I have stayed at the Splendido Mare twice — first in 2022, a year after the post-renovation reopening, and again for three nights in April 2026, immediately after my four-night stay at the hilltop Splendido. The April 2026 stay forms the basis of this review.
The arrival
The arrival at the Splendido Mare is unlike any other Belmond hotel arrival in Europe. There is no road approach to speak of — the Portofino piazzetta is closed to vehicular traffic during operating hours — and the conventional arrival is on foot from the village’s small car-park-and-shuttle setup at the eastern entrance to the village. The driver — assuming you have arranged the hotel’s car — drops you at the car-park; the porters take the bags via the village’s small electric service vehicles; you walk the 200 metres into the piazzetta and arrive at the property’s discreet small entrance, marked only by a small brass plaque.
The lobby is intentionally small — a single room off the entrance with a check-in desk, two small armchairs, and a glass of the property’s house Ligurian white wine. The director who handled my April check-in was a senior manager named Federico who has been with the Splendido group since 2018; he walked me to the room rather than handing me a key.
The setting is the Portofino piazzetta — the most photographed village square on the Italian Riviera, the small harbour-side square at which the day-tripper boats from Santa Margherita arrive, the canonical Portofino image. The view from the south-facing rooms is across the piazzetta to the harbour and the boats; the view from the eastern-facing rooms is along the harbour wall to the Castello Brown above.
Setting score: 4.7. The half-point deduction is the piazzetta’s day-tripper traffic, which during the peak May-September window runs busy from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and creates a different acoustic environment than the secluded hilltop. The trade is the immediate access to the village’s small shops and bars, which the hilltop guests have to shuttle down for.
The suite
I took a Junior Suite Village View (suite 7) on the second floor of the property’s main building, with a Juliet balcony overlooking the piazzetta. The suite is 45 square metres — smaller than the equivalent suite at the hilltop Splendido, but with a more direct architectural relationship to the village.
Material specifics:
- The bed is dressed in white Pratesi linen, the same specification the hilltop Splendido runs, with a feather topper.
- The floor is the original Ligurian terracotta, restored under the 2020-2021 renovation, with a small Ligurian-tradition runner on the bedside.
- The bathroom is in white Carrara marble with a freestanding tub and a separate rain shower. Amenities are Acqua di Parma, refilled in pump bottles.
- The minibar runs the same honest Ligurian list as the hilltop Splendido — a demi of Vermentino, two small bottles of San Pellegrino, a tin of focaccia chips from Recco.
- The room’s small Marshall speaker — added in the 2021 renovation — connects to Bluetooth without complication.
- The room’s air-handling system runs silent.
Suites score: 4.5. The deductions are the suite’s relative compactness compared to the hilltop sister, the Juliet balcony rather than a full terrace, and a desk surface that is too shallow for laptop work.
The service
Service at the Splendido Mare is the Belmond house style delivered at a smaller scale than the hilltop sister. The senior team is on transfer from the larger Splendido property; the front-desk and housekeeping team is a small dedicated operation. The result is a service experience that is more intimate than the hilltop’s but that depends on a smaller team’s continuous availability.
Two moments from the April stay.
On the second afternoon, I asked the concierge — Andrea, who covers both Splendido properties on a shared-team basis — whether it was possible to arrange a private boat day to the Cinque Terre. The boat was arranged for the following day; the Castagnola motoryacht left from the Festa Veronica dock at 9 a.m., the captain took us to Vernazza and Monterosso al Mare for lunch, and we were back at the dock by 5 p.m. The arrangement was the kind the Splendido group runs as a core competency.
On the third morning, the in-room espresso machine needed a capsule restock. The call to housekeeping was answered within 4 minutes and the capsules were delivered within 8. The hilltop Splendido, by comparison, runs a longer turn-around time on the same request because of the property’s volume.
Service score: 4.5. The half-point deduction is the property’s relative isolation from the hilltop’s full operating depth — the Mare cannot run the full F&B operation that the hilltop offers, and some service requests (in-room dining at scale, the broader laundry service) require the hilltop’s involvement.
The table
The Splendido Mare operates one principal dining room — DaV Mare, the property’s terrace restaurant, located on the harbour-facing side of the building on the piazzetta. The room runs all-day dining under chef Andrea Saoncella (in post since 2021, the post-renovation reopening), with a Ligurian-Mediterranean grammar that is the more casual register against the hilltop Splendido’s more formal kitchen.
I took dinner at DaV Mare on the second night and lunch on both other days.
The April dinner menu:
- A starter of raw red prawn from Santa Margherita, dressed with the property’s olive oil and a single Ligurian sea salt.
- A pasta of trofie al pesto (the canonical Ligurian pasta), made with Genovese basil grown at the hilltop Splendido’s kitchen garden.
- A whole baked branzino, served with a side of grilled vegetables.
- A pre-dessert of lemon sorbet.
- A small selection of Ligurian pastries.
