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VENICE, ITALY — Slicing through the lagoon, around tight city bends and through hundreds of bridges, is all in a day’s work for a Venetian gondolier. Their striped shirts, straw hats and melodic vibratos are sigils of a location steeped in thousands of years of tradition. But, to truly make an impact on a place that regularly plays host to movie stars, literary luminaries, ostentatious tycoons, distinguished artists, aristocrats, socialites and operatic divas alike, the best entrance is by speed boat.
The history of Venice is one inextricably linked to water. So, all journeys must begin at one of the 150 channels connecting the collection of tiny islands into one thriving capital of arts, culture and entertainment. The most impressive is the Grand Canal, a winding three-kilometre stretch that slices the city in half. On its banks; the Gallerie dell’Accademia, Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Doge’s Palace, St Mark’s Square. The pièce de résistance, however, is The St. Regis Venice.
For a century and a half, this historic property has stood at one of the best addresses on the globe. At the site of what is considered to be one of the world’s first luxury hotels, the Grand Hotel Britannia which opened in 1895 during the inaugural year of the Venice Biennale, the St. Regis stands as a paragon of grandeur. In 2019, after months of renovation that modernised five storied palazzos that date as far back as the 17th Century, the hotel emerged as a contemporary jewel in Venice’s crown. Still, the hallways remained as hallowed as ever.
In 1908, Claude Monet checked in and painted impressionist landscapes ‘en plein air’ like San Giorgio Maggiore at Dusk from the balcony of his room. By 1931, Giuseppe Cipriani Senior, originator of the bellini and founder of the famed Harry’s Bar, had handed in his letter of resignation after working at the hotel for a spell. In 1999, Gwyneth Paltrow and Matt Damon spent a portion of the summer filming The Talented Mr Ripley. In 2022, Timothée Chalamet stopped by for a drink on the terrace before the premiere of Bones & All at the 79th Venice International Film Festival. In October, Jacob Elordi concluded his Italian sojourn there after being spotted walking to the hotel’s pier with three varying Bottega Veneta bags.
For a place consecrated by its celebrity guests, it’s not hard to imagine your approach to the hotel, in GRAZIA’s preferred method of transport, as a scene straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster. Casting yourself as the lead, your arrival plays like a page lifted from a screenplay.
“Exterior – Day. A glamorous woman in a red silk dress floats down the channel, her hair flying behind her as they pass under the Ponte di Rialto. Close up on the sun’s golden rays as they reflect off the lapping ripples. Pan across to the breathtaking facades of lavish residences painted in terracottas and creams. The swing of Glenn Miller’s “In The Mood” crescendos as she arrives, met by a glass of champagne and the dutiful hotel employees who will immediately begin catering to—and even predicting—her every move.”
An Imprint Of Beauty
While The St. Regis Venice is a masterpiece within itself, the hotel serves as a live canvas for creatives and discerning travellers. Ornate details fused with Byzantine and Ottoman influences are the image of the old school, but within the walls of the hotel, imagination is unleashed to the full extent of the word.
The lobby is the centrepiece, where the St. Regis’ commitment to “cultivating the vanguard” is on display across every inch of the exquisite concertina and mosaic marble floors. The beating heart of this area is the Gran Salone which provides a moment of respite at the true intersection between hospitality and glamour. Crucially, the stately room is a tether to the city’s enduring connection to the arts.
Inside you’ll find a majestic chandelier made of iridescent crystal by Chinese contemporary artist, Ai Weiwei. This sphere of light is composed of glass branches twisting in large arcs around each other. Yet, in a cheeky nod to the artist’s signature unique visual language and seminal photo series “Study of Perspective” (1995 – 2017), a pointed middle finger emerges from the foliage and delicate flowers of the piece’s baroque exterior.
Flanked on the walls surrounding the work is another tribute. Commissioned especially for the niches of the exterior, Berlin-based artist Gregor Hildebrandt recontextualised his trademark medium of cassette tapes into portraits of famous A-listers. Titled “Series of Cinema Icons”, actresses like Zooey Deschanel and Mylène Demongeot have been frozen in time and encased in a bygone setting. Their depictions on the shelves were chosen for their portrayal of roles that correspond with the four seasons of the year, further strengthening the hotel’s milieu at the edge of nature. (The St. Regis also boasts the largest waterfront in all of Venice.)
Elsewhere, creativity becomes a little more experimental in the hotel’s edgier watering hole, the Arts Bar. Coming with the territory of being a lavish escape, expect the most polite and well-trained mixologists dressed in perfect white tuxedo jackets to concoct the most inventive cocktails as you sip to the tune of sultry jazz.
