The magic of Portofino lives on in the newly renovated Belmond Splendido Mare

The Belmond Splendido high above Portofino is world-famous. However, only a few people know that there is a second hotel of the brand, the Belmond Splendido Mare, directly on the Piazzetta at the harbour of the small town. After a complete renovation of the hotel with its only 14 rooms and suites, this should now change as quickly as possible. The reopening is planned for mid-April.

The building of today’s Belmond Splendido Mare once housed the village’s first osteria and later a guesthouse, which was then transformed into a boutique hotel in 1998. Now Belmond wants to revive the magic of the 1950s at this location, when Hollywood left its mark on Portofino. One of the suites is therefore dedicated to Ava Gardner, who stayed here in 1954 during the filming of the Hollywood classic “The Barefoot Contessa” with Humphrey Bogart.

New restaurant with terrace on the Piazzetta

Mid-Century is also consistent in the design, which was conceived and realised by the Parisian design agency Festen Architecture. The 14 rooms and suites of the Belmond Splendido Mare feature original pieces of furniture from this period – such as the famous armchairs by Paolo Buffa and Gio Ponti, the walnut armchairs by Ulrich Guglielmo and the table lamps by Oscar Torlasco. Many Italians grew up with these pieces.

The wooden floors of the Belmond Splendido Mare were inspired by the village church of San Giorgio – and for the bathrooms, the designers found their inspiration in the beach cottages of the surrounding area. The new restaurant “DaV Mare” with its large terrace is also intended to become a trendy meeting place on the Piazzetta again – just like in the 1950s. For this goal, Belmond relies on a culinary partnership with the Da Vittorio Group of the Cerea family.

Click here for the website of the Belmond Splendido Mare