The wine list at DaV Mare runs 280 references with strong Ligurian coverage. Sommelier Andrea Foschini (who covers both properties on a shared-team basis) is the same sommelier I noted in the hilltop Splendido review.
Table score: 4.4. The deductions are the smaller wine list (which is correctly scaled to the property but limits the depth at the higher-rate dinner range), and a breakfast operation that — at 14 keys — runs more personalised but with a narrower range than the hilltop’s.
The detail
The detail score at the Splendido Mare accumulates in the operational decisions of the 2020-2021 renovation and the property’s small-scale operating philosophy.
From the April stay:
- The Festa Veronica boat dock — restored under the 2021 renovation, named for the Splendido group’s signature boat — runs the property’s small fleet (a 1973 Riva Iseo, a 2008 Castagnola motoryacht, and a small day-boat).
- The property’s small in-house spa (two treatment rooms, with a hammam shared via the hilltop Splendido) runs a Ligurian-herb treatment programme.
- Turndown delivers a small jar of Ligurian honey and a printed card with the next day’s weather and tide.
- The shuttle to the hilltop Splendido runs every 15 minutes during operating hours.
- The property’s small concierge desk covers both Splendido properties.
Detail score: 4.2. The deductions are the absence of distinctive operational gestures of the kind the larger properties deliver (no equivalent to the cabana book at Hotel du Cap), and the dependence on the hilltop’s facilities for spa, pool, and full F&B options.
The Standard
| Dimension | Score | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Setting | 4.7 | Portofino piazzetta, harbour-facing, the canonical village square. |
| Suites | 4.5 | Ligurian terracotta, Carrara marble, silent mechanical. |
| Service | 4.5 | Small team, intimate scale; shared with hilltop for depth. |
| Table | 4.4 | DaV Mare at the lunch register; smaller wine list. |
| Detail | 4.2 | Festa Veronica dock, small spa, hilltop dependency. |
Property score: 4.46.
Verdict
Within Reach.
The Splendido Mare is the more honest of the two Portofino propositions for a particular kind of guest: the small-group couple who wants the village-square immediacy, the small-scale boutique experience, and the access to the boat-and-water programme without the hilltop’s volume. The 14-key configuration is the right scale for the property; the post-2021 renovation has lifted the comfort baseline; the integration with the hilltop Splendido’s facilities provides the depth that a 14-key property cannot deliver on its own.
What keeps the property at Within Reach rather than At the Standard is the dependency. The Mare cannot run the full F&B operation, the full spa programme, the full activity slate that the hilltop offers; the shuttle arrangement is the answer, but the dependency is real. For guests who want the integrated Portofino experience, the hilltop Splendido is the correct choice. For guests who want the village-square boutique experience with hilltop access, the Mare is the answer.
If you are choosing between the Splendido Mare and the smaller Portofino piazzetta competitors (the Eight Hotel, the Albergo Nazionale), the Splendido Mare is the option that delivers the Belmond operating culture at the village-square scale; the others run smaller and at a different rate level.
Reservations
Splendido Mare, A Belmond Hotel, Portofino, Via Roma 2, 16034 Portofino, Italy. Reservations: +39 0185 267 802 or via Belmond’s central booking. The 2026 season runs 26 March to 8 November.
April rates from EUR 1,250 for a Junior Suite Village View; the larger Bay-View Suites from EUR 2,650; the property’s signature Festa Veronica Suite (with private dock access) from EUR 6,800.
Genoa Cristoforo Colombo airport (GOA) is a 65-minute transfer; the property will arrange a Mercedes V-Class to the village car park and a small electric vehicle for the piazzetta approach. From Milan Malpensa, the routing is the high-speed rail to Santa Margherita Ligure (3 hours total) followed by the property’s car. Helicopter transfer is available on request through the same operator the hilltop Splendido uses.
Standing Questions
- Is the Splendido Mare the same property as the Splendido on the hill?
- They are sister properties under the same Belmond ownership but operate as separate hotels. The Splendido is the 64-key hilltop property; the Splendido Mare is the 14-key village-square property on the Portofino piazzetta. Guests of one can use the facilities of the other.
- Is the property on the village square?
- Yes, directly. The Splendido Mare's principal entrance is on the Portofino piazzetta — the small village square at the head of the harbour — with the property's terrace dining (DaV Mare) running on the harbour-facing side of the building.
- Is the boat dock operational?
- Yes. The Festa Veronica boat dock — the property's restored 2021 facility — runs the Splendido group's boat fleet (a Riva Iseo, a Castagnola motoryacht, and a small day-boat for excursions to the Cinque Terre).
- Is the property kid-friendly?
- Less so than the hilltop Splendido. The 14-key configuration and the more focused operational programme work against family-resort use; the property is more correctly positioned for couples and small groups.
- Is the Mare's pool the same as the hilltop pool?
- No. The Splendido Mare does not have its own pool; the saltwater pool is at the hilltop Splendido, a 5-minute shuttle ride from the village. Mare guests have full pool access.
