Checking in with Paolo Lornezoni, GM of The Gritti Palace. After a decade on-site, this expert knows exactly how to curate the richest experience both in and around the hotel.
You have been a part of the Gritti Palace team for over a decade. What do you think makes the property so unique?
The Gritti is truly like a club. From the moment you first visit, you’ll find that you can meet and chat with other guests, often discovering that you even have friends in common.
What sort of guest requests do you get often?
Guests always wish to have the same room they had during their previous stays. All of our rooms are decorated in grand Venetian style, but be sure that each is unique.
The Gritti is truly like a club. From the moment you first visit, you’ll find that you can meet and chat with other guests, often discovering that you even have friends in common.
What is the ideal dining experience at the hotel?
Start with an aperitif—a Negroni or a Bellini—on our Riva Lounge terrace, overlooking the Grand Canal. Then move to the Club del Doge for dinner. Order some of my favorites: The steamed spider crab salad or the raw shrimp carpaccio followed by a risotto or our homemade ravioli and then perhaps the fried seafood plate or Milanese veal cutlet.
And if we just want to stay in and order room service?
Go for the club sandwich—or the langoustine risotto.
What would you say is one of the hotel’s best-kept secrets?
Our Redentore Terrace Suite. It is on the top floor of the hotel. It features a 250-square-meter terrace with a Jacuzzi plunge pool. And the 360-degree views of Venice are simply incredible. The terrace can also be rented out for a private dinner or special occasions.
If guests were to book one extra day in Venice, just to hang out in the hotel, how should they spend it?
Book a cooking lesson with our chefs at The Gritti Epicurean School: It starts with a market visit to pick up the day’s ingredients, along with a stop for a taste of Cicchetti at one of the nearby bacari on the way back. Lunch will be prepared, and you can chat with our chefs over the meal and some paired wines. Or you can take a wine-tasting lesson with our sommelier. Finish up with a relaxing massage at The Gritti SPA. And, if you are a history enthusiast, you will want to tour through our palace corridors. They are filled with heritage treasures.
Any other musts?
I do like to recommend that guests book the hotel’s Aquariva Yacht “Il Doge” to explore Venice’s magnificent lagoon. Spend the day visiting the islands of Murano, Burano, and Torcello, stopping for lunch at one of the lagoon’s hidden restaurants. You might even take a dip in some of the spots favored by Venetians. And, and of course, you can finish your tour with a sunset aperitif in the middle of the lagoon, immersed in Venice’s monumental landscape.
