Grand Hotel Igea (Erice)
| Grand Hotel Igea | |
|---|---|
Ex Hotel Igea | |
Former Grand Hotel Igea | |
Interactive map of Grand Hotel Igea | |
| General information | |
| Type | Former hotel |
| Architectural style | Liberty (Art Nouveau) |
| Location | Erice, Sicily, Italy, Via Albertina degli Abbati 53–55 |
| Coordinates | 38°2′11.87″N 12°35′16.66″E / 38.0366306°N 12.5879611°E |
| Current tenants | Student residence of the Istituto di Istruzione Superiore Ignazio e Vincenzo Florio |
The Grand Hotel Igea is a Liberty-style (Art Nouveau) building in the historic centre of Erice, Sicily. Formerly a hotel and a symbol of the town’s interwar tourism, it now serves as boarding accommodation for students of the Istituto di Istruzione Superiore Ignazio e Vincenzo Florio hospitality school, which maintains a satellite campus in the historic centre.[1][2]
History
At the start of the 20th century, Trapani merchant-philanthropist Luigi Lonero bought a row of dilapidated houses on Via Albertina degli Abbati and erected a large hospitality building. After restoration and a Liberty-style refacing by Palermo craftsmen, the Grand Hotel Igea opened c. 1927–28 and became a symbol of Erice’s tourism, attracting figures from Sicilian aristocratic, cultural and political circles. It closed in the early 1960s after the manager withdrew; with no successor, the property fell into neglect.[2]
Ownership passed to the Municipality of Erice in the 2010s, which set about restoring and converting the building into apartments.[3] By 2021 the refurbishment was completed—preserving the Liberty façade and creating ten municipal flats—initially intended for social housing (with calls aimed at medium–low-income families and under-31 households).[4]
In November 2022 the municipality assigned units in the former hotel to the Istituto di Istruzione Superiore Ignazio e Vincenzo Florio for use as student boarding (convitto). The residence serves students attending the institute’s facilities in the hilltop historic centre at Palazzo Sales (the former Santa Teresa monastery) and supplements the boarding opened in 2021 at the former San Carlo convent.[5][6][7][8]
References
- ^ "Convitto "ex Hotel Igea" di Erice". IIS “I. e V. Florio” – Erice (in Italian). Retrieved 24 September 2025.
- ^ a b Tusa, Matteo (2017). Erice: Planning for Life. Erice: Self-published. ISBN 9788892667327.
- ^ "Sottoscritto ad Erice il progetto per il recupero dell'ex hotel Villa Igiea". TP24 (in Italian). 15 December 2010.; "Erice, consegnati i lavori per l'ex Albergo Igea e il Convento San Carlo". TP24 (in Italian). 12 April 2017.
- ^ "Erice, concluso il restauro dell'ex albergo Igea". Regione Siciliana – La Regione Informa (in Italian). 2 November 2021.; "Avviso Pubblico Social housing ad Erice: domande entro il 31/12/2021". Comune di Erice (in Italian). 29 October 2021.
- ^ "Consegnati alloggi per studenti dell'ex Hotel Igea all'Istituto "I. e V. Florio" di Erice". Comune di Erice (in Italian). 18 November 2022.
- ^ "Erice, palazzo Sales apre le porte all'istituto alberghiero". Giornale di Sicilia (in Italian). 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Inaugurato ieri a Erice nell'ex convento San Carlo il convitto dell'Istituto Florio". I.I.S. “I. e V. Florio” – Erice (in Italian). 26 September 2021.
- ^ "Consegnato l'ex convento San Carlo di Erice all'Istituto superiore "Ignazio e Vincenzo Florio"". Comune di Erice (in Italian). 28 September 2021.