TRAVEL EUROPE

When in Rome, live in

noble Roman style
You are invited to stay in a palatial villa owned
by the Count and Countess Spalleti Trivelli, just
across the park from the Presidential Palace

T
HERE can be no finer place in Rome to
stay than the Villa Spalletti Trivelli. It is
the elegant family palazzo of a Roman
Count and Countess. Neighbours include
the Italian President, Giorgio Napolitano,
whose 17th-century Palace is just across
the leafy park. The Trevi Fountain is a
stroll away. At the Villa Spalletti Trivelli,
guests not only live as the Romans live—
they live as the Romans would like to live.
Italian aristocrats on Roman holidays
love to stay here, in the cultural heart of
their own capital city: it is every inch a
home-away-from-palatial-home, a salmon
pink mansion from where everything one
does takes on extra resonance: the joy of
a performance of Verdi at the Teatro dell’
Opera; the spectacle of the Coliseum lit
The magic of by a rising moon; dinner beside the Pan-
Rome, even more theon; a picnic on the banks of the River
magical when Tiber; a feast of fine art in the footsteps
‘home’ is the Villa of Bernini and Michelangelo. Explore
Spalletti Trivelli. Rome at its most magical, after dark. Af-
Right:The salon. ter each experience, return to your palaz-
Lower: Luxurious zo, to be welcomed home by your butler,
rooms and Spa. no matter what time of day or night …

Fabulous Roman villa:To book, call 020 7935 0888:

