Tatler UK - 08.2019

VANITY CASE

S PA

BE AUT Y

Water, water everywhere:

the magic of Como by

Louisa Parker Bowles

TREATMENT

MENU

Time Ritual treatment,

£210 for 110 minutes

Oriental Qi massage,

£210 for 110 minutes

The Power of

Water treatment,

£402 for 210 minutes

What could be more appealing than

a weekend on Lake Como? Hopping

aboard a glossy new Riva speedboat

to whizz past the picturesque villas

strung around the lake like pearls;

people-watching on the terrace of

Villa D’Este, and sipping Bellinis at

Grand Hotel Tremezzo. Lake Como

has long been top of my list of places

to visit and April’s launch of a new

Mandarin Oriental spa offering was

the call to action I couldn’t resist.

I’ve always fantasised about life

on Como, and the lakeside outpost

of the MO family, nestled in the

pretty village of Blevio, is that fan-

tasy come to life. There are 21

rooms, 52 suites and two private

stand-alone villas dotted around

1. Sunglasses, £1,725, by GUCCI. 2. Eau de
   Minthé parfum, £120, by DIPTYQUE. 3. Leather
   travel bag, £795, by ASPINAL OF LONDON.


2. Earrings, £795, by BOTTEGA VENETA.


3. Rose water, £29, by SANTA MARIA
   NOVELLA. 6. Hat, £325, by LOCK & CO
   HATTERS. 7. Pearl and gold bracelet, £220, by
   MARIA BLACK. 8. Shoes, £700, by MIU MIU

the botanical garden. My husband

and I stayed in Villa Roccabruna, an

18th-century mansion once home

to opera singer Giuditta Pasta, and

the heart of the property. The feel

is  old-school opulence – shining

chandeliers, silk wallpaper and

marble floors. Neighbouring the

grand villas of Hollywood stars and

Russian tsars, it’s perfect.

Everything in Lake Como re-

volves around the water. We spent

our first day marvelling at it, gazing

at it from our terrace, exploring it in

the Riva and lolling on it atop the

floating sun deck. The next day,

after a refreshing hike in the moun-

tains, we took ourselves beneath it,

in a warren of subterranean spas.

Alongside the Mandarin Oriental

treatments I know and love, there

are also super-indulgent personal-

ised options, inspired by the region.

The Power of Water is the star – a

full-body exfoliation with sea salt

and cedar-tree oil, soothing massage

and an invigorating face mask. We

wove back to the surface via the

steam room, salt room, sauna and

hydrotherapy pools, emerging shiny

and new for a glass of rosé on

the  sun-dappled terrace. Holistic

health, la dolce vita style.

We ended an idyllic day with

dinner at Il Gatto Nero, high up

on the other side of Lake Como.

We’re driven there in the MO’s

new Tesla (0 to 60 in 1.9 seconds

• my husband’s impressed). The
  view is breathtaking, the food –
  grilled salmon and veal Milanese
  with smoked mashed potato – is
  exceptional. Surrounded by Villa
  Oleandra (aka Casa di Clooney,
  adored by the Duke and Duchess
  of Sussex), plus villas once owned
  by Gianni Versace, frequented by
  Winston Churchill and used as the
  location for Casino Royale, we chat-
  ted dreamily about which one we’d
  move into given the chance. For
  elegance and high-octane operatic
  glamour, the latest addition to
  Lake Como hits all the right notes.
  Book it: From £505 per night.
  mandarinoriental.com

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The Mandarin’s

floating pool

Louisa Parker Bowles

on Lake Como in the

Mandarin Oriental’s Riva

top of

the lake

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tatler.com Tatler August 2019 10 9

PHOTOGRAPH: SAM PARKER BOWLES

Villa Roccabruna

08-19BEAUTY-SPA.indd 109 11/06/2019 16:08