Tuscany, Italy

La Serena

Price per night from$727.87

Price information

If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (inclusive of taxes and fees) available in the next 60 days.

Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (EUR622.69), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.

La Serena Photos

Style

Beach-spying aesthete

Setting

Storied Forte dei Marmi

Explore

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Tantalising Tuscan resort Forte dei Marmi has lured holidaying aristos for more than a century. Now, there’s a new reason to visit in the form of La Serena; part coastal crashpad, part immersive art gallery. As serene as its name suggests, this boutique bolthole counts debonair decor, sculpture-dotted grounds, an excellent Tuscan restaurant and a picturesque pool among its considerable charms — with the town’s Ligurian-lapped sands only a stroll away.  

Smith Extra

Get this when you book through us:

A cabana, two sunloungers and two chairs for the day at Bagno Sacro Cuore Forte dei Marmi beach club, plus a bowl of fresh fruit

Facilities

Photos La Serena facilities

Need to know

Rooms

25, including four suites.

Check–Out

11am, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 2pm.

More details

Rates include breakfast, minibar treats, on-loan bikes and private parking.

Also

Some rooms have been adapted for wheelchair access, with roll-in showers, raised toilets with grab rails, lowered sinks and emergency cords. And upper floors can be accessed via the lift.

Hotel closed

This seasonal stay closes its doors from 27 October until 23 April.

At the hotel

Landscaped gardens dotted with sculptures and installations; wine cellar. In rooms: air-conditioning, TV, tea-making kit, Illy coffee machine, free minibar, bathrobes, slippers and custom bath products.

Our favourite rooms

To bubble away in your own hot tub amid the pine trees, opt for a Luxury Suite. If emerald views are more your thing, opt for the Garden Suite, whose spacious terrace overlooks the forest-flanked Alps. Ideal for larger clans, Family Rooms have two interconnecting rooms and two bathrooms; upgrade to a balcony-toting version for lungfuls of fresh air with your Ligurian screensaver.

Poolside

La Serena’s freeform pool brings the off-duty-artist vibes. Unfurl yourself over a beanbag sunlounger, shaded by a raspberry-gingham parasol, or float across the water in a giant star- or flower-shaped inflatable pool ring, preferably with a glass of something fruity in hand.

Spa

There’s no spa at La Serena but you can keep your workout regime on track at the Fitness Center, which also features an outdoor area for alfresco sessions.

Packing tips

Bring Sixties-inspired swimwear and a thirst for wine — La Serena’s cellar is home to more than 2,000 distinguished Italian and international labels.

Also

Honouring the region’s rich artistic heritage, La Serena has a revolving exhibition of artworks and installations, and hosts an inspiring artist’s residence programme. Visits to local studios can also be lined up.

Children

Babysitting can be arranged with 48 hours’ notice (an extra cost applies).

Sustainability efforts

La Serena’s planet-minded initiatives include a paperless Reception, on-loan electric bikes, energy-saving air dryers in communal areas, and a ‘green stay’ option, encouraging a reduced laundry and cleaning service. Single-use plastics are limited throughout.

Food and Drink

Photos La Serena food and drink

Top Table

Secure a spot outside on the sun-dappled terrace, for a slice of la bella vita. On colder days and nights, cosy up indoors beside your favourite painting or sculpture.

Dress Code

Channel your inner Sixties siren/sophisticate, taking Sophia Loren or Federico Fellini at a gallery opening as your guiding scene-setter.

Hotel restaurant

Ikon Bar & Restaurant’s menu fuses Tuscan cuisine and a coastal spirit. Decorated with eyecatching works by emerging and established artists, the dining space pays colourful tribute to Forte dei Marmi’s artistic and cultural legacy. Additional eye-candy comes in the form of a sleek, Carrara-marble-topped bar, a monochrome tiled floor and abundant pot plants, with shoulder-tickling fronds.

Hotel bar

La Serena is rightly proud of its 2,000-label wine list; for sips either indoors at Ikon or in the shaded courtyard, your options include crisp Tuscan whites, punchy Puglian reds or the bartender’s latest favourite pour.

