There’s an Exclusive New Concours on the Horizon. Here’s What to Know.
With much of Europe locked in a particularly bleak midwinter, the balmier days of the continent's collector-car season seem a very long way off. But getting your car selected for display at one of the top shows requires planning long before the thaw lets the vehicle venture out of its garage. And collectors will have a little of that winter gloom lifted by the news that there's a new concours d'elegance to target: so long as there's an Italian car in your stable.
Despite providing much of the eye candy for almost every automotive event around the globe, Italy doesn't have many world-class shows of its own. The Villa d'Este concours on the banks of Lake Como is arguably the most beautiful in the world, and the Concorso d'Eleganza Varignana —held at the palazzo and resort of the same name near Bologna—is a welcome addition to the scene, with its third edition taking place this year.
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A Lamborghini Huracán sits on the grounds of the neoclassical villa Casina Valadier, where the Anantara Concorso Roma will take place.
The new Anantara Concorso Roma, to be held April 24 through 27, offers a couple of welcome new dimensions to Italy's classic-car scene. First, it's exhibition space will be right in the heart of the Eternal City: similar to the London Concours , which takes place annually in the heart of that city's financial district. And it's also exclusively for Italian cars, with the first confirmed entry being the 1963 Ferrari 275 P that won twice at Le Mans.
The final lineup will feature automobiles of all eras—from the earliest veteran "pioneers" to the latest hybrid or electric supercars and hypercars—and with both racers and more elegant examples, which typify la dolce vita, welcome to join the field. Again, the only caveat is that the car was made in Italy, save for the French marque Bugatti , which is permitted due to its Italian origins.
This 1963 Ferrari 275 P, a two-time winner at Le Mans, will be one of the cars on display.
The new event is the brainchild of Bill Heinecke, whose 550-property Minor Hotels group includes the Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome, where exhibitors and attendees who purchase the top-tier packages will stay. The cars will be displayed a short drive away in the stunning gardens of the Casina Valadier, a neoclassical villa overlooking the city. There they will be judged by a distinguished panel led by Dr. Adolfo Orsi, a scion of the family which founded Maserati, assisted by experts such as Donald Osborne , a classic-car historian and the former CEO of Audrain Motorsport in the U.S., former Pininfarina and Fiat Group designer Lorenzo Ramaciotti, and Ferrari's Joanne Marshall.
The Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome, where exhibitors and attendees purchasing the top-tier concours packages will stay.
You can apply now to have your car considered for inclusion, and hospitality packages are available to book. The latter range from the Romulus package (price yet to be announced), which is reserved for exhibitors, to the rather more democratic weekend pass to the grounds of the villa for €200 (approximately $208). Given the quality of historic Italian cars that will flock to a concours devoted solely to them, and in their nation's capital, you're unlikely to be disappointed, regardless of how much your entry costs.
Click here for more photos previewing the Anantara Concorso Roma.
Employees of the Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome hotel stand beside a 1975 Lancia Stratos HF Stradale.
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