[PORTO ERCOLE, TUSCANY] — Il Pellicano is a world famous destination resort on the western Tuscan coast of Maremma. Just celebrating it’s 50th Anniversary, Il Pellicano is on the top of nearly every Gold List. It’s a Leading Hotels of the World hotel and is built around the Michelin two-star restaurant, which is indeed worth the trip. The views are stunning, overlooking the Argentario peninsula, not far from where the Costa Concordia tipped over.

Really amazing service, where each and every person, from the waiter to the bartender, remembers what you ordered the last time. It’s expensive, but the room I got was one of the most spacious and perfectly appointed I’ve ever had, perfectly laid out, with an enormous bathroom and opened onto a terrace overlooking the ocean.

This is where you eat. You know, if you’re into two star Michelin food. I am into two star Michelin food. But I don’t like stuffy. This porridge is juuust right. Italian. Outdoors. On a cliff overlooking the sea. Think crisp cotton striped shirt and no socks, not tux or tie. Besides the beautiful hotel, the restaurant at Il Pellicano is another reason why this place is near the 🔝 of nearly every gold list, year after year, for fifty years.

Monte Argentario, once an island, but like my stomach, grew beyond its britches, loosened the top button and is now double-belted to the shore. Go check it out on google maps.

Oh look, they have a pool…😳

If you were anywhere near a travel magazine or society page last summer, you probably saw pictures of Hotel Il Pellicano. Beautifully tanned and impeccably dressed people from all over world descended on this tumbling hillside to celebrate fifty years of near perfection.
Just about every famous name ending in i or e was here, as they always have been, coming to celebrate this quiet paradise overlooking the shimmering blue Tyrrhenian Sea.
But this is not one of those stuffy places, with over the top white glove silver service and pretension. No, this is like going to the summer house of a wealthy friend-of-a-friend; someone with really good taste taste, but not too, too.
In fact, if one actress represented this place it would be Alicia Vikander in just about anything she wore to awards shows. Elegant and demure, with a slight accent, in the coolest understand floral pattern, different from everyone else, with sexy shoulders and showing just the right amount of leg. And a Good Tanner.
Yep, that’s Il Pellicano. Oscar Worthy.

I was there at the end of the season, in early October, so they were just about to shut down for the season, so few people were there. But I lucked out with incredible, cloudless 80 degree days. It’s a great place to base out of, taking day trips to the really undiscovered Maremma coast and inland Tuscan hill towns.

I was just at the end of the season in October, so they had a special discount for this enormous room. In most resort hotels in Italy, this huge room would go for a thousand bucks. I got it for $500/night. Expensive, but worth it for the view, finish and view.

I was just at the end of the season in October, so they had a special discount for this enormous room. In most resort hotels in Italy, this huge room would go for a thousand bucks. I got it for $500/night. Expensive, but worth it for the view, finish and view.

This shower was so huge, you could park a Fiat in it.

The hotel service was really something special. They had one of the best pre-arrival email system setup to pre-welcome you, advise you of special things you can pre-arrange. It was all automated, but at the same time felt very personal.

Il Pellicano from Dan Fogarty on Vimeo.

Don’t believe me, here are some great articles for more information and much better pictures. An awesome anniversary story in the Wall Street Journal, TripAdvisor, TMagaznine, FathomWayToGo, and this awesome article called Hidden Tuscany in Conde Nast Traveller and on the CNT Gold List, one of the best hotels in the world.  And here’s how to find details on Leading Hotels of the World website and my favorite TabletHotels.