Passalacqua

From the extravagant interiors to the divine Italianate gardens, the exceptional artisanship is overwhelming. Fresh flowers from the gardens fill the rooms and attentive staff look after your every need. This is a truly seductive lakeside haven.

There are just 24 rooms and suites, spread across the grand Villa, the ancient Palazz and the Casa al Lago – the romantic garden cottage that can be taken in its entirety. The décor and attention to detail in each and every one is second to none – hand-painted silk wallpaper, frescoed ceilings, marble bathrooms, Murano glass chandeliers, gilded mirrors, antique furniture, Persian carpets and sumptuous linens on the king-size beds – evoke aristocratic living.

The Italians also have a phrase for that fabulous feeling of not doing a great deal – dolce far niente, and this is the place to do it. Sitting by the pool, looking out over the lake and wandering through the terraced gardens, could take you an entire day. Maybe stretch to a game of tennis on the lakeside clay court, take a vintage motor launch out onto the lake from the villa’s private jetty, or a walk into the “borgo” of Moltrasio. If you’re after some self-improvement, you can learn to make ice cream, or glean some pruning tips from the head gardener. And if that’s all a bit too much, book yourself into the Spa in the Palazz, with its vaulted ceilings and subterranean sauna and ice bath. Then maybe put your feet up.