La Dolce Vita! Patricia Urquiola chose for the hotel a design in the typical Italian style of the fifties. Luxurious understatement and indulgent dolce vita await guests in absolute privacy.
On March 24, 2022, Il Sereno Lago di Como will kick off the 2022 summer season with its 40 light-filled and modernly sophisticated suites. A luxurious living experience is guaranteed simply because of the suite size of at least 65 square meters and the furnished private terraces with gorgeous lake views. Il Sereno is also one of the most celebrated new hotel buildings of the 21st century and a trailblazer in a region dominated by neoclassical buildings. Fittingly for the start of the season, the architectural jewel on Lake Como is wowing guests with culinary, glamorous and soothing innovations – whether Europe’s first shoppable penthouse suite, Botanical Cocktails, new Valmont treatments or the return of an icon, the “Il Sereno Inglesina” – a rowing boat from the 1930s.
First shoppable penthouse suite in Europe
Inspired by the Italian glamour of the 1950s – “La Dolce Vita” – as well as modernist Italian designers and silk fabrics from Como, the new Penthouse Suite, also designed by Patricia Urquiola, is one of the most sought-after penthouse suites in the world. Unique in Europe is the possibility to purchase all the furniture of the suite. Outside and inside, only locally sourced materials were used, including Canaletto walnut for the ceilings, Verde Alpi for stone walls, and Ceppo di Gré for the floors, combined with Venetian terrazzo.
Creative points of reference for textiles and fabrics were the scarf designs of the 1950s and landscape motifs from Lake Como. Framed by spectacular views of the lake and mountains, the interior is a tribute to emblematic Italian design, furnished with select furniture by Patricia Urquiola. These include the Lariana bathtub and Ludo fauteuil, both originally designed for Il Sereno and now featured in AGAPE and Cappellini catalogs. There are also true design classics, such as the Infinito bookcase by Franco Albini and the Leggera chair by Gio Ponti.
The pieces selected by Patricia Urquiola are all by renowned artists and creatives, including Gio Ponti, Vico Magistretti, Franco Albini, Charlotte Perirand and Carlo Scarpa. On the façade below the Penthouse Suite, renowned French botanist Patrick Blanc has also created a vertical sculpture garden.
Exquisite offer: the Inglesina – a handmade unique specimen
The Inglesina is a beautiful rowing boat originally built in the 1930s by the great-great-grandfather of the Sereno boat builder, Daniele Riva, for English tourists. He also made all of Il Sereno’s other boats by hand. Inspired by the boats on London’s Thames, the classically elegant rowing boat returns to its homeland from St. Moritz and other alpine lakes after nearly a century.
Guests at Il Sereno Lago di Como will be able to enjoy a new and exclusive romantic excursion aboard the Inglesina starting this season, letting themselves be carried along by the waves of Italy’s most famous lake while enjoying a picnic lovingly prepared by Executive Chef Raffaele Lenzi. All you have to do is open the lid of the elegant picnic basket handmade by Milan boutique Larusmiani. Pure dolce vita!
Rejuvenation by the Lake – refreshing treatment
Rejuvenation by the Lake is the new soothing exfoliating treatment with products from the exclusive Swiss brand Valmont and regional ingredients from Lake Como, such as olive oil bottled especially for Il Sereno and lavender from the hotel’s own gardens.
The ultra-refreshing moisturizing treatment soothes body and soul. The century-old boathouse in the background, the Darsena, adds to the aura. The entire SPA radiates tranquility with its design by Patricia Urquiola, delights with a sauna as well as a steam bath with Italian tiles, and blends harmoniously with the aesthetic unity of the rest of the building complex. No less unique is the outdoor area with its breathtaking 30-meter-long freshwater infinity pool, which seems to float directly above the lake.
Culinary at it’s best: Botanical Cocktail and Mocktail Menu and Ristorante Il Sereno Al Lago
For the start of the season Il Sereno Lobby Bar launches its new cocktail or mocktail concept. The bar’s sustainability concept follows a strategy of not using or creating any disposable products. Instead, a variety of floral compositions and botanical blends, including herbs from the bar’s own garden, indulge the senses. The menu features spectacular mocktails whose blended flavors draw from three sources: nature, sustainability and seasonal ingredients.
Mocktails specially tailored to Executive Chef Raffaele Lenzi’s tasting menus are also on the drink menu. Serenity (sorrel, beer and chamomile essence, lime and passion fruit), for example, makes the perfect companion to the “Fruit and Vegetable Minestrone” dessert. Il Sereno’s lakeside restaurant will welcome Executive Chef Raffaele Lenzi for the fifth consecutive year, who returns after a successful winter season at sister hotel Le Sereno St. Barths.
Ristorante Il Sereno Al Lago offers world-class gastronomy for the region and is also open to outside guests. Chef Lenzi’s award-winning menus, such as Contrasti, Omaggio alla tradizione and the famous Vegetali, Tuberi & Radici have been the basis of the popular restaurant’s excellent reputation for many years.
Vaporina del Lago Riva Boot Shuttle
Along the lakeshore you can find some of the best restaurants in the world and for guests who want to discover the gastronomic experiences outside the hotel, Il Sereno offers a very special service. Il Sereno is the only hotel on Lake Como to offer its guests an exclusive night shuttle boat service between 18:00h and 23:00h.
What could be more stylish than being driven to dinner by Il Sereno’s elegant boat with the melodious name Vaporina del Lago Riva? This floating work of art with interior by Patricia Urquiola has a comfortable outdoor area at the bow and stern, where guests enjoy their pre-dinner cocktails against a breathtaking backdrop.
Villa Pliniana from Sereno Hotels
For guests who value absolute seclusion and privacy, Villa Pliniana – a stunningly beautiful 16th-century Italian palazzo – belonging to Il Sereno is the perfect spot on Lake Como. Located within walking distance of the hotel, the approximately 7,000-square-foot estate features 19 luxurious bedrooms, a private boat dock, a helipad, a large spa, extensive gardens and first-class Sereno hotel services. V
illa Pliniana is the oldest property on the legendary lakefront and, with its soft interiors by Patricia Urquiola, is one of the most historic places in the region, with guests such as Napoleon, Byron, Foscolo and Gioacchino Rossini, who composed Tancredi in this villa.
“It’s great that we can open our hotel again for our guests after the challenging last year. Little by little we are returning to normality. Il Sereno is happy to welcome and delight its regular guests and also new visitors from all over the world. In the meantime, we are seeing an increase in the number of reservations, even compared to the pre-Corona years. Villa Pliniana is already fully booked from May to September 2022. And we hope to repeat unique events, such as the Cartier High Jewellery event in 2021, this season,”
so Hotelier Luis Contreras
