Robb Report Singapore

JEWEL OF THE ISLE

In a city renowned for its fascinatio­n with glitz and splendour, Belmond Hotel Cipriani is a treasure box at the centre of Venice’s floating world.

- By RENYI LIM

othing in the story of Venice is ordinary,” the author and historian Jan Morris wrote of the city that she came to fall deeply in love with during her first visit in 1945. “She was born dangerousl­y, lived grandly and never abandoned her brazen individual­ism.” It’s fitting, then, that a place as extraordin­ary as the Belmond Hotel Cipriani has continued to f lourish in the City of Bridges, building up an illustriou­s history matched only by La Serenissim­a herself.

Much has been said about the hotel’s stardustco­ated roster of guests. It’s true that you might spot George Clooney communing with head barman Water Bolzonella at Gabbiano Bar in the wee hours of the morning, or Charlize Theron lounging beside the Olympic-sized, heated seawater pool. But celebrity-watching aside, Belmond Hotel Cipriani’s real allure is the way it lets you enjoy the city – when you want, wherever you set your sights upon and in whatever way you choose.

Perched on the tip of Giudecca island, the hotel is at once neatly removed from and right in the centre of Venice. Should you be filled with a sudden sense of wanderlust after midnight, a 24-hour boat service will deliver you to a private dock at Piazza San Marco within five minutes.

There are few havens in Venice more comfortabl­e than the hotel’s 95 opulent

rooms and suites.

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