Villa del Sole, Villa in Sanremo, Italy
Villa del Sole is a late 19th-century Art Nouveau villa near the beginning of Via Val d'Olivi in Sanremo, northern Italy. It features a slender square tower with many windows, ornate stucco decorations, fish scale slate roofing, and a large garden that is open to the public.
Pio Soli had the villa built in 1898, and it later passed to Mrs. Teodolinda Rebuffini Tomba before being owned by Duke Pietro d'Acquarone, who served as minister for the Royal House between 1939 and 1946. This succession of owners connected the property to the social and political life of that era.
Since 1973, the Oblate Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus have run the villa as a House of the Clergy, welcoming guests of all backgrounds. Inside, a small chapel is open for prayer or quiet reflection, giving the place a gentle religious character that shapes daily life there.
The villa sits near the start of Via Val d'Olivi, within walking distance of central Sanremo and not far from the seafront. On-site parking is available, which is a practical advantage given that finding a spot nearby in the city can be difficult.
The design of the villa's tower was shaped by ideas from Charles Garnier, the architect behind the Paris Opera, who had a strong influence on buildings along the Riviera in the late 1800s. Queen Helen of Savoy is said to have visited the villa during her stays in Sanremo, a detail rarely mentioned in passing.
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