Cover Hotel Cipriani in Venice opened in 1958
Hotel Cipriani in Venice opened in 1958
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Hotel Cipriani is the go-to hotel in Venice for Hollywood's A-list, especially during the annual Venice Film Festival
Arriving at Hotel Cipriani is a surreal experience. A sleek mahogany speedboat boat takes you through Venice’s crowded canals and stone bridges. And suddenly, like a big exhale, you reach the open waters of the lagoon before docking at the hotel jetty.
It’s a colourful arrival: the maroon and white striped mooring poles, known locally as pali; the hotel’s peach facade; the blue and white parasols; the two-storey high pine-tree with a sun-brushed canopy.
It feels like a moment straight out of the movies and that’s perhaps why it’s been Hollywood’s favourite hotel in Venice since it opened in 1958.
Away from Venice’s notorious crowds, Hotel Cipriani sits quietly on the tip of Giudecca Island. Founded in 1958 by Giuseppe Cipriani—creator of Harry’s Bar and inventor of the Bellini—the property was built as a secluded hideaway for jetsetters and cultural icons during the height of Italy’s dolce vita era.
See also: Splendido, the legendary Portofino hotel, has reopened and we were one of the first to check in
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The likes of Sophia Loren, Paul Newman, Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor were regular guests. And the famous Casanova Gardens, where Giacomo Casanova himself reputedly wooed his lovers, is still thriving and seductive as ever.
The hotel, acquired by Belmond (then Orient-Express) in 1976, keeps the spirit of that era alive with discretion and dialled-down decadence that’s more intuitive than in-your-face.
Today, it’s a favourite among A-listers like George and Amal Clooney, and a key destination for celebrities visiting during the Venice Film Festival.
To guide the hotel into its next chapter, Belmond tapped architect and interior designer Peter Marino, who also happens to chair the Venetian Heritage Foundation.
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Marino’s multi-phase transformation bridges three distinct eras: the storied elegance of Old Venice, the mid-century glamour of the hotel’s 1950s origins, and contemporary art. The light-filled, double-height lobby sits next to the hotel’s charming original wooden bell desk, and the overhauled Signature Suites—most of which are styled like private Venetian apartments—pair traditional terrazzo floors, Murano glass chandeliers and antique marble with avant-garde artwork by Italian masters like Emilio Vedova and Carla Accardi.
Since Hotel Cipriani sits in a quieter pocket of Venice, the hotel’s Mahogany boat — her name is Shirley — shuttles guests between the hotel and the square every five to seven minutes, 24 hours a day. Like cab drivers in cities like New York or London, I imagine those driving the boat, especially in the early morning hours, have some wild and wonderful stories. But we’ll never know, because discretion is what keeps the chandeliers on at Hotel Cipriani.
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Cip's Club, the hotel's “see and be seen” overwater restaurant built in 1976, is lively every night. It’s a tight squeeze on the pier, with tables spaced inches from each other. But guests seem pretty happy to literally rub shoulders with the stylish, star-studded crowd while enjoying dishes like beef carpaccio, salt-baked branzino and tagliolini verdi gratinati with views of St Marks Square.
It was at Cip’s Club—between sips of a perfect ice-cold martini, surrounded by buzz and beauty—that I turned to my travel partner and said, “what if we just stayed in tonight?” And so we did.
While speedboats hummed in the distance and guests mingled in the courtyard below, I enjoyed a tray of tiramisu and berries in bed while watching a movie; uncharacteristically unbothered about missing out because in a world that increasingly demands speed and scale … Hotel Cipriani demands just one thing: presence.
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Coco Marett is a writer and editor who grew up between Hong Kong and Melbourne. She currently heads the travel section for Tatler Asia, and manages the Tatler Travel account on Instagram. She is known for her features on unique, under-the-radar properties and destinations. She's also known for her in-depth interviews that paint a refreshingly candid portrait of influential figures across various industries —from artists to political figures, CEOs to celebrity chefs. Follow her on Instagram @cocomarett
