A pool that floats on a lake, one carved out of granite rocks, an artificial lake 105 metres across: in golf hotels, water has become architecture. Here are the pools with a story to tell, and when you can use them.
After 18 holes, the pool is a golf hotel's second course. Some are purely functional; others are the reason a guest picks the hotel. The ones below each have a precise fact to tell: size, material, history, setting.
By the sea: salt water and rocks
- Hotel Cala di Volpe (Costa Smeralda): an Olympic-size salt-water pool, which the hotel presents as the largest in Europe. For the sea there is the boat, with a shuttle every 30 minutes from the private jetty.
- Hotel Pitrizza: the hotel's signature is the salt-water pool carved out of granite rocks, open from 8 am to 7 pm. Most of the 16 villas have a private pool overlooking the sea.
- Romazzino: two pools, one of seawater cut into the rock above the beach and one of fresh water designed for families. For golf, the reference for all three Costa Smeralda hotels is the Pevero Golf Club, open every day from 8:00 am to 7:30 pm (2026 price list).
- Masseria San Domenico (Fasano): a brackish-water pool surrounded by natural rocks; some of the estate's olive trees are reflected in the water. The hotel is seasonal: the Michelin Guide lists it as closed from November to February.
- Forte Village, Villa del Parco: six pools of Sardinian seawater, at different temperatures and salinities, along the thalassotherapy circuit onto which the hotel opens directly.
- Hotel Hermitage (Elba): three pools, all seawater: the central one, the "Caribbean" one with its in-water bar and a warm hydromassage pool.
On the lake and the Riviera
- Villa d'Este (Cernobbio): the pool floats on the lake. It was inaugurated in 1966 and, according to the hotel, was the first on Lake Como. The golf is at the Golf Club Villa d'Este, in Montorfano, open from March to December, every day except Tuesday.
- Royal Hotel Sanremo: the seawater pool by Gio Ponti, unveiled in 1948, heated to 27 °C, in a 16,000 m² subtropical park. It is open from April to October; the reference club is the Golf Club Sanremo.
- Excelsior Palace Hotel (Rapallo): two freshwater infinity pools of about 14 by 10 metres, with a maximum depth of 1.40 m; one has six hydromassage loungers. According to the hotel, they are the only two infinity pools on the sea on the Portofino Coast.
- Hotel Villa Cipriani (Asolo): a panoramic infinity pool, heated and with hydromassage, awarded at the Italian Pool Award 2014; it is open every day in summer, among olive and cypress trees. The nearby course is the Asolo Golf Club.
- Quellenhof See Lodge (San Martino in Passiria): at the centre is an artificial lake of 4,500 m², 105 metres in diameter and at most 1.25 metres deep, which according to the hotel is the largest pool in South Tyrol. Next to it, an indoor pool connected to a 25-metre outdoor infinity pool. It is adults only.
Rooftop and mountain pools
- Hohenwart (Scena): at the top of the VistaSpa (16+) is a panoramic infinity pool of saline water at 34 °C, with a full-circle view over the Merano basin. In the garden, a 25-metre sports pool heated year-round to 28 °C.
- Andreus Golf & Spa Resort: seven pools, including a salt-water infinity pool on the fifth floor reserved for adults, a 33.33-metre sports pool and a natural bathing lake.
- Hotel Castel (Tirol): a heated infinity pool open year-round, 20 × 8 metres, with a 180-degree view stretching towards Bolzano and the peaks of the Val Venosta. The hotel was closed from 8 November to 15 April in 2025-26.
- Romantik Hotel Turm (Fiè allo Sciliar): a black pool at 32 °C where you swim from inside to outside with the Sciliar in front of you.
- Posia Retreat & SPA (Apulia): a heated rooftop infinity pool, adults only and by reservation, and the 23-metre Sky Pool, unheated, open to children as well.
For real swimming
For those who want to swim and not just cool off, there are pools with training dimensions:
- Almar Jesolo: a 70-metre pool running parallel to the beach, heated to three different temperatures and linked to the spa by a glass tunnel.
- Andreus: 33.33 metres with automatic timing.
- Quellenhof Passeier: 25 metres with timing.
- Golf Lodge (Andreus Resorts): a 28-metre infinity pool heated year-round.
Table: when you can swim
| Hotel | Declared season or temperature |
|---|---|
| Royal Hotel Sanremo | April to October, 27 °C |
| Hotel Villa Cipriani | open every day in summer |
| Hohenwart (sports pool) | year-round, 28 °C |
| Hohenwart (panoramic pool) | 34 °C |
| Hotel Castel | infinity pool heated year-round; hotel closed 8 Nov-15 Apr (2025-26) |
| Il Picciolo (Etna) | outdoor pools from late May-early July to late September-early October, weather permitting |
| Quellenhof Lazise | adults-only sky pool, 30-34 °C year-round |
What to check before booking
A pool "open year-round" does not always mean "hotel open year-round". Confirm the dates of the hotel and of the specific pool, the age rules (many panoramic pools are adults only) and, for pools on the sea or lake, the depth and the safety rules.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the largest pool among golf hotels?+
It depends on what you measure: Cala di Volpe declares an Olympic-size salt-water pool, the largest in Europe according to the hotel; the Almar has a 70-metre pool; the Quellenhof See Lodge has an artificial lake of 4,500 m², which the hotel calls the largest pool in South Tyrol.
Which hotel has a pool that floats on the lake?+
Villa d'Este, in Cernobbio: the floating pool was inaugurated in 1966 and, according to the hotel, was the first on Lake Como.
Where can I find heated seawater pools?+
At the Royal Hotel Sanremo the pool designed by Gio Ponti is seawater heated to 27 °C, open from April to October. At Forte Village, six seawater pools have different temperatures and salinities.
Are there adults-only pools?+
Yes: the sky pool at Quellenhof Lazise, the infinity pool at Posia, the rooftop pool at Hohenwart (VistaSpa, 16+) and the infinity pool on the fifth floor at Andreus are reserved for adults. The See Lodge is an adults-only hotel.
Which pools are open in winter?+
Hohenwart has a sports pool heated year-round to 28 °C, and Hotel Castel an outdoor pool heated year-round (but the hotel was closed from 8 November to 15 April in 2025-26).
Which pool has won an award?+
The panoramic infinity pool at Hotel Villa Cipriani, in Asolo, was awarded at the Italian Pool Award 2014.
