Hotel Villa Borghi hosts seminars, training days and conventions for up to 150 people theatre style, and wedding receptions for up to 130 guests indoors or 200 in the garden, with 66 bedrooms on site. The four-star hotel occupies the former residence of the Borghi family in Varano Borghi, in the province of Varese, on the eastern shore of Lake Comabbio. It stands in a private park of about 65,000 m².
Seminars and company events
The meeting center is on the lower ground floor, and every room there has natural light. Napo Borghi, the largest room at 263 m², seats 150 theatre style or 45 in a U-shape. Zaccaria (168 m²) seats 100 theatre style or 35 in a U-shape, Olimpia (85.5 m²) 60 and Mimì (95 m²) 35. A small Biblioteca on the ground floor takes 8 around a table for a board meeting. The equipment is recent: a three by three video wall of 55-inch Samsung screens, a 55-inch interactive whiteboard, an audio and video switching matrix with a DSP mixer, Sennheiser handheld and lavalier microphones, Barco ClickShare wireless sharing, wired connections over CAT6, a motorized screen with projector, and tablet control of each room. The hotel sells packages that combine room hire, coffee breaks, working breakfasts or lunches and overnight stays, and a dedicated events team follows each program. A large car park serves the site.
Weddings and receptions
Receptions take place in the Giardino d'Inverno, a winter garden for up to 130 guests that opens onto the lawns for the aperitif or dessert, in the Sala delle Dame for about 50, or in the O'Lac restaurant for up to 30. Outdoor events in the garden go up to 200 people. A civil ceremony can be set up at the villa on request. The wedding menu covers the welcome toast, an appetizer buffet, first and second courses, the cake and a dessert buffet, with wine, water and coffee, and the couple spend the wedding night in one of the suites. The halls can be reserved for exclusive use on request. The private outdoor pool can also be part of the day.
Accommodation
The hotel has 66 bedrooms: 20 in the historic villa and 46 in a modern building, from Deluxe rooms to junior suites and suites. A spa is on site. The park, with century-old and rare trees and walking paths, is open to guests, apart from the grottos.
Catering
The hotel runs two restaurants: La Scuderia for everyday meals and O'Lac, more formal, for special occasions. The American Bar serves aperitifs and after-dinner drinks, and the Effetto Serra bar sits in the park. Coffee breaks and working lunches come from the hotel kitchen.
History and setting
The villa stands on one of the highest points of the town, over the remains of a settlement recorded from the 12th century. Zaccaria Borgo, a merchant from Gallarate, took on the estate in 1760, and in 1838 Francesco Borghi brought the Varano lands together under his family. The Borghi were textile industrialists: Luigi Borghi introduced mechanical weaving in Italy in 1841. In the second half of the 19th century the family had engineer Paolo Cesa Bianchi rework an existing noble palace into the present eclectic building on a double-T plan, with Liberty-style lines. Two meeting rooms carry family names, Zaccaria and Napo Borghi.
Getting there
The hotel is at Piazza Borghi 1, close to Milan Malpensa airport and to the A8 motorway. It closes for a few days around Christmas.
