What does it take to be recognized as the best hotel in the world? With the latest estimates putting it at around 187,000 properties worldwide, winning this distinction is, statistically speaking, more prestigious than the Academy Awards or nearly any other glamorous honor for other industries. While some may think its perfect service and glamorous accommodations, the real answer is soul.
Perched along the western shore of Lake Como, Passalacqua is a 24-room hotel with one of the most radiant souls on the planet. It’s bursting with charm wherever you look with every room, amenity and service down to even the place cards artfully detailed to reinforce the property’s storytelling. This is what the reviewers must have felt when Passalacqua was selected as the best in the world by The World’s 50 Best Hotels for 2023 (and number two for The World’s 50 Best Hotels for 2024), and then going on to earn their Carlo Alberto Best Boutique Hotel Award for 2024.
Enviable a position as it may be, in speaking with Passalacqua’s owner, Valentina de Santis, the secret behind the success is in staying true to the fundamentals of hospitality: passion, service, teams as family, sense of place, design, stewardship, experiences and everything in between. The distinction here is that the execution is not only perfect but harmonious in a way that tells a story of Northern Italy going back as far as 1787 when the villa was first constructed. Serving as the residence of opera composer Vincenzo Bellini as well as once hosting Napoleon Bonaparte, Passalacqua offers an immersive, fantastical setting that continues to reinvent itself through new programs and seasonal offers.
As an example of this ‘seasonal immersion’, for the recent Easter, the onsite team set up Easter Egg painting, a cookery class centered around the baking of a traditional Italian cake called a Colomba Pasquale and, for the kids, an Easter Egg hunt. Passalacqua has also recently unveiled its lifestyle boutique, Sense of Lake, which offers a curated collection of luxury accessories, clothing and homeware from niche, local designers – yet another way that the hotel helps to curate the proud Italian artistic spirit.
These are but two elements that make this property a gem, and there are countless others. From this, what we find is that a hallmark of the best hotels in the world is that every moment or encounter reveals yet another dimension worth discovering, not only making each stay memorable for a lifetime but also creating a deep yearning to return. Without further ado, let’s here from Valentina de Santis – herself a lifetime hotelier – to see how perfection is crafted.
Congratulations are in order! Being named the best hotel in the world for 2023 is a tremendous honor that can’t begin to encapsulate all the hard work that’s gone into Passalacqua since acquiring it in 2018. How did you celebrate with the team?
Thank you so much for your kind words. It was a great honor and one I share with our entire extended family on the team. Making Passalacqua what it is today has been such a labor of love, with countless hands, hearts and minds giving their all to every aspect of the endeavor. It was such a treat to celebrate the award with the entire staff! When the season came to a close, we gathered at one of our favorite local spots in Moltrasio. We ate, we drank, we danced the night away, and a wonderful time was had by all!
As you and General Manager Silvio Vettorello have remarked time and again, great hotels are a reflection of their people. How do you inspire a sense of passion for hospitality so that everyone fully understands what’s required each and every day?
At Passalacqua, we don’t just hire for skills; we hire for passion. Passion is the common thread that binds our team together, and we’ve found that when people feel part of a family, they naturally give from the heart. Silvio and I spend a lot of time with the team, sharing stories, celebrating successes and, most importantly, making everyone feel seen. Hospitality is an art form, and it’s the little gestures – from the way we greet guests in the morning to remembering their favorite coffee order – that create true magic. Our mission is to foster a culture where excellence is instinctive, and joy is contagious.
So, what inspires you?
Above all, it is people who inspire me, those who live life with authenticity and passion. I’m endlessly moved by the stories of our guests, by artisans who pour love into their craft, by nature’s beauty in every season on the lake. I also draw inspiration from my family’s legacy, which reminds me daily that we are not just caretakers of our properties, but also of the memories created there – both in the past and in the future. Passalacqua, in particular, is a place that constantly fuels my creativity: its history, its soul, its sense of poetry.
Are there any regions of the world, specific hotel brands or hoteliers that get you excited about the future of luxury hospitality?
What excites me about the future of luxury hospitality is the increasing focus on immersive experiences and a true sense of place. As part of the rich tradition of family-run properties in Italy, I’m proud to say that our segment is leading by example, whether it is the passion for Italianità in the food, interior décor and day-to-day experiences or the innovative collaborations with Italian partners. This is what I look for when I travel, a 360-degree experience of the local culture in every detail, and I believe it is what appeals to today’s luxury travelers across the world.
