Elegant under the umbrella

From Ravello to St. Tropez, major fashion brands such as Dior, Armani, Gucci, Fendi, Loro Piana and Valentino have visually taken over the beach clubs of exclusive hotels and are furnishing them uniformly in a look that is very similar to the classic Italian beach resorts, the Stabilimenti Balneari.

While the classic lido offers ice cream, drinks and a good espresso in a small booth, you can purchase the latest collections and accessories in the exclusive beach clubs of the fashion brands in the pop-up store on the hotel grounds and refresh yourself with a champagne or rosé.

At both types of beach, everyone agrees that the classic parasol is part of the sun lounger, which is designed to keep out the sun’s rays. The shape is also almost identical in the luxury version and the normal classic Italian beach. The colors are signal red for Valentino and yellow and white stripes for Gucci.

Fits in the garden, on the beach and on the balcony

Whereas a few years ago, awnings and huge, often square umbrellas were still to be seen almost everywhere, supposedly reminiscent of Tuscan market stalls, charming round and much smaller umbrellas can now be found in many places.

Café Moro Venice © GloriousMe 2025

The small round umbrellas have the advantage that they are easy to set up and very mobile. If the sun moves, the sunshade stand can be tilted accordingly or the sunshade can be quickly repositioned.

If you have a lot of space on the terrace or in the garden, simply add up the number of parasols, as many hotels do.

As a rule, however, far more of the surroundings or architecture remains visible than with large umbrellas or mighty awnings.

Stripes, plain or a wild pattern?

The classic parasol is striped. In Italy, it is often in the classic navy colors of blue and white, or cheerful red and white, or even yellow and white.

If you prefer a more restrained look, choose a plain shade and if you want to be on the safe side when it comes to the workmanship and UV resistance of the shade fabric, you should opt for a model from Thurgau in Switzerland.

The Glatz family business has been producing parasols there with Swiss precision for private individuals and hotel companies in 66 countries since 1920. The fabrics of the Parasols have a UV protection of over 98 percent and thus correspond to a sun protection factor of 50 plus. The single-colored parasol fabrics can be attractively combined with interesting types of wood.

Anyone dreaming of Asia may opt for patterns or prefer the so-called Bali umbrella, which is reminiscent of the Indonesian island with its characteristically playful shape.

The fabric of the Parasol by Dutch company hkliving is reminiscent of the 1970s. The stand is made of beech and comes with a matching carry bag, making it easy to take the Parasol to the desired location and enjoy a good book and cool drinks in the shade underneath.

Parasol © Collection hkliving

We all need a protective shield

The renaissance of the parasol has another major advantage over awnings or other large sun covers. The sight of the small round parasols is immediately cheerful.

In these times, when we all find it difficult to laugh because we see Ukraine struggling for a protective shield every day, it is good to give the soul a small invisible but so important protective shield with a smile.

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Cover picture © Alamy Stock Photo