10-07-2025
Dolce vita redefined at Rapallo's Grand Hotel Bristol
From my balcony at Rapallo's Grand Hotel Bristol Spa Resort, I peered down at the pool where the words "Too sexy for Portofino" were scrawled in pink across the pool's blue bottom. It's a cheeky slogan for Rapallo, a coastal town of 30,000 residents nestled across the Gulf of Tigullio from Portofino.
Located on the Italian Riviera just south of Genoa and sandwiched between Cinque Terre and Portofino, Rapallo maintains its below-the-radar independence with an admirable amount of what the Italians call sprezzatura -- and the appeal for travelers lies in the town's low-key profile.
Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, Rapallo was an essential part of the Grand Tour and a cultural haven for European literati, who found a refuge in the region's mild Mediterranean winters. Rapallo's aesthetic appeal caught the notice of the Costas, a family of Corsican entrepreneurs who built the Grand Hotel Bristol in 1904.
The rooftop restaurant Le Cupole offers a multicourse Ligurian menu and panoramic vistas. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Grand Hotel Bristol Spa Resort
Tucked into a verdant hillside, the historical property is a pink-and-white confection of art nouveau architecture with an expansive pool deck overlooking the cerulean sea.
According to general manager Riccardo Bortolotti, the Grand Hotel Bristol Spa Resort celebrates "dolce vita 2.0," which he describes as a multisensory guest experience that includes music, fragrance and taste as well as the natural beauty of the surrounding sea.
"The Ligurian Riviera exemplifies the dolce vita lifestyle," Bortolotti said. "It's a timeless concept that focuses on the joy of simple pleasures."
Duly informed, I ordered an Aperol spritz on the hotel's panoramic terrace La Veranda and was soon rewarded with a rose-tinged sunset. A member of SLH, the Grand Hotel Bristol Spa Resort is a part of R Collection Hotels, a group of 10 independent properties in Italy that has been owned by the same Italian family for three generations.
Completely renovated in 2023, the five-star hotel now offers 80 rooms and suites and the largest hotel spa in the Liguria region. Guests have access to four dining options, including a poolside pizzeria and a Michelin-listed restaurant, as well as a private beach club with a seafood restaurant.
Marina di Bardi Beach Club offers a private beach and various watersports and activities. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Grand Hotel Bristol Spa Resort
Out on the town
Though the concept of dolce vita has evolved, there's no question that Rapallo honors the implied promise of a sweet life of sensory pleasures. On a guided food tour, I wandered the town's historic center, which curls around the waterfront like a crescent pastry. Rapallo's narrow pedestrian streets are known as caruggi and are lined with frescoed houses, wall niches and ancient portals as well as numerous bottegas and pasticcerias.
Guido Porrati is the owner of ParlaComeMangi, a gastronomic emporium with a name that translates to "speak like you eat." As Porrati explained, the motto is a Ligurian concept that embraces authenticity in food and language -- and one which I adopted easily as Porrati fed me Ligurian favorites such as focaccia al formaggio, pansoti di noci and pesto alla Genovese.
The sole surviving gate of Rapallo's ancient walled village is Porto delle Saline, which leads from the Old Town out to the waterfront, where the 16th century fortress Castello di Rapallo stands as a symbol of the city's fortitude across the centuries. Rapallo's ferry terminal offers direct service to Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure and San Fruttuoso.
For travelers who seek an aerial perspective on the surrounding landscape, Liguria's only cable car scales the forested hills for a seven-minute journey to the Sanctuary of Montallegro, where the entire Gulf of Tigullio is revealed from an altitude of 2,000 feet.
The two-level Erre Spa is the largest hotel spa in the Liguria region. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Grand Hotel Bristol Spa Resort
Spa rejuvenation
The Grand Hotel Bristol Spa Resort is located on Via Aurelia Orientale within sight of a vestige of the ancient Via Aurelia that connected Rome with the Tyrrhenian coast.
The hotel's two-level Erre Spa is a modern-day equivalent of Roman thermae with a circuit of hydrotherapy experiences and a relaxing tea lounge. Rejuvenated, I wandered through the hotel's Nuar Gallery and its collection of contemporary art before heading upstairs to dinner at the Michelin-listed Le Cupole. Flanked by the hotel's two cupolas, Le Cupole offers breathtaking vistas from its terrace and a multicourse Ligurian menu with wine pairings.
For a post-prandial digestif, there's the hotel's Campari-red Silk Lounge Bar, named for the nearby silk factories that are still in operation.
Guest experiences beyond the hotel's landscaped grounds include private boat tours to Santa Margherita Ligure and Portofino as well as sunset cruises, Vespa tours and trekking trails in Cinque Terre.
The hotel's private beach is located at Marina di Bardi Beach Club, which offers various watersports and activities.
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The Grand Hotel Bristol's sister property Bianca Relais, just north of Milan, offers a bucolic weekend getaway on the shores of Lake Annone. Photo Credit: Courtesy of R Collection Hotels
For guests seeking a bucolic weekend retreat, the hotel's new sister property, Bianca Relais, is a serene sanctuary on the shores of Lake Annone, slightly north of Milan.
The sleek and contemporary boutique hotel features 10 rooms and a lakeside restaurant where dolce vita is served amid a 4-acre natural setting surrounded by olive groves and orchards in the foothills of the Alps.
