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Set within the old walled landscaped gardens of a 17th-century former convent in Arco, Trentino, the Salus per Aquam spa at design hotel Monastero Arx Vivendi is not an annexe: it’s the heart of this Italian wellness retreat, located close to Lake Garda.
Steffi and Manuel are the quiet custodians of this singular place. Originally from South Tyrol, they didn’t follow a linear path into hospitality. A high-powered Zurich life sparked the search for something slower, something more intentional. What began as a modest idea – a boutique B&B, perhaps a yoga studio – evolved into the full-scale reinvention of a centuries-old monastery. The result is a sanctuary shaped by reverence and restraint, brought to life with care and architectural clarity.
Newly developed in the monastery’s cloister garden, Salus per Aquam consists of seven light glass and metal volumes, positioned along a stone spine. This architectural line forms the axis of the wellness world within. Designed by the architectural studio NOA, the alternation of transparent cubes and green courtyards creates a rhythmic interplay of volume and void, forming a calm choreography of structure and garden.
“Wea aimed to create a dialogue more with the surrounding agricultural landscape than with the monastery, a little too ‘powerful’ in architectural terms,” explains Francesco Padovan, Architect. “To do this, we used very simple elements with strong structural clarity. The light metal framework, organised in pillars and beams, is inspired by the characteristic lemon houses of rural Lake Garda.”
The connecting spine is composed of Vicenza stone-clad pillars, their tones chosen to reflect the existing convent walls. A horizontal architrave in pre-fabricated, sandblasted concrete completes the structure – echoing the raised stone channel that edges the monastery’s eastern side.
Spread across 500 square metres, Salus per Aquam includes a sequence of relaxation rooms, saunas, treatment areas and a wellness course with aasteam bata. The first area holds loungers with garden views, followed by the treatment wing and a second relaxation space overlooking the biolake – a deep-toned natural water pool. A third space is formed by an open gallery wrapped in greenery. Beyond are the saunas – Finnish and bio – and the hammam, a wellness ritual built around a large, heated dark stone.
At its centre, the heated outdoor pool reflects sky, lemon trees and the centuries-old garden walls. It anchors the experience, a liquid cloister ringed by low paths and loungers tucked among lavender and rosemary. You float, not just in water, but in orchestrated stillness.
Treatments draw from the convent’s medicinal legacy: pomegranate seed oil, Moroccan Rhassoul clay, dry brushing with copper-tipped monastery brushes.
Heritage brands OWAY and FLORA were chosen for their biodynamic principles and botanical clarity. Even the rituals are quiet acts of design: exfoliation, sauna, footbaths, and long pauses that match the architecture’s tempo. The spa layout choreographs this flow beautifully – warm stone underfoot, filtered light above, garden fragrances everywhere.
“These interventions have resulted in a very particular hotel,” adds Francesco Padovan. “A refuge that takes you back in time, closely centred around the history and the particular features of this place. And where every construction choice, every material and detail, has been studied to draw on the majesty of the pre-existing context, exalting it and giving it new life.”
Niccolò Panzani, Interior Designer, reinforces the ethos: “Our complete respect for the existing architecture guided the design project.”
What NOA have done is rare. They’ve opened a site of spiritual gravity to contemporary repose without disturbing its soul. This is not a spa tacked onto a hotel. This is a garden of wellness, framed by mountain light, built in dialogue with stone, and steeped in the measured pace of monastic life.
For those seeking reset, reflection and remarkable architecture, Monastero Arx Vivendi offers not just treatments, but a cultivated kind of stillness. One carved in stone, softened by sky, and perfumed with the wisdom of a walled garden.
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Get the insider news and lowdown on what we've been up to, where we've been, and who we've met along the way. Be the first to discover new places and get the scoop on our favourites.