Villa & Palazzo Aminta in Italian Stresa (Lake Maggiore), belongs to the international chain The Leading Hotels of the World. The concept of the 5*L property implies that "everywhere, every detail and every one of the smallest features helps turn the experience of anyone choosing to stay here into a dream". Now we talk with Ivan Quaglia, Director of Sales Marketing of Villa & Palazzo Aminta.

VILLA & PALAZZO AMINTA – LUXURY REINVENTED

– Ivan, Hotel Villa e Palazzo Aminta is being a part of the international chain The Leading Hotels of the World. What does the membership mean for them guests?

– The Resort is not just the one and only in the whole Piedmont region being part of The Leading Hotels of the World but also member of Virtuoso and Signture. This means a guarantee of quality and comfort for our valued customers who place their trust in us.

– Does this membership brings additional responsibility for the owners? Does it affect management rules?

– The membership to LHW goes to emphasize both the costs of managing the resort, and the training of staff and how to treat guests at the hotel, to always guarantee the best service. Furthermore this also involves at least two surprise inspections by Leading inspectors who come to check the quality and service standards.

– How many hotel guests are loyal customers? Are they members of bonus programs (Leaders Club)?

– We have a large number of repeaters who love to come on stunning Lake Maggiore’s shores to admire and visit the three famous Borromean Islands and who like to “stay different”. Most of them are part of loyalty programs as well as Leaders Club members.

– How seasonal factor affects the hotel occupancy?

First of all, the nature of the lake tourism itself is affecting the opening season that normally goes from March/April to October even if in the two past years we were open also for the New Year eve with great results and maximum occupancy. Moreover, being on the lake shores and being a resort, we normally go fully booked from Friday to Sunday – especially for individuals – while during the midweek days we host lots of company meetings and incentives.

– Do you have any difficulties with recruiting and training hotel staff?

–The recruitment of well trained hotel staff is always a problem, even if all our team and service managers have been with us from a long time, and they are the person in charge of training the few new members.

– What is the average length of stay for guests of the hotel?

– Lake Maggiore, thanks to the thousands of things to see and do that offers compared with other lake district destinations has a very high length of stay, from approx. 2,8 to 3,5. In particular, at Villa AMINTA we have people that are generally staying from 3 to 6 nights, even if at times our esteemed repeaters extend the stays up to 15, 20 nights.

– From which countries are hotel guests? Do you have any clients from Russia? China?

– The main markets on Lake Maggiore and at Villa AMINTA are UK, US, Germany, Italy, Russia and France, but we have guests coming from all over the world, obviously with small arrival numbers.

– The hotel has a Conference Room. How much is it in demand?

– Hosting company meetings & incentives, of course we have a meeting room together with many other halls and spaces suitable to accommodate our guests. The conference room is highly requested, not only for meeting but also from groups of individuals to be switched into a ballroom for private parties or as separate reserved dinner room.

– What is the “added value” of the hotel - location, history, service?

– Fortunately we don’t have just one added value, but many ! First of all, the sole LHW member on the whole Lake Maggiore and Piedmont region, as well as Virtuoso and Signature, the unique real five star luxury lakeside retreat and the one and only right in front of the famous Borromean Islands, with private taxi boat transfer facilities directly from the jetties of the resort, heli-pad, and a terrific decorated historical building dating back to the 19^th century.

– Your slogan is “Unexpected on the lake”. Please explain what it means.

– It means exactly what it says, or that is you can never imagine the beauty of the location, the level of service, the elegant décor of the building, the breathtaking view over the lake from the rooms and panoramic restaurant but most of all, the spirit and passion of the team and management in welcoming and hosting the guests. But I believe it’s better feel this mood by yourself... 

Seeing is believing !