This alluring ambience harks back to the bar’s origins as the former home to the San Moise Theatre, a small but highly influential playhouse inside the Palazzo Barozzi that hosted performances from troupes like the ‘Commedia dell’Arte’ and the first cinema projection by the Lumlère brothers.
Seasonal cocktails are influenced by legendary artists, as the name suggests, who shaped the city’s texture. This act also marries the renowned convection of Murano glass blowing with each tipple served in a bespoke creation inspired by the work itself.
A salute to Andy Warhol comes in the form of a glass rendered in Marilyn Monroe’s likeness à la his 1967 pop art portraits. Representing the bright lights of the silver screen, the beverage features notes of effervescent champagne, a vodka base (which is said to be the artist’s favourite spirit) and popcorn syrup as a nod to cinema. Piet Mondrian’s “Composition C (No. III)” is depicted in three bold glasses of solid yellow, red and blue to reflect both the colours of the work and notes of gin; citrus, gin and juniper.
As the evening sets in, hide yourself away in this darkened corner of the hotel for an order of late-night snacks and a drink so beautiful it demands to be savoured, snapped and ordered again. (Especially before you retire to one of the hotel’s sumptuous 130 guestrooms or 39 suites and fall asleep to the sounds of the sea.)
A Feast For The Senses
Crystalline blue shores as far as the eye can see greet you each morning at The St. Regis Venice. The bells of the nearby basilica ring with sacred resonance and transport you back in time. The horizon is illuminated by architectural marvels and the bustling streets are alive with a concerto of voices, footsteps and shop fronts. But inside the hotel, the St Regis offers an indulgence to quench each appetite, too.
The premises is a feast for the senses, beginning with the deluxe rooms. As the acme of five-star travel, each palatial is fitted with custom design furnishings, extraordinary views, soft king beds, marble bathrooms, lighted makeup mirrors, a lavish turndown service and a St. Regis Butler available on demand.
On the ground floor, daily rituals invite guests into a home-away-from-home atmosphere that is as deluxe as it is sophisticated. The first of three is the Afternoon Tea ritual, where guests can sip from stunning porcelain cups designed by Ginori 1735 and continue a custom harking back to the hotel’s 19th Century origins. Another is the extravagant evening ritual in which a champagne butler will pop a bottle in the adorned sabre method. From 5PM, the cork is popped on ice before being sliced with the military sword to mark the tradition from day to night.
The third and final is the Bloody Mary ritual, which is best enjoyed in the titular St. Regis Bar, either perched at the gilded slab or in the garden overlooking the swaying gondolas.
The hotel’s signature cocktail is interpreted as an ode to the allure of the region. A dome-shaped, hand-blown coupe is shaped in the style of the Basilica Santa Maria della Salute. Inside, a single square ice cube embossed with the hotel’s emblem cuts through a clear liquor made from Clarified Tomato Juice and Horseradish-Infused Absolut Elyx Vodka. A spritz of artisanal grappa is sprayed on top before being completed with a single spicy garnish.
These lush comforts converge at Gio’s, the hotel’s esteemed restaurant. A bespoke mirrored mural and expansive glass wall unfold over a refined dining room. If the St. Regis Bar is a lustrous homage to the ambient light of Venice, Gio’s is a toast to the mouth-watering ingredients and dishes of the province. Each meal is eloquently served with disruptive elements like tuna crudo served with tomato and black olive extract, oregano olive oil and Doge’s herbs and Mezzi Paccheri pasta slicked in a generous and delectable sauce made with blue lobster and a spicy anise bisque.
The Place For Any Taste
Venice is a place that doesn’t require a reason to visit. But if you’re looking for one, use romance as an excuse. Nowhere in the city is this more apparent than the St. Regis. Or as one hotel employee espoused, Venice is a place for any taste.
For patrons of the arts, the hotel is a stone’s throw from the elaborate La Fenice Theatre where Maria Callas would perform some of her most stirring arias and neighbours. Those on a culinary odyssey will enjoy its proximity to two iconic haunts on either end of the spectrum; Ristorante Da Ivo, a celebrity hotspot frequented by George Clooney dishing up bruschetta on arrival and the best Spaghetti alle Vongole in the city, and hole-in-the-wall locals-only join All’Arco, which peddles bite-sized Cicchetti with slurps of crisp white wine.
At the end of your stay at the hotel, the warmest hotel employees in all of Venice will guide you back to the docs where you will depart the property in a fashion synonymous with the glitz of the high life. The memories of your stay will forever be imprinted on you, but even as you leave, the St. Regis Venice offers vignettes of life through the windows as you escape on the water.
To discover more about the St. Regis Venice, click here.
