The Sican Network: partners
Borgo Giallonardo
and the family dream
becomes a paradise
Among lush vineyards and ancient olive trees
a unique Wine & Charme Relais,
near the sea and the Valley of the Temples
A family dream comes true and where there was nothing before, Borgo Giallonardo was born , a charming Wine & Charme Relais nestled among lush vineyards and ancient olive trees. We are in Contrada Monterosso in Realmonte, in a strategic location a few kilometers from the Valley of the Temples and the white marl of the Scala dei Turchi. Far from the stress and chaos of the city and very close to the deep blue sea of the free beach below Giallonardo, which can also be reached on foot.
In short, a boutique hotel and, at the same time, a farm that produces wines from indigenous vines and extra virgin olive oil; a place of beauty and peace, where guests can relax at the slow pace of nature and good food, complete with a whirlpool and emotional shower in the outdoor pool overlooking the Sicilian countryside.
“A little paradise,” says owner Giovanni Fanara, “born 12 years ago out of my parents’ desire to enhance a strategic area like ours.
Today, nurturing the dream of dad Giuseppe, a notary public in Agrigento, and mom Elvira De Felice, deputy superintendent of studies in the city of temples, is Giovanni, 25, a Business and Administration graduate from Madrid. A Sicilian still traveling the world, but to return with more arrows to his bow. After his experience in the US during high school, his studies and work in Spain, Giovanni Fanara is in Paris these days to learn how to apply artificial intelligence to business.
“I study abroad,” he says, “to put into practice what I learn in our island. In Sicily you can and must stay. Our goal is a long-term project with investments in the territory; we are optimistic. On the other hand, what yesterday might have been considered a risky bet, today we can safely call it a happy intuition.”
Borgo Giallonardo was established as a farm in 2007; from its vineyards, wines made from native grape varieties such as Grillo, Syrah, and Nero d’Avola are produced. Noce Nero, a blend of Perricone, Nero d’Avola and Nerello Mascalese, was born in 2020.
“All Sicilian grape varieties,” says Giovanni Fanara, “worked with great attention to traditional methods, starting with hand-harvesting. A job that often involves the whole family, including my siblings: Donato, 23, a medical student, and Marilina, 18, who will graduate from high school this year.” Not only wine: in Borgo Giallonardo, with the Biancolilla cultivar, good extra virgin olive oil is also produced. On the other hand, olive trees are protagonists here; many are centuries old, there is one whose age has even been estimated at around seven hundred years.
Also featured in the most prestigious tourism magazines, Borgo Giallonardo has five suites, three of which also have a small private gym; two standard double rooms and four junior suites. A spa is also in the works for the upcoming summer season. The clientele, which before the pandemic consisted mainly of foreign tourists, mostly from the United States, South America and northern Europe, now also registers the presence of many Sicilians and, in general, Italians.
“One characteristic,” Fanara says, “that our guests share is that they all fall in love with Borgo Giallonardo and many return. Most of our guests have become self-friends, and this is a source of great satisfaction for us. Our business idea is based on the idea of building a personalized vacation for our clients, with exclusive activities and experiences that focus on the territory and its excellence.”
Immtour Srl, to which Borgo Giallonardo belongs, is part of the Sicani Rural Quality District.
Text by Angela Mannino
