Book online Arrival Departure People History The Regina Palace Hotel is proud to tell its story , a history spanning one hundred years. To this end, in 2008, on the occasion of its centenary, a book was published. With the Napoleonic road, in 1806 the first tourists also began to arrive and, a century later, with the opening of the Simplon tunnel, representatives of the European and world "Belle Epoque" arrived. In Stresa, progress proceeded at great strides, also due to the presence of the royal family and the hotels were always crowded with famous guests. To respond to this request, in 1906 a group of far-sighted pioneers of the nascent hotel industry founded the "Italian Society for Lake Maggiore Hotels" which bought the then famous Villa De Martini which was then demolished to house the new hotel. The Regina was inaugurated in 1908. The hotel development in Stresa suffered a brief halt during the First World War, but after the war numerous illustrious guests returned again who alternated in the luxurious suites of the Hotel. Among the many, to the Queen Sofia of Greece and the composer Pietro Mascagni who often wrote music in the garden and who returned on April 25, 1937 as evidenced by the signature on the Golden Book of the Hotel. The group of Stresiani who in 1906 had bought the Villa De Martini to build the Regina Palace, frightened by the continuing negative economic situation and the slow economic recovery, in 1922 decided to sell the hotel to the Bossi family. The various horse competitions began which gave prestige to the city and the hotels. We are in 1926: George Bernard Shaw is a guest of the Regina. Some of the writings, jealously guarded by the Hotel, recall the "splendid welcome and the desire to return to Stresa". At the beginning of the Thirties, the Prince of Piedmont and future King of Italy, Umberto II, arrived as a guest with his consort Maria Jose 'of Belgium. To follow countless personalities from Princess Jolanda of Savoy to Princess Margaret of England. From King Hussein of Jordan to King Faruk of Egypt. In April 1935 the famous International Conference of Stresa was held with the aim of rebuilding the economic, financial and political structure of Europe. The period of the Misses on the catwalk at the turn of the forties and fifties made Stresa a point of attraction for the cinema environment. The Miss Italia finals at the Regina Palace were held for the first time in 1946 and continued uninterruptedly until 1949 and 1958. It was attended by girls who then became famous over time: Lollobrigida and Bosé are an example. In 1948 Prince Antonio De Curtis, aka Totò together with Walter Chiari, landed in Stresa to shoot a film with the winner of the Miss Italy contest: “Totò in the Giro d'Italia”. In 1974 the hotel was put up for sale again and passed into the hands of some Stresian families. Since then there have been many successes: from the congress business to the 1984 NATO meeting. In 1995 the Regina hosted for the first time the Grand Ball of the debutantes, Vienna sul lago which then became a fixed appointment every winter. The 2003 Ecofin once again made mention of Stresa. All press conferences were organized at the Regina. In recent years, characters from finance, politics and entertainment have been guests of the Hotel. Since 1996, a skilful work of conservative restoration has made it possible to accompany the Regina in the second millennium without altering its architecture and artistic elements. Download the pdf " A Century of History " Regina Palace Hotel ★★★★ - Tel. +39.0323.936936 - VAT and Tax Code 09517030152 | Disclaimer | Company Info | Credits