Grand Hotel da Vinci

The hotel has a dedicated offer, Golf e mare, naming four golf clubs of 18 and 27 holes reachable in just over an hour: Adriatic Golf Club Cervia at Milano Marittima (20 km), Rimini Verucchio Golf Club (27 km), Riviera Golf Club at San Giovanni in Marignano (60 km) and Golf Club Bologna (110 km). Grand Hotel da Vinci has no course of its own.

The package includes the stay, buffet breakfast, lunch and/or dinner at Ristorante Monnalisa with a four-course menu (drinks excluded), entry to the heated indoor pool, the Technogym fitness room, a tee-time booking service at agreed prices, bag storage, hotel bicycles and wi-fi. Add-ons include Dolce Vita Spa entry (20 euros per visit) and an umbrella with two loungers at the private beach club.

The nearest club, Adriatic Golf Club Cervia, was founded in 1984 on the initiative of the town of Cervia and has 27 holes over almost 100 hectares, between an ancient pine forest and a stretch of coast. The first course runs along the pinewood, the second, full of water hazards, recalls large American layouts, and the third is inspired by Scottish links; the club says the mild Adriatic climate allows play all year.

The hotel stands at Viale Carducci 7, on the canal port of Cesenatico, which its website credits to Leonardo's design. Rooms face the Molo or the sea, in six types: Executive of 20 m², Deluxe of 26 m², Junior Suite of 30 m², Suite of 40 m², Regal Suite of 70 m² and two Presidential Suites of up to 200 m².

The four Suites occupy the 19th-century octagonal tower; suite bathrooms feature Versace tubs and ceramics, and the Regal Suites have Venini chandeliers. There is a private garden with an outdoor pool and a children's area, video-monitored parking and a 24-hour reception. Check-in is from 2.30pm, check-out by 11am; pets are accepted and electric cars have a charging station.

The Dolce Vita Spa is open daily from 9am to 9pm, also to non-guests by reservation. The circuit includes a heated indoor pool with trace-element water, waterfalls and hydromassage, a 90 °C Finnish sauna, a 45 °C biosauna, steam bath, emotional showers with a Kneipp path, an ice waterfall and chromotherapy. Couples have the Private Spa with whirlpool and hammam; younger guests have a Kids Spa.

The private beach is golden sand with widely spaced umbrellas, reached from the garden through a flowered pergola. It is home to Ristorante La Spiaggia, open in summer from 7am to 10pm.

Executive chef Alessandro Trovato signs the menus of Ristorante Monnalisa, a bright room overlooking garden and pool, and of Ristorante La Spiaggia, with a monthly menu celebrating the Adriatic. Monnalisa serves lunch from 12.30 to 2.30pm and dinner from 7.30 to 9.30pm. The hotel says it uses mostly zero-kilometre produce plus fruit and vegetables from Fattoria Batani. The Terrazza, from June to September, serves quicker lunches.

• Leonardo's port. According to the hotel's website, the Porto Canale that some rooms overlook was designed by Leonardo.
• Carrara marble. The entrance hall of the two Presidential Suites has a Carrara marble floor and opens onto two to four communicating rooms.
• Butler on request. A butler service is available in the Suites, Regal and Presidential Suites.
• Chocolate massages for kids. The Kids Spa offers massages with chocolate, milk and honey oils.