Across the world, staff at the world’s most lavish and luxurious properties are rubbing their eyes as they step out of the darkness into the light, readying themselves to once more open doors to guests. The latest property to announce its reopening plans is the gorgeous Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà in Italy.
The Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà is quite simply an assault on the senses, and we mean this is the best possible way. It is a beautiful villa located in the small town of Corrubbio di Negarine on the outskirts of Verona. With a rich history extending back to the 16th-century, it is one of those rare places that will ingrain itself into the mind of anyone who stays there.
Villa Amistà is known for its fantastic collection of art and perfectly blends contemporary styling with its incredible history and tradition. From the 1st of May, and with a complete focus on safety, it will once more open its doors to guests.
The hotel will only be open on weekends during the first month after opening with a Monday check-out, and from the 14th May will be fully open, seven days a week.
Villa Amistà is set within 20 hectares of beautiful parkland and within this is a formal Italian-style garden. Dotted around the grounds are fountains made from Verona marble, centuries-old trees and the rich natural heritage characterised by the Venetian shore of Lake Garda.
The culture from the Valpolicella region has dramatically influenced the property. This beautiful area is famous for its incredible gastronomy and also was the inspiration for Mattia Bianchi, the Chef at the villa’s Restaurant Amistà.
Aside from the artwork on display, food is the primary lure for many guests at Villa Amistà. The restaurant was the recipient of a Michelin Star in 2021 and is known for adapting traditional dishes steeped in history and reinterpret them with a modern twist using the highest-possible ingredients.
For the 2021 season, restaurant guests can choose from the à la carte menu. The menu includes classics such as Soft potato cream, prawns and Mediterranean scents, “Bigolo” in sauce, oysters from Po river Delta and chicory, “Gnocco di fioreta”, langoustines and foie gras sauce, and the Baccalà 2030.
If they have difficulty choosing from the fine fayre on offer, they can partake in two free-range tastings, ‘Valpolicella’ and ‘Ricordi’. These tastings are dedicated to the ancient tastes born from the region. They include “Risotto al Tastasal”, apple and Bassano onion, the free-range guinea fowl, “Peverada” sauce, celeriac, asparagus and fine black truffle or the Roses cake and Reciotos’ Zabaione cream; and Mattia.
Chef Bianchi will be on hand to guide guests along the gastronomic journey, which will display the many of the skills and experiences he gained from the years he spent learning his craft in London and Australia to his Veronese tradition.
The restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner and reorganised into an area known as the Winter Garden; Here, guests will be enveloped in a green, cosy atmosphere whilst remaining completely safe.
A guided tour of the modern and contemporary art collection is available for guests to complete the full sensory experience. In addition to this, guests will get exclusive use of the magnificent ESPACE Byblos wellness centre, which boasts a steam bath, whirlpool and sauna.
The Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà has 58 luxury bedroom suites and contains many of the world’s most renowned furniture designers. The designers include notable names such as Philippe Starck, Giò Ponti, Eero Saarinen, Ron Arad and Gaetano Pesce. These fine pieces of design sit harmoniously amongst more than one hundred artworks, including pieces by Damien Hirst, Marina Abramovic, Anish Kapoor and Lucio Fontana.
For more information on Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà and its award-winning restaurant, visit www.byblosarthotel.com and www.ristoranteamista.it.
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