After an extensive three-year renovation, the Splendido Mare now offers an intimate and exclusive setting where you can enjoy one of Italy’s most glamorous locations. The Belmond Splendido Mare, on the beautiful and picturesque harbour, is the smaller of the two Splendido properties in Portofino and Belmond calls it “a charming guesthouse in the heart of the legendary Piazetta”.

What was once the first inn in Portofino, where guests arrived in horse-drawn carriages, has now been transformed into a splendid boutique hotel offering 14 rooms and sporting a chic new 1950s look inspired by the golden days of Hollywood when the most glamorous film stars graced this Ligurian haven. Parisian architectural studio Festen has remodelled the interiors in an elegant vintage style but with an alluring contemporary feel featuring natural colours and generous use of polished wood remniscent of the yachts and fishing boats in the harbour. The restaurant floor features no less than 7,000 terracotta tiles made by hand by a local artisan to echo the gentle undulation of the sea, so that you feel as if you are walking across the water. The hotel’s most luxurious suite – The Ava Gardner Suite – on the top floor includes a romantic roof terrace. Designer chairs and vintage pieces maintain the 1950s theme. PR manager Davide Bertolino invited me to a tremendously enjoyable lunch at the Splendido Mare’s restaurant DaV Mare prepared by executive chefs Enrico and Roberto Cerea (of Bergamo’s triple- Michelin-starred restaurant Da Vittorio). Along with some of the Cerea brothers’ signature dishes, the menus respect and reinterpret local traditions: platters of marinated raw fish and seafood; risotto emulsified with pesto, prawns and tomato; cappon magro – a mix of shellfish on a bed of Ligurian veg- etables. Fantastico!

The Splendido Mare is located on the edge of Portofino’s harbour and so the facilities are inevitably limited but of course guests can enjoy all the luxurious amenities of the iconic Belmond Splendido, including its magical salt-water infinity pool, spa, wellness centre, gym tennis courts and magnificent gardens. Or perhaps a visit to the historic, Bagni Fiore Beach Club, one of the most exclusive spots in the bay of Paraggi-Portofino since 1927. As in Dalida’s song, I indeed found my love in Portofino.