Puglia

Italy

Puglia offers the best of Italy all in one place, from pristine beaches in quaint seaside towns to fascinating archaeological sites in Ostuni, and a culinary tradition of cucina povera that has brought food aficionados to the region for centuries. Here, miles of crystal waters frame Baroque architecture, giving it the nickname of the Florence of the South.

With the longest coastline of any region in the boot, take advantage of all the Adriatic has to offer. Spend time on the Straits of Otranto, home to the Otranto Jazz Festival and La Notte della Taranta. Here, the area's traditional dance, the Pizzica, is frequently celebrated. Stop by Salice Salentino and try its famous wines or simply dock in the port town of Brindisi, a former Roman settlement and today a thriving hotspot. Bellissimo!

Seehotel Ambach

A groovy icon from the seventies, Seehotel Ambach, presides over the shores of Lake Caldaro in Italy’s South Tyrol with its perfectly formed, curvaceous marshmallowy walls of laid-back glamour and a canvas of tangerine, vert and oxide red, which drape mid-century furniture pieces.

Roncolo 1888 | Boutique Guesthouse Hotel in the Venturini Baldini Vineyards of Emilia Romagna, Italy | The Aficionados

Guesthouse - Emilia-Romagna, Italy

Roncolo 1888

Dating back to the 16th century and once the noble country pad of Marquises and Counts – the Roncolo 1888 is a boutique guesthouse-hotel set within 130-hectares of the Venturini Baldini viticultural estate.

Parkhotel Mondschein | Bolzano, South Tyrol Italy | The Aficionados

HOTEL - Bolzano, Italy

Parkhotel Mondschein

Remodelled over the centuries, 'Cinematic Italian' is the interior design mantra that consummately knits the restored historical elements to the nostalgia, style and flamboyance from the height of Italian film and design of the 1960s.

South Tyrol

Alpe di Siusi

East of Bolzano is the long heralded as Europe’s largest alpine plateau in the Dolomites of South Tyrol | Alto Adige, the pastures and ski region of Alpe di Siusi, or Seiser Alm in German.

Gloriette Guesthouse Soprabolzano - Cantilevered Rooftop infinity pool in South Tyrol designed by noa architects, overlooking the Dolomites

Guesthouse - Soprabolzano, Italy

Gloriette Guesthouse

With mountain eye-candy stretching out in every direction, this nest egg of casual style is the perfect bolthole for urbanites who love the rural idyll framed by modernity and crowned by its fabulous rooftop infinity pool of sheer wow.

Borgo Eibn Mountain Lodge overlooks the Carnic Alps in Sauris, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy. A boutique hotel, spa & restaurant with chalet style accommodation.

Hotel - Friuli Venezia Giulia , Italy

Borgo Eibn Mountain Lodge

Caramel timbers, robust chunky stone and larch shingled rooftops amplifies Alpine charisma buttered across the three ‘Malghe’houses of the Borgo Eibn which are draped in the views of the Sauris plateau and the Dolomites.

HOTEL - Sirmione, Italy

Aqva Boutique Hotel

With the feel of a hip in-the-know club for lido-lovers, Aqva Boutique Hotel’s modular alabaster white building is fronted by a turquoise pool surrounded by sleek decking. Like a pointing finger, a private pier juts out onto the lake - perfect for those celeb moments.

Vigilius Mountain Resort, a design hotel created by architect, Matteo Thun

Hotel - Monte San Vigilio, Italy

Vigilius Mountain Resort

The vigilius mountain resort was created by architect Matteo Thun, inspired by a fallen tree and the surrounding beauty of San Vigilio’s mountaintop landscapes. This wellness sanctuary rewrites the blueprint for an eco-design hotel, reached appropriately only by cable car.

Apartment - Rome, Italy

Crossing Corso

Crossing Corso Apartment is a luxury design pad in the heartlands of Rome set within a historic 18th-century palazzo townhouse, which poignantly resides behind the Piazza di Spagna.

Schloss Freudenstein | Luxury Hotel with Boutique Suites in Appiano/Eppan, Italy | The Aficionados

HOTEL - Appiano, Italy

Schloss Freudenstein

Sleep under medieval frescoes, sweep down labyrinthine corridors, lord it up on the lofty ramparts or stroll through the Mediterranean garden, admiring the ivy-clad castle backdrop.

Filario Hotel Lake Como | Lezzeno, Lombardy Italy | The Aficionados

Hotel - Lake Como, Italy

Filario

A sleek modernist mansion sitting front row on the Lezzeno shoreline of Lake Como, backed by a mountainous canopy forest. An homage to Italian custom, style and native craftsmanship, Filario flirts with time-past decadence and chilled luxury.

Vivere Suites and Rooms - a small design bed & breakfast, in the Arco Mountains, close to Lake Garda, Italy

Guesthouse - Arco, Italy

Vivere Suites and Rooms

A small designer outpost that is both rustic and sophisticated in its design simplicity – conceived to mirror the surrounding vineyards and Arco Mountains of Trentino, this rural idyll is an architectural bolthole that gives nature a stylish makeover, irresistibly close to Lake Garda.