Following its Sicilian debut, Accor's Movenpick will open the Palace Hotel in Bari (Apulia). 

The property will be branded by Accor 

The development of the Movenpick brand in Italy continues. After the announcement of the Mondello Palace Hotel in Palermo, which is expected to debut in the third quarter of this year, the rebranding of the Palace Hotel in Bari has also been announced. The property has been closed since January 2022, but a couple of months ago the Greenblu Group signed a 20-year lease agreement with the owners the Di Cagno Abbrescia family's Saiga company. The rent, the Italian daily La Repubblica reveals, should be around €1.5 million per year. Greenblu, however, has also committed to upgrading the building, for a total investment of some €7 million, to be deducted from the rent. Greenblu then entered into a franchise agreement with the Accor group brand.

Expanding the square footage of the rooms

The plan is to reduce the number of rooms from the original 198 to 180 thus expanding the square footage, with the aim of both improving the quality of the space and approaching families as well as congress and international tourism. The eighth floor of the building will be reserved for suites and the spa, while a bistro serving local and international cuisine will be created on the ground floor. Work is expected to start by the end of this month, with the hotel scheduled to reopen in 2025 as a four-star hotel. Greenblu is also acting as a white label company of an Accor brand for the Mercure President in Lecce.

Villa Lario Resort is the five-star boutique hotel immersed in a private park on the sunniest shore of Lake Como, and is ideal for a stay of relaxation, nature, history and haute cuisine.

Two restaurants for gourmet and informal dining

In Mandello del Lario the Villa is a 20th-century manor house, offering luxury stays and fine dining helmed by executive chef Luca Mozzanica in the hotel's flagship Amandus restaurant. With eleven tables and seating for twenty-six, the gourmet restaurant is open only for dinner and by reservation only, both for guests of the Villa and for those not staying at the hotel but who wish to enjoy a refined dinner that combines tradition and modernity. For a more informal dinner there is the Grill & Lounge Restaurant, reserved for hotel guests and also ideal for an aperitif or to end the evening with an after-dinner beverage.

Nine suites and two beaches

Villa Lario Resort has nine exclusive luxury suites with fine furnishings and refined finishings: five in the Villa, with a large terrace and a view of the Lario, two in the Darsena, a stone's throw from the lake, and two in the Grotta, for an unprecedented holiday experience. Set in a 10,000 sqm park the property has a private mooring on the lake and two beaches with direct access, as well as a swimming pool, solarium and heliport. 

Boating excursions and local history 

Strategic for enjoying walks in nature in the surrounding mountains, or for boating excursions to discover  the beauties of the Lario, the resort also pays homage to places dear to literary giant Manzoni thanks to the recent installation Lucia125, which celebrates not only the young protagonist of Manzoni’s The Betrothed, but also the boat that is the symbol of Lake Como and part of the local heritage.

There is a growing trend for wine tourism experiences in the Tuscan region. 

Many wineries now open at weekends

With wineries also opening to visitors at weekends and an increasingly young and international clientele, in 2023, wineries in the Tuscan region expanded the range of what they offer visitors by opening also at weekends. The number of wineries that can be visited on Saturdays has risen by 30% compared to 2022, and with it there waa an 11% increase in turnover in the wine tourism sector. 

Visits are more evenly distributed 

These figures are from the Wine Tourism and Direct-to-Consumer Sales Report 2024, compiled by Divinea, a technology company specialized in digital products and services for the wine sector. Also on the rise are wine experiences that go beyond the classic product tasting, with concerts in the vineyard or cellar visits, exhibitions or art installations. Another relevant fact is that farm visits are more evenly distributed throughout the year, including March, April, May, November and December. 

Winery experiences are drawing younger visitors 

The average age of the wine-loving public is decreasing: the 25-34 age group has risen sharply compared to previous years, reaching 43.8% of those choosing to book a winery experience in 2023; this is followed by the 35-44 age group and families. In addition to Italians, it emerges that many Americans and Europeans are attracted by this type of tourism, and there is also a significant presence of Germans, Dutch, Swiss and British visitors. 

Tuscany is Europe’s third most popular wine tourism destination 

In Airbnb's statistics on the ten most visited European destinations for tasting local wines Italy, and more specifically Tuscany, ranks as the third most visited European destination for wine tourism, thanks not only to the variety of wines that can be tasted but also to the variety of landscapes and traditions.

On-the-road trips from Chianti to Bolgheri

For those wishing to enjoy an even more immersive experience, why not discover the cellars and vineyards of Tuscany with an on-the-road trip along the wine roads that stretch from the Chianti region to the lands of Bolgheri, passing through San Gimignano? And it is possible to stop overnight at Hotel Calzaiuoli or Hotel Villa Fiesole, two 4* boutique hotels of the FH55 HOTELS group: the first with a privileged position in the centre of Florence, the second among the Tuscan hills overlooking the city. 

Barricata Holiday Village in Porto Tolle, Rovigo is reopening on 9 May for the summer season with many new features.

A paradise for adventure and nature lovers

The novelties include a wellness area, a Spray Park for the amusement of children, and the possibility of scientific excursions in search of dolphins.  The luxurious resort in the Veneto region about an hour and a half from Venice, is located in the Po Delta Natural Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and biosphere reserve, along a 400-kilometre area of beaches and unspoiled areas, and is the perfect place for adventure and nature lovers to relax, and have fun. The 5-star resort has equipped pitches for campers and caravans, Bellagio Boulevard mobile homes, and 188 new and very elegant tent lodges that will expand the glamping area. There are also brand new extra-large luxury dwellings such as the Saturno 3XL, which has three rooms: two doubles, one with three beds and two bathrooms.

A wellness area and bike and boat itineraries

New this year at the Barricata Holiday Village is the wellness service with two Jacuzzi tubs and an area reserved for holistic treatments and Thai massages. For the very young there is a large 400 sqm water park and the Spray Park with castles, waterfalls, water slides and toboggans. For wellness enthusiasts there is volleyball, tennis, five-a-side football and padel courts as well as archery, and you can swim in the blue flag waters of the Spiaggia delle Conchiglie and Spiaggia Barricata, and  also enjo horse riding. There are also numerous itineraries of varying difficulty on foot, by bike or by boat. 

The chance to spot dolphins off the coast

This year, thanks to a project in cooperation with the University of Foggia, it will be possible to participate in scientific research excursions to spot dolphins between six and twelve miles off Barricata. Until 17.05.2024 it will be possible to book accommodations from €120.
For information: www.villaggiobarricata.com, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.