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Our history
From 70 years we will feel at home

There are stories that start with the words “once upon a time” and stories like ours where all that ever has been, still is, only bigger and better than before

It all begins with grandad Augusto
1954

There are stories that start with the words “once upon a time” and stories like ours where all that ever has been, still is, only bigger and better than before.

The story of the Ricci Hotels begins in 1954, when hotels had few rooms with ensuite bathrooms on the ground floor, and the Adriatic Riviera had yet to be explored. The protagonist of our story is granddad Augusto Ricci, who sold an historic building in Savignano sul Rubicone to purchase Hotel "La Sportiva" in Villamarina di Cesenatico (FC). The name of the hotel was not chosen by chance since the patrons were mostly athletes and cyclists. The previous owner was also a renowned professional cyclist, Armando Barducci. Granddad Augusto, who during his working experience in Germany had learned the language well, was a businessman and a forerunner in the tourism field. He was also a great communicator who made people laugh easily, and he attracted a large number of pioneering tourists who were just beginning to discover the Adriatic in the years of the reconstruction.

Granddad would go to the beach to promote his services offering genuine wine produced on his farm, which was greatly appreciated since in those days the wine that was mostly sold to the Germans was moscato from San Marino.

La Sportiva
1955

To the initial eight rooms at “La Sportiva” another floor is added, and a few years later, yet another one. In a short time the hotel comprises 30 rooms with ensuite bathrooms and a balcony; and the Hotel name changes to “Stuttgart Sport” in honour of the many German citizens of the town where Augusto had lived.

NO ROADS Every day he would go to the Cesenatico harbour to get fresh fish from the fishermen, but to reach the town of Villamarina, about 3 km away, you had to cross the Valverde area. There were no roads or houses then. On a Ducati moped he had to do a kind of Paris-Dakar route along a path among the sand dunes.

The firts title
1963

granddad Augusto is named Knight of the Italian Republic to honour his career in the Romagna tourist business.

A title which he obtained with his passion for the hospitality industry which he expressed by offering delicious dishes made by his wife Ines, and gladly opening his garden to passersby even just for a drink; a truly sociable granddad!

 
A LARGE FAMILY Holidaymakers would stay with us at the same time each year and meet the people they had made friends with the previous year. Those were the carefree Dolce Vita years and people enjoyed spending time together like one big family. When guests had to leave, there were always tears and affectionate hugs all round. Granddad, too, always had a tissue at hand when he said goodbye to his guests. In the meantime we, too, had become part of the family, Giuseppe and Clemente Ricci, Augusto’s grandchildren and Giancarlo and Marisa’s sons born respectively in 1962 and 1965. Now our 5 children are preparing to become the 4th generation of hoteliers.

The first swimming pool
1972

After having bought a plot of land adjacent to the hotel, Daddy Giancarlo and Mummy Marisa began dreaming about expanding, which lead to the Mediterranean style Hotel Sport, which was very much appreciated right from the start.

It was the first hotel in Cesenatico to have a large swimming pool, a mini golf course, and a boules court. Why build a swimming pool by the sea? Why not build other rooms on that plot of land? Wasn’t the water of the Adriatic enough to swim in for free? Other hoteliers were very critical about the project, but with his intuition, daddy knew what people liked.

 

THE FIRST HOTEL WITH 50 ROOMS

After the opening of the third floor at the end of the summer, work began and continued throughout the winter in order to open the fourth floor in the summer of 1973, resulting in a total of fifty rooms plus an annex with the old hotel, which was simply renamed the “Stuttgart”.

 

THE FIRST EXCURSION

THE EARLY 70s. Once a week we would rent a castle in the Romagna hills so our guests could enjoy a new experience with good food and wine.

