It has become a cliche to compare luxury Italian resorts to the Taormina hotel in The White Lotus, but strolling on to Borgo Santandrea’s private beach makes you half expect Jennifer Coolidge to wade out of the sea gesturing to a white polo-shirt-clad waiter to bring a pornstar martini.
The Amalfi coast has long been the jewel in the south-west Italian coastline, a refuge for millionaires, celebrities and influencers looking for a place to park their superyachts and quaff spritzes and dine on vongole. The coastline is peppered with luxurious hotels stuffed full of so much marble it is a miracle they haven’t collapsed under the weight but the Borgo Santandrea has somehow managed to combine Game of Thrones-level grandeur with a laidback nonna’s house atmosphere that is fresh and disarming.
Where is it?
Perched on a cliffside 90 metres above sea level and overlooking the fisherman’s hamlet of Conca dei Marini, Borgo Santandrea opened its doors in April 2022. The hotel is a two-hour drive from Naples and a 10-minute drive from the centre of bustling Amalfi town, yet the Borgo’s slightly out-of-the-way location and the fact it is built into the side of the cliff means it can easily feel as if you’re marooned on your own private island.
In fact, the entire weekend I spent at Borgo I didn’t feel even the slightest inclination to leave the premises and when I did I got immediately stuck in a traffic jam on the road to Amalfi, making for a very painful return to reality.
Style
The hotel was originally built in the 1960s but acquired in 2019 by the Orlacchio and De Siano families whose vision was an aesthetic amalgamation of mid-century glamour and a homely Italian dimora. The winding halls and cavernous dining area are bedecked in Art Deco light fittings, antique bronzes moulded on the busts of Greek gods immortalised in volcanic ash at nearby Pompeii and playful ceramic light fixtures fashioned by local artisans.
Despite these irreverent details, it’s impossible not to be acutely aware of the sheer size and grandeur of the Borgo; by the time you’ve reached the bottom of the cliff-hugging staircase from the Alici restaurant on the top floor to your sunlounger at the beach bar, you’ll have burnt off most of your breakfast. The hotel’s many turrets, passageways and stone battlements covered in a winding bougainvillaea and clouds of fragrant jasmine give the impression of an Ancient Greek temple or a mediaeval castle.
Food & drink
A breakfast buffet is universally accepted as the best thing about any hotel stay and the Borgo’s spread did not disappoint. Rarely does my heart skip a beat but the sight of counter after counter of freshly baked, crusty breads, olive-oil-drenched focaccias, hard and soft cheeses, yoghurts of all milk varieties, Amalfi lemon curd and marigold orange egg yolks frying on vast, open plan hobs did the trick. The staff are incredibly attentive, whisking tentative first plates of fruit off you and shuttling them to designated tables, leaving guests with free hands to continue piling cannolis and salami on to beautifully painted ceramic plates.
The scrambled eggs are the stuff of pillowy dreams, washed down with a glass of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, with a side of flaky pistachio-frangipane croissants and an Italian espresso, it will make every previous breakfast you’ve had bow its head in shame.
Italy and particularly the Napolese coast are synonymous with the best food in the world, think pizza, pasta, ice cream – it goes almost without saying then, that the hotel’s culinary fare does not do a disservice to all the Italian nonnas slaving away at their stoves. The Borgo has three restaurants, two bars and a wine cellar where guests can book a private tasting from the hotel’s expert sommeliers – you will not go hungry or thirsty. The beach bar has an ever-topped-up jug of freshly squeezed lemonade and cakes for guests to quaff while sunning themselves under classic striped umbrellas. At lunchtime guests order piping hot, thin-as-a-wafer Napolese pizzas from the pizza oven adjacent to the bar, served in chic personalised pizza boxes.
Dinner, meanwhile, is a more refined affair, the beachside La Libreria restaurant serves Michelin-quality plates of super-refined classic Italian dishes, paired with wines picked by your personal sommelier. While the Alici restaurant located on the breakfast terrace is a (slightly) more casual dining experience, whatever you do, order the Risotto del Borgo, made with creamy Acquerello rice and fragrant Amalfi lemons.
Facilities
Borgo Santandrea is unique among the roster of glittery hotels along the Amalfi coast in that it is the only hotel that boasts its own private beach club, beach and jetty. While locals and tourists have to hire a boat to enjoy the crystalline stretch of beach that the Borgo overlooks, guests can simply saunter down after breakfast. As well as a library, wine cellar, vinyl music lounge, olympic-sized swimming pool, guests can work off their croissants at the technogym-stocked gym or get a hot stone massage at the wellness centre after morning yoga.
Which room?
Since it opened in April 2022, the hotel has unveiled three new private suites to join the 45 original rooms and they are definitely worth splurging on. The newly built rooms come complete with their own private plunge pools overlooking the sea, manicured gardens and what looks like half of the Taschen books range on the bookshelf.
The decor is inspired by the hotel’s 1960s origins with a sprawling superking bed, Borgo’s signature hand painted blue-and-white floor tiles and an eclectic mix of vintage pieces and modern finishes from celebrated Italian design houses such as Molteni&C, Tosconova, Lisar and Venicem.
Details
The starting rate for a double occupancy room with breakfast included is £1,564, borgosantandrea.it