Last orders

Enjoy breakfast until 1pm and dinner until 9pm. Drinks are served until late.

Room service

Order in-room treats from the main menu during the restaurant’s opening hours.

Location

Photos La Serena location
Address
La Serena
Via M. Civitali 51
Forte dei Marmi
55042
Italy

La Serena is in Forte dei Marmi, a lively seaside town in northern Tuscany, poised between the Apuan Alps and the Ligurian Sea.

Planes

The closest airport is Pisa, a 40-minute drive from La Serena. You can also fly into Florence Airport, 90 minutes away by car. The hotel can arrange private transfers for an extra charge.

Trains

Forte dei Marmi train station is just five kilometres away, connecting to noteworthy destinations such as Pisa, Florence, La Spezia, Livorno and Massa. The hotel can provide transfers to and from the hotel.

Automobiles

La Serena has free private parking; spaces are available on a first come, first served basis.

Other

For sailors looking to dock nearby, the closest marinas are at Viareggio, a 25-minute drive from La Serena.

Worth getting out of bed for

Go for a stroll in La Serena’s landscaped gardens, admiring the Paola Lenti furniture, plus large-scale sculptures and installations by contemporary makers. The local beach is only 500 yards away; expect brown-sugar sands, glamorous locals and a fleet of parasols and loungers. Borrow bikes (electric or otherwise) from the hotel and explore Forte dei Marmi, wheeling from pasticceria to pizzeria to boutiques to bar/s. The hotel’s concierge can open the door to a table at a sought-after restaurant; a blue-and-gold sailing trip; or even a hit list of inspiring art galleries. A local market on Wednesday and Sunday mornings is your go-to for buon-prezzo linens, leather and cashmere. Label-lovers will enjoy shopping at the resort’s exclusive boutiques. For further-afield adventures, Pisa’s leaning landmark is just 35 minutes away by train.

Local restaurants

Savour Italian fine dining with a seafood emphasis at Michelin-starred Ristorante Lorenzo, which shares La Serena’s love of art — evident in both its wallhangings and its creative, edible offerings. Stake out a table on the sea-spying veranda and enjoy perfect pizzas, seafood-centric pastas or fresh fish at Osteria del Mare; desserts by the accomplished pastry chef a highlight. Deliberating between sushi, fish crudo or pasta is your tough assignment at The Fratellini’s, an ambitious, modern eatery run by two accomplished chef-brothers.

Local cafés

It’s always affogato time at Caffè Principe, whose prime perch on Via Giosuè Carducci guarantees stellar Italian people-watching. With its laidback, surfer vibe, Sanamente is a popular, low-key brunch spot.

Local bars

Soak up the rooftop views (and moreish cocktails) at 67 Sky Lounge, part of Hotel Principe Forte dei Marmi. For sunset piña coladas, a generous dash of leopard print and a dose of seaside glamour, head to Twiga beach club; you’ll know you’re in the right place when you spot the two resident giraffes (inanimate, don’t worry). Nicknamed the ‘dance restaurant’, late-night La Capannina di Franceschi has been going strong since 1929, attracting the likes of JFK — now it’s your turn.

Reviews

Photos La Serena reviews

Anonymous review

By Mr & Mrs Smith

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this coastal hotel in Forte dei Marmi and unpacked their pappardelle and Gucci, a full account of their Italian beach break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside La Serena in Tuscany…

Basically the Goat of Italian beach resorts, Forte dei Marmi has long been beloved by royalty. In the Sixties, it became a coastal playground for VIPs, artists and the fashion set. Flashy, fun and glamorous, with a generous dose of eccentricity, it’s the kind of place where you can bathe all day and dance all night. Tucked into the town, La Serena, whose name means serenity, injects a dose of cultured, art-centric calm into this beachy backdrop. Begin the day with a leisurely ‘breakfast’ (served until 1pm, in case you’ve been cutting shapes at one of the local nightclubs), laze by the freeform pool and enjoy Versilian seafood or tordelli pasta for lunch. As the skies darken and the sun sets, sip a cocktail or two in the sculpture-adorned gardens and let the night begin all over again — even if the party is only taking place in your bedroom.

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Price per night from $720.85

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