You are both a lifelong hotelier and a local to the Lago di Como region which has been a sought-after destination since before the birth of modern tourism. Indeed, your family also owns and operates the Grand Hotel Tremezzo which is the first hotel built on this iconic lake! This gives you a unique perspective to comment on how travel to the region has evolved over the decades.
Lake Como has always cast a certain spell due to its timeless beauty. And over the decades, the region has succeeded in reinventing itself for each new era in a beautiful evolution. When the Gondola family opened the Grand Hotel Tremezzo in 1910, travel was about discovery and elegance. Later, travelers were more interested in convenience and checking bucket-list destinations off a list. Now, we’ve come full circle; guests are once again seeking a deeper connection. They want to know the stories behind the villas, to taste local dishes prepared by hand, to feel the rhythms of the Italian lifestyle. I think the future of travel lies in this slow, soulful approach – less about luxury for luxury’s sake and more about feeling a sense of place. Lake Como is the perfect destination for this kind of journey, a place where time slows down and true beauty comes from authenticity.
Perhaps the biggest trend in luxury hospitality is the desire for culturally immersive experiences. In Passalacqua’s case, this isn’t just the grandeur of a historical property or the perfectly executed service, but all the littler elements – like allowing guests to collect their own eggs from free-roaming chickens or daily gelato making classes – as captured by the phrase ‘vivere italiano’.
We wanted Passalacqua to feel like a charming, soulful Italian home. We wanted our guests to celebrate the everyday pleasures that Italians hold dear – long, laughter-filled lunches in the garden, the smell of fresh herbs in the kitchen, the joy of making gelato by hand. These aren’t ‘activities’ in the traditional sense; they’re rituals that carry meaning. When we curated these moments, we asked ourselves: what brings us joy? What would our nonna have done? The answer always brought us back to simplicity, warm-heartedness and authenticity.
How do you formulate seasonally immersive experiences so that they give an unparalleled sense of place?
Italy lives by its seasons, and at Passalacqua, we embrace that rhythm wholeheartedly. Every celebration, every dish, even the scents in the air change with the seasons. For Easter, it was only natural that we would invite our guests to join in the traditions we grew up with: decorating eggs with local artists, baking Colomba Pasquale in our kitchens and letting children roam the gardens for hidden surprises. These experiences aren’t planned like a production; they’re imagined like memories. We think about what would make someone feel at home in Italy and bring that to life in a joyful, heartfelt way.
How does Sense of Lake showcase the best of Italian craftsmanship and tradition helped to reinforce the story and experience at Passalacqua?
Sense of Lake was born from a desire to encourage our guests to take a piece of our world home with them – not just a souvenir, but a story. Each piece is handpicked and deeply personal, whether it’s a scarf made of Lake Como’s precious silks, limited-edition velvet slippers made by Friuli’s celebrated cobblers or a fragrance inspired by our gardens. Curating a collection of Italian craftsmanship evokes the very essence of Passalacqua – where beauty is intentional, tradition is honored, and every detail carries meaning. It’s our way of extending the experience beyond the villa and advocating for the heritage we so proudly represent.
How do you strike a balance between past and present?
We like to say that Passalacqua whispers its stories through every stone; and we’ve worked hard to ensure those whispers aren’t drowned out by technology or trends. Our design approach has always been to honor the villa’s spirit while subtly integrating the comforts today’s guests expect. You won’t find futuristic screens or minimalist aesthetics here; instead, you’ll discover hand-restored frescoes, antique chandeliers paired with plush beds, and intuitive service that flows seamlessly. It’s not about nostalgia, but rather about timelessness – a place where the past feels present, and the present feels poetic.
How can Passalacqua and other independent properties work to preserve this soul, both for guests and the surrounding region?
Soul cannot be manufactured; it comes from people, from place, from purpose. Independent properties like Passalacqua have the freedom – and I would say the responsibility – to protect this essence. That means staying rooted in our community, hiring local, preserving traditions and never losing sight of why we do what we do. For us, hospitality isn’t a business; it’s a form of art and love. By remaining fiercely individual, passionately local and emotionally generous, we can ensure that our hotels remain sanctuaries of meaning in today’s fast-paced culture.