Every time we went to the Ribano Castle, which belonged to the Counts of Spalletti and which is now a renowned Romagna winery, it was a great party. A party that has changed destination but which continues in all its festive spirit in “La Fattoria” farm which we bought, refurbished, and turned into the present day destination of our excursions. The vineyard and olive grove are well-tended to provide guests with excellent products. We offer guests a free dinner of Romagna cuisine specialities, wine drawn from our barrels, our own honey, and lots of games and folk music. “La Fattoria” farm is just 12 km from the Cesenatico beach and stands at the foot of the hills close to Rimini, San Marino, Perticara, and Pennabilli, places dear to Fellini and Guerra.

The second Hotel
1979

1979 we bought Hotel Valverde, an historic hotel opposite the beach on a large piece of land with a lot of potential.

Mid 80s A small hotel called “Picasso” is added to Hotel Sport, next to the “Stuttgart” annex. Subsequently the three buildings are joined into a single large complex with a big swimming pool in the middle.

1989 With a large party and in the presence of the local authorities we open the newly restructured Hotel Valverde with its innovative facilities: the first open-air squash court in Italy, a tennis court, a gym, and the largest swimming pool in Cesenatico.

1996 We inaugurate the first new wing of Aparthotel, part of a project finished in the early 21st century. It is more spacious, the rooms are larger, and they offer more freedom.

A few years later this complex is called Hotel Valverde & Residenza, and thanks to its success it is followed shortly after by Hotel SPORT & Residenza.

VillaMia apartments by the sea
2006

Villamia in Gatteo Mare becomes part of the group, so called in honour of the previous owner Secondo Casadei. The musician, a peer and acquaintance of Augusto Ricci, he wrote the renowned song “Romagna Mia” in 1954 in the park of this very house.

Maestro Casadei would perform every evening on the beach of the Hotel Rubicone annex, the first hotel in Gatteo Mare, and everyone would dance to his music.

Daddy Giancarlo, too, would go unbeknown to granddad who wanted him to go to bed early because the following morning he had to be up and ready to serve breakfast to the guests. “A fasem i count ad matoina” (I’ll deal with you tomorrow) Augusto would grumble as he heard his son come home after midnight. Then in the morning he was so taken up with preparations for the day ahead that he would soon forget.

The group of friends who danced got on very well indeed. Apart from Giancarlo there was also Giovanni the flamboyant lifeguard, Luciano, Davide from Hotel Stella Maris, and Gigi from Hotel Rubicone who were the “kings of the evening” and easily chatted up the prettiest girls, especially the sought after German women, who were a novelty at the beginning of the phenomenon of overseas tourism.

With a carefully preened moustache and elegantly dressed in white, Maestro Casadei  would chat with the young people at the end of the evening, and with his permanent smile he would amiably talk of the success that his music had wherever he went because of its joyful, fun, and passionate sounds.

Nowadays “Romagna Mia” is renowned worldwide and even Pope John Paul II hummed it during his visit to Romagna.

Since 1993 the Ricci and Casadei families have also been joined by a family tie: Clemente Ricci married Maria Lisa Valletta Casadei (Secondo’s granddaughter) and they have had three children!

Valverde Lido
2007

We became the owners of the Bagno Valverde beach right opposite the hotel by the same name. Here Giuseppe and Clemente spent many summers, during their school years, with many friends surfing and playing sports on the beach.

 

Since we took over the Beach, many renovations have been made in services, furnishings, and equipment. Today, it is a well-maintained and renewed seaside establishment in line with all our facilities. It is open to the public and has a section of umbrellas reserved for Hotel VALVERDE guests.

The new Hotel Nettuno
2010

Our latest purchase: Hotel Nettuno, another historic hotel in Villamarina di Cesenatico, which we have completely refurbished with the intention of creating a chic & cheap four star hotel with very spacious well-furnished rooms that are reminiscent of the New York Hamptons.

 
2013 we inaugurated Hotel Nettuno

Projects are ongoing
2014

We are planning to renew the apartments in “La Fattoria” farmhouse for guests who want to spend their holiday in the countryside, close to the beach.

New Private Beach
2019

We have acquired an abandoned colony for years, with a private beach of 3000 sq. meters in the Villamarina area, just a stone's throw away from the NETTUNO and SPORT Hotels. Here, we have the project to create a new hotel that is unique in its kind, directly on the beach in a large area with innovative services.

