Eremo
Eremo is like a nest, set in an ancient place of religious isolation. The Ligurian sea in front, a pine forest behind and a garden all around.
In the living rooms people can relax and listen to music or read a book from our big library. Villa Rosmarino is a place to relax and spend some time living with us.
How would you describe Villa Rosmarino in a nutshell?
Villa Rosmarino is an old Genovese villa which was built in 1907 turned into a small boutique hotel. It is located on the mount of Portofino in Camogli, Italy.
It was a very big renovation project because the house had been abandoned for 30 years. We kept the original elements of the building, like the traditional decoration of the façade, but we renovated the interior in a more contemporary style. We even renovated the original gazebo.
What was your inspiration to buy a derelict villa, renovate it and rent it out to holiday guests as a small hotel?
First of all, it’s important to say that we bought the villa for ourselves because we wanted to leave where we were. We paid particular attention to the details and materials during the renovation because it was supposed to be our home.
We based the design on places we’ve always liked to go for vacation, where you can feel at home but receive the hospitality of being a guest.
What was your area of work before you started?
I used to work in advertising in Milan for more than 20 years. In 2007, I left my job because the house was ready. I thought I could live a less stressful life near the sea in a beautiful house in a beautiful environment.
Now, it’s a different type of stress because we take care of all the guests. We are lucky because most of the guests who visit are people looking for a place to relax. They are not stressed out people who complain, and if they are stressed, they leave feeling very rested.
Your philosophy is that you don’t simply ‘stay’ at Villa Rosmarino, but you ‘live’ in it.
Yes, that’s right. In the villa there are a couple of living rooms where people can relax and listen to music or read a book. We have a very big library with books of every kind — fashion, art, design, etc. It’s a place to spend some time living with us.
In fact, most of the time I don’t accept reservations for people wanting to stay just one night. It’s not the place to stay for one night. You just can’t experience the place that way.
What has been the biggest reward to you about running a small boutique hotel?
The greatest reward is really to make people happy. I’m really satisfied when people leave here thankful for the hospitality and for having had such a good time.
And we have a great percentage of loyal guests who return every year. That is very rewarding.
Some of the rooms have vintage furniture mixed with contemporary furniture. Others only have contemporary furniture. I like some of the rooms better than others based on the artwork in them. We have a collection of contemporary art, mainly photographs, but also paintings and sculptures.
During the renovations, the interior had to be almost completely redone. One of the things we were able to keep was the floor on the first level, which is a beautiful mosaic. But the floors in the rooms are all new teak wood floors. The bathrooms have natural beige-colored stones. We tried to maintain the nice things about the original building.
We don’t have anything antique in the rooms because we don’t particularly like that style. We stuck with vintage ‘50s and ‘60s, especially the Italian and Nordic designs, and mixed those with more contemporary pieces.
Walking up the stairs from the living area, the Garden Room is on the first floor and is so called for its direct access to the garden.
The room is characterized by a bed in French imperial style in the living area, and by an original Genoese décor floor.
In the sleeping area there is a large double bed and an ultra modern bathroom with shower and walls covered with Saint Hubert marble.
This large double bedroom is located on the second floor. From its windows you can enjoy the view of the Italian garden on one side and Mount Portofino on the other.
The room hosts a large work from a young Spanish artist. The floors are of teak wood with bathroom of modern resin flooring and a shower with walls of natural stone of Saint Hubert.
This room is particularly large diffusing a feeling of deep relaxation and welcoming luxury.
This room is on the third and last floor. The village of Camogli is in full view of those inhabiting this room both from the room terrace and from the unique small bathroom window with its stone shower.
A unique experience: a ‘shower with a view’, reminiscent of travelers of previous centuries.
On the walls are works of art from contemporary Italian and international artists.
The extra large double bed with its neo-medieval lines, designed by a group of young spanish designers, is the protagonist of this junior suite on the second floor of the villa.
Artwork with arabic inscriptions complete the unexpected atmosphere of this room. The bathroom has resin flooring and an extra large shower.
One of the windows looks over the garden, the other spreads its view from the swimming pool to Mount Portofino and as far as Golfo Paradiso.
On the first floor, moving from the living room with flooring of antique Genovese small stones, we go into the Palm Tree Bedroom.
On the teak floor you will find a designer double bedroom and as you lift your eyes on the wall you will see art works of the Pop period. The main window opens on the swimming pool and garden while the smaller ones overlook a large palm tree and the rear garden
The guests of this room can loose their view over the sea horizon of the sea facing Camogli or by just looking at the underwater pictures made by a young artist. The pictures join the two walls framing the double bed.
The room has teak flooring, while the bathroom has contemporary resin floors and Saint Hubert stone covered walls surrounding the Carrara marble sink.
The large windows open on the swimming pool and Mount Portofino, looking right at the little village of San Rocco. It is this window that gives the name to the room.
Apart from providing our guests a beautiful place to sleep near Portofino, we provide information on the best places to shop in the area, things to see, and so on. Villa Rosmarino is a place where you can really relax. We are close to the village, so you can walk into town. We have a nice swimming pool and garden.
Also, the location is beautiful. We are on the mount of Portofino, which is a protected park. We are near the sea but not on a busy Italian coast.
The Ligurian coast is made up of small beaches and rocks with nice local spots where people can swim. And there are plenty of locations we can recommend that don’t get too crowded.
There are also some beautiful monuments. For instance, there is a monastery built in the 13th century on a beach on the mount of Portofino. It’s a place you can reach only by walking or by ferry. It’s really amazing.
Then there’s Portofino, of course, which is beautiful, and Genova, a smaller city. The historic centre of Genova is really amazing, and there are beautiful Medieval churches, vintage shops, wonderful pastry shops. It’s a place you can spend half a day or a full day, and it really surprises people.
And a little less than an hour from here by train is Cinque Terre. It can get really crowded there, but it’s a beautiful place.
The Villa is located within a 10 minute walk of the village of Camogli. So guests can walk into town where they can shop, eat at nice restaurants, or go to a bar.
The public transportation system here works very well. People don’t need a car. They can take a bus, a train, a boat, or they can walk.
It depends. Some people prefer to come in spring, most of the people vacation in the summer, so in July or August, but we have people throughout the year.
If you come in December or January, you’re coming mainly to relax, read a book, and maybe to visit a few places, or to spend New Year’s Eve here.
We close for one month in November and for a couple of weeks in January.
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