmissable.
It's a sizeable property so if you're after something small and intimate, this isn't it.
Lakeside real estate, dreamy hotels and the epitome of the good life.