It had always been the desire of Grandfather Augusto to become the owner of this structure because he had glimpsed the possibility of creating an unparalleled hotel. Something we will do, but in the meantime, we have inaugurated the new private beach - Ricci Beach - equipped with wooden games and a gym, new cabins, beach volleyball/beach tennis court, and large spaces between the umbrellas.

It has been a long process of reclamation and urban regeneration, with the planting of native vegetation to recreate a natural environment like the original one of this marine area.

 

Just a 5-minute walk from the NETTUNO and SPORT Hotels. Electric shuttle available for a convenient round trip.

 

Special offers and Last Minute

September, special weeks
Beach Free, Children Free, Up to 5 years
BIKE SPECIAL 2024
Superior comfort and special promotions for cyclists.
From
74,00
Podere "La Fattoria"
The house is situated at the foot of the hills in a privileged position with a view of the San Marino and San Leo hills. 13 Km to the beach
From
290,00
Allianz booking protection
You can protect your stay in case of Cancellation
All special offers
Very good aparthotel
We had a wonderful time in this lovely town. Beautiful sea view, perfect hosting by the staff. Very friendly people at the beach. Only one thing; the beds are very hard! Overall experience : very good !

Ronald, June 2020
He stayed at Hotel Valverde

Fantastisch hotel!
We hebben echt een fantastisch verblijf gehad in hotel Nettuno, alles was gewoon 100% in orde. We hadden kamer 408 en 409 op de bovenste verdieping met volledig zeezicht. Prachtige nieuwe kamers met goede bedden, airco, inkoopdouche. Fijne lift, fijn ontbijt, heerlijk diner, fijn terras waar je in de avond kunt zitten. Mooie binnentuin en bove ...

Anneke, August 2019
He stayed at Hotel Nettuno

Excellent for families with children
We stayed two weeks in July and as always we had a great time, it is the sixth year that we do it. The hotel is very clean, has a great service, the staff is very helpful and everything is managed personally by the Ricci family, who is always very present. The hotel offers various initiatives, there is no need to be bored. The animation is plea ...

Marlise , July 2018
He stayed at Hotel Valverde

Lovely stay!
We went to hotel Nettuno in July on an AI basis. The food was excellent and diverse. Every day we had to choose one appetizer of three, one main dish of 3 and one dessert out of 3 for both lunch and dinner. They served fresh fish and seafood every day, plus many other Italian dishes. We had a very big terrase overlooking the sea ( room 209 😉). ...

Reclaru, July 2018
He stayed at Hotel Nettuno

Bravissimi.
I know the adria now for about 40 years as I regularly passed my vacations in hotels in that region. Having been for the first time in The ´Sport and Residenza' Hotel I only can say that it is my best experience in Romagna. It´s not just a 3-star hotel. I only can recommend it to couples and families with children. What makes the su ...

Rodolphe, February 2015
He stayed at Hotel Sport

Fantastic
Location, right on the sea front, heated pool and jaccuzi, spacious apartment, kitchen facilities, close to restaurants and a lot of facilities for kids, free bike rental, excellent food in the hotel restaurant [except for eggs for breakfast], fantastic male service in the restaurant, the animation guy in Sep 2013 was great, quite empty in earl ...

Władysław, February 2015
He stayed at Hotel Valverde

Very nice
The manager polyglote, nice and helpful; very kind with kids. the playground the breakfast, varied and plentiful

Kenneth, February 2015
He stayed at Hotel Valverde

he owner and his staff, were so friendly
I stayed in Hotel Valverde, a bright, clean, modern establishment run by a local family. The owner, Giuseppe, and his staff, were so friendly and accommodating that I half-expected to be invited to a family wedding at any moment. The simple, easy-to-like fare in their restaurant made it clear their market is families with young children, as was ...

Bill, February 2015
He stayed at Hotel Valverde