Or visit the website, www.countryclubuk.com
 Every detail at Villa Spalletti
Trivelli creates an aura of taste
and tradition within a family at-
mosphere that is not only cul-
tured but relaxed. Its owner is
the present Count Spalletti Triv-
elli, Giangiacomo, with his wife
Susanna—daughter of the un-
forgettably dark and dashing in-
ternational show jumper Cap-
tain Raimondo d’Inzeo.
Neo-classical in design, the
Villa was inspired a century ago
by the Countess Gabriella, niece
of Napoleon Bonaparte’s sister
Carolina, and widow of Count
Venceslao Spalletti Trivelli, Sen-
ator of the Kingdom. Under this
powerful and cultured woman
the Villa, with its lofty ceilings
Rome: feast of culture, architecture and art. Below: St Peter’s Square in The Vatican.Above: St Peter’s Basilica (left) and the Trevelli Fountain
and rich furnishings, became a
political and cultural magnet,
her Thursday afternoon salons
attracting the eminence grise
among politicians, writers, artists
and intelligentsia of the day.
Ultimately, Gabriella left the
Villa to her son, Count Cesare,
who became a Knight to the
Court of Queen Maria Josè of
Belgium. His own son, Count
Piero, a writer and poet, was next
in line, and it is his son, Count Gi-
angiacomo, who with Countess
Susanna has converted the fami-
ly’s private residence into one
that welcomes discerning guests.
Into the Villa the Count and
Countess have poured their
family heirlooms, hospitality and
history. Nothing is overlooked:
Japanese-inspired papier peint
in the dining room, tapestries in
the Sala degli Arazzi, a boiserie
in the library, where the book
collection is protected by the
Ministry of Natural Heritage
and Culture.The 12 guest rooms
of five suites and seven deluxe
bedrooms are decorated with
the family collection of antique
maps and prints, as well as per-
sonal portraits and photographs.
Their Afghan carpets line the
oak floors, as they always have.
Large oak-framed windows give
on to the private, peaceful Ital-
ian gardens where generations
of Italian nobles have whiled
away the day in the shade of a
gazebo, in conversation, or wit
a book, letters, or an aperitif.
The beds are dressed in em
broidered linens yet have ultra
modern therapeutic mattresse
to aid a perfect night’s rest. Th
bathrooms are Italian marble
with large showers and bath
tubs, and fine toiletries. Fluff
monogrammed robes and slip
pers are to hand. Iced drink
await guests’ selection in a pri
vate bar. There are high-tech fa
cilities too—the vast plasm
television sets, broadband ac
cess, laptops at the disposal o
those who can bring themselve
to work amid such elegance
More in the spirit of relaxation
the Spa offers beauty and thera
peutic treatments, from the clas-
sical, in the Roman sense, to
Turkish baths, yoga and mas-
sage, regenerative baths with
dead sea salts, and a fitness room
with powerplate and Pilate.
Another aspect of the Villa
which sets it apart is the service
of the resident chef, Adriano.
The day begins with a large buf-
fet of homemade cakes with ri-
cotta cheese, fresh croissants,
sugar brioches and bread rolls
with that Roman speciality fou-
ettee cream, as well as cold cuts,
cheeses, salads, fruits and yo-
gurts. One may ask for pancetta
and eggs, cooked specially, Ital-
ian style. For lunch or dinner
Adriano will prepare gourmet
Below: Choir in the Church of St Ignatius, built where the Temple of Isis had stood in Imperial Rome.Above, right:The infamous Coliseum.
dishes according to your wish
and his advice as to the freshest
foods of the season, from a sim-
ple lunch of mushroom and truf-
fle risotto to a banquet for 25
guests, or a romantic dinner, tête
a tête. What a pleasure it would
be to give a dinner party here.
All in all, staying at the Villa is
akin to being given the run of a
miniature palace whose wealthy
owner has gone away and left
everything to you, including his
15-strong staff.Everybody knows
just what to do, and with grace
and efficiency makes you com-
fortable and cosseted without
fuss. It is not for everybody. It is,
however, La Dolce Vita for
those who enjoy the finer things.
THINGS TO SEE
Many of Rome’s iconic sights
are on your doorstep, starting
with the Piazza del Quirinale
and the Presidential Palace (open
to visitors on Sunday). The piaz-
za crowns the highest of the sev-
en ancient hills of Rome, where
Augustus’s Temple of the Sun
stood; it now holds the giant
statues of Castor and Pollux.
Within five minutes’ walk of
the piazza you will be at the Tre-
vi Fountain, unmissable as art,
spectacle and cultural icon. The
giant figure of Oceanus stands
gleaming as he tames the waters,
a metaphor for the feat of the
aqueducts that brought water to
the city. But who can forget the
night scene in Fellini’s La Dolc
Vita of Anita Ekberg and Mar
cello Mastroianni stepping int
the fountain? A dip now wil
land you in trouble, no matte
how hot it is. (Nearby stands th
intriguing Church of Saints Vin
cenzo and Anastasio, containin
the hearts and intestines of sev
eral centuries’-worth of popes.
Not far from the fountain i
Piazza della Trinità dei Mont
With its soaring Egyptian obelisk
and lavish baroque symmetry, i
is one of the most theatrical pi
azzas in Italy—and it leads on t
the famous Spanish Steps. Th
Spanish had nothing to do with
these spectacular flower-line
Steps, which were designed b
 TRAVEL EUROPE
Villa Spalletti Trevelli.Above:The gazebo. Right:The library.
an Italian, Francesco de Sanctis,
in the 1700s.At the bottom is the
house where the poet John
Keats lived and died, aged 25.
Also near the Villa is one of
the miraculous 13th-century
icons of Madonna, housed in
Santa Maria in Via, as well as
two gems of Baroque architec-
ture: Bernini’s masterpiece,
Chiesa di Sant’ Andrea al Quiri-
nale, which he considered his
finest work, and Borromini’s
San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane.
Among other gems is the tiny
church of Santa Mario in Trivia,
which conceals a rich Baroque
interior.But just 10 minutes away
is architecture on a different
scale—the Pantheon, the best
preserved Roman monument
with the biggest brick dome in
the history of architecture.
Michelangel said it was the work
of angels, not of men. According
to Roman legend, it is the place
where Romulus was seized by
an eagle and taken up into the
skies to join the gods.
Only 15 minutes’ walk from
the Villa stands the Coliseum,
ancient Rome’s greatest archi-
tectural legacy. Vespasian or-
dered the construction of the el-
liptical bowl in AD72, and it was
inaugurated by Titus in AD80
with an initial bloody combat
between gladiators and wild
Fabulous deal in Rome:To book, call 020 7935 0888:
Or visit the website, www.countryclubuk.com
122
beasts that lasted weeks. Itself
now tortured by traffic, yet the
Coliseum has to be experienced.
On the lighter side, the Villa is
ner the heart of Rome’s shop-
ping district, minutes from Via
del Corso and Via Condotti, all
filled with wallet-reducing Ital-
ian and international designer
labels—Bulgari, Valentino, Fer-
ragamo, Cartier, Armani and
Dolce & Gabbana among them.
THE OFFER
Our members enjoy preferential
rates at the Villa when booking a
Grand Deluxe Suite for two.
With views on to the landscaped
private gardens of the villa, this
King or Twin bedded suite is
60sq metres and has a separate
living room and walk-in ward-
robe. Decorated with antiques
from the family’s personal col-
lection, it has a luxurious marble
bathroom with bath and walk-in
shower. The Club rate includes
homemade buffet breakfast,
complimentary honour bar in
the Sala degli Arazzi and mini-
bar in the suite, access to the gym
and hammam, two 60-minute
Wellness treatments, and morn-
ing newspaper.This would usual-
ly cost 1,320e (£1,169) per night.
As a special Blue Ribbon offer,
our members pay just £595 per
night, whatever the season.