Castello del Sole Ascona

Ticino is Switzerland's Italian-speaking south, palm trees and campaniles rather than pine and cowbells, and Castello del Sole is its most distinctive hotel. The property sits on a 140-hectare estate on the delta between the Maggia river and Lake Maggiore, and unlike almost any comparable hotel in Europe it is a genuinely working agricultural operation: vineyards, rice paddies, orchards, herb gardens and livestock that supply the kitchens.

That estate gives the hotel a private beach on Lake Maggiore, reached through its own grounds, plus long avenues for cycling and walking that are entirely closed to outsiders. The buildings are low and arcaded around courtyards, with rooms and suites furnished in a warm, slightly traditional Italianate register rather than anything minimal.

The spa runs to 2,500 square metres with pools, saunas, treatment rooms and an aesthetic dermatology clinic. Dining spans seven venues across the estate, from a formal restaurant to a beach snack bar and the estate's own wine cellar, and the hotel's produce, its olive oil, rice and Merlot in particular, turns up throughout. Ascona's lakeside promenade and the Locarno film festival are minutes away, and the Centovalli and the Verzasca valley are a short drive. It is a member of The Leading Hotels of the World.