Between culture, beauty and food
No. 2 Villa Crespi…. As you turn the corner on the road to Orta San Giulio, the view Villa Crespi is something that almost takes your breath away, and the effect is no different as you approach Orta from the water or by helicopter. The astonishing sight of a minaret and a gorgeously intricate and ornate villa in Moorish style is perhaps slightly at odds with ideas most have of Italian architecture and reactions include rubbing of eyes in disbelief or a slight dropping of the jaw.
Italy My Way just couldn’t help being drawn to the unique architecture and the warm welcome as they crossed the threshold of Villa Crespi, one of Italy’s most exclusive destination hotels.
Just an hour from downtown Milan, 45 minutes from Milan’s Malpensa airport and less than half an hour from Stresa on Lake Maggiore, internationally known for Isola Bella, Villa Crespi is on Lake Orta and also ideally suited to anyone wishing to tour the lakes, adding Como, just an hour away to make a perfect triangle of Lakes, or even Lugano, also an hour’s drive away. Perfect relaxation and regeneration are the themes for any destination wedding or corporate event in Villa Crespi, a totally unforgettable occasion, something all who attend will ever strive to repeat!
Villa Crespi is unique architecture to surprise and delight, a heartfelt welcome to charm and relax, a haven from hectic urban living to seduce and bewitch; the ultimate in world-class dining experiences, innovative Mediterranean cuisine created by Antonino Cannavacciuolo, the face of today’s Italian gourmet cuisine who invites you to live the dream in Villa Crespi, where a buy-out of the 14 rooms and suites will ensure magical events, with the Wellness Suite where Ayurveda treatments and massages can be booked to offer greater relaxation and harmony of body and soul.
Activities offered in-house at Villa Crespi are an imprompta after dinner visit to Antonino Cannavacciuolo’s two Michelin star kitchens or even a morning Cooking Experience there with his brigade.
And the area around Villa Crespi offers amazing opportunities to explore gorgeous Alpine valleys, lakes and chocolate box villages. Orta San Giulio is one of Italy’s 100 most beautiful Medieval walled villages and has its own mysterious island. Further afield, the 100 Valleys offer a superb full day excursion: transfer to Stresa, boat to Ascona Switzerland where guests take the train through the gorgeous Swiss valleys loved by painters over the centuries. At Domodossola a transfer awaits for the return to the Villa. Mottarone the local mountain peak offers high altitude horse riding where in winter local skiers enjoy the snow – this combines in summer with a possible visit to an agriturismo where the organic milk goes to make excellent yogurt (served at breakfast in Villa Crespi), cheese and ice-cream, where a cheese and wine tasting can be organised.
Shopping is top notch too and can be of different kinds: one trip includes the Loro Piana cashmere outlet and boutique and a visit to the Francoli Distillery and outlet or a trip to the Alessi kitchen design outlet in Omegna and this can be combined with a visit to the private museum of Ruffoni, manufacturers of the beautiful copper cookpots with worked silver handles, works of art in themselves, that are imported in the USA by the famed William Sonoma. They can also be bought at factory prices and shipped home.
Villa Crespi awaits to make an event into an unforgettable memory.
