Beautiful hotel with a spectacular view. Very friendly owner/chef Silvio who looked after us very well and provided a brilliant 5 course tasting menu on our second day. Excellent hotel. The en suite bathroom is up a flight of stairs so not for limited mobility guests.
We booked this hotel after reading the reviews and were delighted to find ourselves in such an amazingly different, small hotel - the hotel is quaint, our room had a very high ceiling and a covered terrace, very chintzy which all fits into the ambiance of this small boutique Italian hotel.
We booked on Booking.com and stayed for two nights including dinner which was served on a terrace that hangs over the side of the hotel - all very atmospherical. If you were celebrating in a special location, then the hotel would certainly fit the bill. The dinners were outstanding, beautifully presented, every course a picture in itself, the staff were friendly and helpful. Breakfast is taken on a side terrace that also has views looking down to Lake Varese.
We drove ourself to the hotel, we missed the rather small brown 'heritage' sign for 'Sacro Monte' (which is where the hotel is located), if you are planning to visit keep and eye out for the Sacro Monte sign and you will find it. There is also a bus service too.
The hotel has parking, the roads are tight, our hire car was small so we managed to navigate the winding road that takes you up to the hotel.
Whilst it may appear on first arrival that there isn't a lot to see, there is the amazing site of the Sacro Monte and there are also a few restaurants tucked away too.
Recommended for anyone that wants to get away from the crowds and enjoy excellent food!
We have stayed At Hotel Colonne several times. Always in September or October. It is the most hospital and friendly hotel we have stayed at, and we always want to return. The village is calm, genuine and beautiful, with many possibilities of hiking in the surroundings. And the hotell with the wonderful chef and host Silvio Battistoni provides wonderful food, a breathtaking view and the kind of relaxing atmosphere one can usually just dream of.
End of May. After all the lockdowns and restrictions we needed a break. Italy is always very attractive and now that we 'discovered' this jewel of a small hotel (10 rooms) up on the Sacro Monte di Varese with its splendid view, we are anew enchanted by the regions beauty. A warm welcome, a comfortable room with a terrace, and of course the very delicious cuisine of Silvio Battistoni and a good wine selection made the 3 day stay truly wonderful.
We hiked up to the once-luxurious, now abandoned Liberty Style Hotel Grande del Campo Fiore one morning and used public transport (30 min) to visit Varese the next day.
All VERY much recommended
What can I say....I’m in love with Italy. My partner bought a long weekend holiday package to celebrate my birthday. When we arrived at this hotel, it was raining, so we could not see all beauty of the hotel’s surroundings. After unpacking our bags, we headed to a bar where we met a lovely guy Philip who served us the drinks and had a long chat with us. As a part of our holiday package we were entitled for one special dinner of 6 dishes prepared by Silvio Battistoni. So we had it at the first evening of our arrival. Our dinner was beautiful. My partner described a carpaccio dish as a piece of culinary art. With regards to the drinks, the restaurant didn’t meet our expectations. We thought we were going to have a wine flight with our special meal but it didn’t happen and we had to choose a bottle of wine by ourselves. Never mind.
I have to mention that a coffee made by the lovely lady Vanna in the mornings was one of the best we had during that long weekend in Italy.
Being in such a great place, it’s easy to discover the Sacro Monte di Varese, visit a few art galleries in Varese, explore the lakes Maggiorre and Orta. Enjoy!
