In short… An old world hotel with an excellent beach club .
The surroundings… The hotel began in the 50s when the owners transformed the Villa Pesenti into the Augustus, adding a second floor. It has several different properties which are all in close proximity–the Villa Pesant, the Nave (which means ship) which sits just behind it, which is a more modern 70s vibe almost brutalist building, and the Lido (formerly Villa Agnelli), which is across the street from the beach club, and is Gianni Agnelli’s former residence. There are also seven residences available for rent that are a part of the hotel as well. We stayed in the Villa Pesanti, which is a 5 minute walk to the beach. It’s at the end of a long red and white flower lined a deep red painted driveway, which is such a lovely entrance. Near the pool and the bike lot are jasmine trellised arches, which were in full bloom, so the scent was everywhere and just magical.
The vibe…Super charming, and you can immediately tell it’s family owned property—the lobby area has a great fireplace surrounded by beautiful modernist leaning paintings–you wouldn’t find a collection like that in a place that has had multiple owners. Striped green and white canopies line the balconies of the rooms, along with ivy. The beach club is super chic–red white and blue changing areas, a zero-entry saltwater pool perfect for little ones (but adults too!). And the cabanas are excellent. Double sun beds in the shade, two sling back chairs, and two sun beds–plus a cabinet with a safe, if you want to swim and put your watch and wallet inside.
The rooms…We were in room 252, a comfortable corner suite with a lovely little terrace surrounding it. It was decorated in a way that showed several different renovations—a staircase from the 70s, curtains probably from the 90s, and a more modern bathroom (albeit no tub). We peeked into another room that had wallpaper that appeared to be Fornasetti. I’d say the interiors are the weakest link here, but other elements are so good that it’s easy to overlook.
The wellness… This is such a biking town–everyone is on a bike here–and there’s a really wide bike lane–so you can rent a bike from the hotel, and just go as far as you like–into different beach towns like Pietrasanta, or further to Viareggio. They have a huge gym in the Nave building–Technogym equipment, and while the pool isn’t officially open to guests until 10:30am, if you’re a lap swimmer, they’ll make an exception for you as long as you sign a waiver.
The food & drink…We ate lunch at the beach club, and at first glance, the menu seemed a bit fussy—descriptions included foam, bottarga, sushi, oysters. But a couple of pages further we got to the pasta page, where they had a spaghetti alle arce (the tiny local clams) and a spaghetti alla bombaissa, their signature pasta, made with mixed local seafood and tomatoes. We started with a fritto misto and a salad—both so good—the fritto one of the best we’ve had—calamaretti and shrimp along with sage leaves and zucchini flowers. The pastas were divine—on the level of the best we’ve had. Along with some local rose from Lucca. We didn’t eat any other meal here, but the breakfast buffet was quite impressive—two rooms of options—piles of sweet pastries, cases of cheeses, and plenty of seasonal fruits.
Be sure to…There’s an on-demand shuttle that will take you into town, about 5 minutes away. While I had imagined it to be all fancy shops and lacking in soul, I was completely wrong. There are so many sweet little independent shops, a park that had pony rides for kids, and so many Italians on holiday. We loved getting a drink at Principe and people watching.
Date of stay…June 15, 2025
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