Villa Quaranta Park Hotel, Verona, Italy – Review
By Jonathan Spira on 19 May 2014
On one of my first driving trips as an adult, I headed from Austria through the Alto Adige or Südtirol in Italy towards Milan with a stop near Verona. Sadly it was only for one night but I stayed at a hotel outside the city, Villa Quaranta. The memories of my arrival are still with me. It was late afternoon on a hot day, I checked into my room, changed clothes, and arrived at the restaurant, earlier than any other guests. The walk through the gardens to the restaurant was quick and the maître d’ seated me immediately without presenting a menu. When I asked for one his reply was to set the stage for the rest of my visit: “Just tell me what you would like and our kitchen will prepare it.” It was a memorable meal.
This time I was with my two college-age nephews, having started in Munich picking up The Diesel Driver’s new BMW 535d via the European Delivery program. As we motored closer to Verona, memories of that moment flooded back.
As we drove along passing quaint villages, I related some of the history of the villa, including the fact that the oldest part of the complex goes back to the 13th century and Czar Alexander I of Russia had stayed there in 1822.
Arriving at the entrance, I noticed that much had changed. A magnificent new main building with a long driveway dominated the landscape, but it still looked familiar. After checking in I walked around the property. The yellow- and salmon-colored buildings and the gardens hadn’t changed one iota. My memories were true and accurate
THE ROOM
Our Deluxe Room was in the new building and had a classical-meets-modern look that paired deep rich woods with burgundy draperies, upholstery, and throws. It was decidedly more modern than the room the previous visit. No heavy bedspreads, just a matching throw on the bed. Exquisite Italian linens and soft pillows completed the picture.
The room was quite large and had a daybed off to one side that turned out to be quite comfortable for sleeping (or so I was informed by number two nephew). We were on the top floor and had pleasant views of the compound.
The windows were on the small side but the room was nonetheless well lighted, including reading lights over the beds.
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