Hotel Candiani

The peaceful night’s sleep was one of the first things we noticed, and the next morning brought a generous continental breakfast in the beautiful bar area. There was bread, ham, cheese, eggs, yogurt, milk, soy milk, butter, cereals and more, along with local mulberry jam and grape must, honey cereal croissants, and fresh homemade cakes. That sense of care had been clear from check-in, when receptionist Angelica kindly showed us to a clean, tidy room with a fresh smell. It was simply and elegantly furnished, and the bathroom had a large selection of complimentary toiletries. The hotel’s 49 rooms include three suites, and Giovanna showed us one of the elegant, cozy suites on the third floor. She told us some of the furniture in the rooms, hall and bar came from the famous Grand Hotel of San Pellegrino Terme. The Art Nouveau style of the furnishings and building made us feel as though we’d stepped into history. Pictures of Casale and Monferrato line the corridors, along with a display of local products, especially the famous Krumiri Rossi. We also saw the large courtyard, surrounded by several buildings. It has two meeting rooms, one seating 20 people and another 80, with the latter decorated by Mark Cooper’s photo exhibition of Monferrato landscapes. There’s also a 700-square-meter congress hall. Each room is named after a notable person or family from Monferrato’s history, including Aleramo, Alençon and Gonzaga. Restaurant La Torre is in the courtyard, with an atmosphere that took us back to the early 20th century. The building’s history is striking. In 1913, Casale Monferrato got the largest slaughterhouse in the Province of Alessandria, with separate buildings for administration, animal stalls and slaughtering. In 2000, the site’s purpose changed from a place of “pain” to one of “care”, and it became Hotel Candiani****, a leading hospitality business in the area for both the number and quality of its rooms and facilities. Hotel Manager Giovanna Ceccherini welcomed us, and from the start we felt that guests were treated as special. Talking with her confirmed that impression. She said tourism should be treated as a profession, not an easy way to make money, and that hospitality should mean offering guests a place better than their own home, rather than merely somewhere to sleep. She was also proud of Monferrato’s recognition as a Unesco World Heritage site and felt it was their commitment to help people fall in love with its wines, food, hills, nature and villages. Giovanna hopes Monferrato can benefit from Expo 2015 in Milan, and is contributing to the town’s efforts to make that opportunity count. She believes tour guides should always be available and museums should open every day, though those efforts may come to little if transport problems aren’t solved first. Casale Monferrato is no longer connected to Milan, travel to Monferrato is becoming more complicated, and the train station is closed on Sundays. Another word Giovanna returned to was “loyalty”, something she hopes everyone will adopt. She said that attitude is sometimes missing in Italy, and that showing loyalty to guests would be an important place to start.