Villa d’Este has it all: it easy to reach place, landscape, architecture, beauty, service, interior decoration, history, spa, and even good weather. ” The American magazine Forbes, which annually draws the ranking of the 400 best hotels in the world for 2009 was awarded first place at the luxurious resort of Cernobbio that overtook The Peninsula Bangkok Hotel , The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, The Four Seasons George V in Paris and the Burj al Arab in Dubai. It is the first time that an Italian Hotel achieved this prestigious ranking.

The villa was built in 1568 by architect Pellegrino Tibaldi for Cardinal Tolomeo Gallio, in 1873 a group of businessmen turned it into luxury hotel. Today the structure is mainly frequented by American and British tourists, but these rooms for centuries have hosted dukes, kings and queens, presidents, Hollywood stars, writers, singers, musicians, designers.

The first customer was George Ricordi, who rented an entire floor and had as guests Giuseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini. Here are the past people like Alfred Hitchcock, Leopold of Belgium, Vittorio Emanuele, the principles of Monaco, Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Madonna, Mick Jagger, Bruce Springsteen, John Kennedy, Gorbachev, Chur chill, Ava Gardner, the Shah of Persia, Callas with Onassis and many others.