---
title: Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este · HICONIUM
description: "The most intimate of the great concours, held since 1929 in the gardens of the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este on Lake Como. Entry is by invitation, the field is small, and the public day at Villa Erba never dilutes the Saturday’s privacy."
canonical_url: https://hiconium.dev/events/villa-deste
---

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![Black-and-white composition of a 1930s coachbuilt cabriolet under cypress trees, Lake Como glittering monochrome behind, a hypercar’s front wing cropped in the near foreground](https://hiconium.dev/_derived/images/events/villa-deste/hero-v1.jpg.w1920.q75.webp)

[The season](https://hiconium.dev/events)

Concours · 2026

# Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este

May 15–17, 2026 Grand Hotel Villa d’Este · Cernobbio, Lake Como

The fixture

The most intimate of the great concours, held since 1929 in the gardens of the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este on Lake Como. Entry is by invitation, the field is small, and the public day at Villa Erba never dilutes the Saturday’s privacy.

Villa d’Este is where coachwork matters most — the classes are built around design, and the Coppa d’Oro is decided by referendum of the guests. It is the hardest lawn in the world to make, and the gentlest.

> An invitation to Cernobbio is itself a provenance event — the file records the lawn.

The HICONIUM lens

| Label | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Dates | May 15–17, 2026 |
| Venue | Grand Hotel Villa d’Este |
| Place | Cernobbio, Lake Como (IT) |
| Type | Concours |
| Dated from | press.bmwgroup.com |

[concorsodeleganzavilladeste.com](https://www.concorsodeleganzavilladeste.com/)

Results from this fixture feed the ledger — record sales, class wins and documented outings land in the affected cars’ files.

The origin

1929

Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este began on 1 September 1929 at the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este in Cernobbio, as an initiative of the Automobile Club of Como, the hotel and the Comitato di Cura di Como. It presented new coachwork. After the hotel left in 1933, the Automobile Club continued at Villa Olmo as the Coppa d’Oro Principessa di Piemonte until 1937. The event returned after the war in 1947; 1949 was the final classic edition. Angelo Tito Anselmi revived it in 1995, and BMW Group support made it annual from 1999.

How it runs

| Label | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Historic cars | BMW Group Classic organises the three-day event with Villa d’Este. About 50 selected historic cars compete in themed classes. The 2026 regulations admitted vehicles built up to 2001, normally in historically correct, unmodified condition, with documented period modifications allowed. Selection considers historic, technical and aesthetic interest, rarity and authenticity. |
| Jury and public titles | Cars are inspected on Friday and judged by the jury across Saturday and Sunday. Class winners and special prizes sit alongside two overall titles: the jury chooses the Trofeo BMW Group Best of Show, while the Coppa d’Oro Villa d’Este is decided by secret public referendum. Judging considers design, originality, restoration correctness, authenticity and documented provenance. |
| Public days | At Villa Erba, Saturday’s Amici & Automobili – Wheels & Weisswürscht brings car clubs and about 120 vehicles. On Sunday, Public Day – Il Festival presents the concours parade to the public. The 2026 programme also placed the Touring Car Legends exhibition at Villa Erba. |
| Concepts and auction | The Design Award for Concept Cars and Prototypes, launched in 2002 and BMW-sponsored since 2005, is decided by public referendum. Manufacturers use the weekend for premieres. Broad Arrow holds a separate collector-car auction at Villa Erba as BMW AG’s official auction partner; its sale results are not concours awards. |

On the record

1. 1929

  At the inaugural contest on 1 September, the Coppa d’Oro went to an Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A faux cabriolet by Carrozzeria Sala, chassis 1491. An Itala 65 by Ghia was a class winner; the field was newly built coachwork.
2. 1949

  At the final classic edition, Touring’s Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Super Sport coupé won the Gran Premio Referendum, the public prize. Alfa Romeo named the subsequent Superleggera-bodied model Villa d’Este; 31 coupés and five cabriolets were built from 1949 to 1952.
3. 2009

  Jon Shirley’s 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Berlinetta Touring won the jury’s Trofeo BMW Group and both public-referendum awards, Coppa d’Oro and Trofeo BMW Group Italia. Aston Martin’s finished One-77 made its bow at the event and won the Design Award.
4. 2013

  Ralph Lauren’s 1938 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, chassis 57591, won the Coppa d’Oro at Villa d’Este and the jury’s Trofeo BMW Group Best of Show. It also took the public Trofeo BMW Group Italia at Villa Erba.
5. 2025

  An Auriga Collection 1934 Alfa Romeo Tipo B P3, designed by Vittorio Jano, won the jury’s Trofeo BMW Group Best of Show. Dirk de Groen’s 1957 BMW 507 won the Coppa d’Oro through the public referendum.

In the register

Houses

- [Alfa Romeo](https://hiconium.dev/manufacturers/alfaromeo)
- [Ferrari](https://hiconium.dev/manufacturers/ferrari)
- [Lancia](https://hiconium.dev/manufacturers/lancia)
- [Maserati](https://hiconium.dev/manufacturers/maserati)
- [Bugatti](https://hiconium.dev/manufacturers/bugatti)
- [Aston Martin](https://hiconium.dev/manufacturers/astonmartin)
- [BMW](https://hiconium.dev/manufacturers/bmw)

People

- [Andrea Zagato](https://hiconium.dev/people/andrea-zagato)
- [Marek Reichman](https://hiconium.dev/people/marek-reichman)
- [Flavio Manzoni](https://hiconium.dev/people/flavio-manzoni)
- [Carlo Felice Bianchi Anderloni](https://hiconium.dev/people/carlo-felice-bianchi-anderloni)
- [Franco Scaglione](https://hiconium.dev/people/franco-scaglione)
- [Albrecht Graf von Goertz](https://hiconium.dev/people/albrecht-graf-von-goertz)

Sources

- [carrozzieri-italiani.com](https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/events/villa-deste-1929/)
- [exclusivecarregistry.com](https://exclusivecarregistry.com/event/concorso-deleganza-villa-deste/1933)
- [quattroruote.it](https://www.quattroruote.it/news/eventi/2009/04/24/elegante_tradizione.html)
- [press.bmwgroup.com](https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/article/detail/T0012260EN/brilliant-winner-lights-up-the-concorso-d%E2%80%99eleganza-villa-d%E2%80%99este-2009?language=en)
- [media.astonmartin.com](https://media.astonmartin.com/one-77/?lang=eng)
- [rmsothebys.com](https://rmsothebys.com/auctions/mi21/lots/r0002-1951-alfa-romeo-6c-2500-super-sport-villa-deste-coupe-by-touring/)
- [press.bmwgroup.com](https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/italy/article/attachment/T0142237IT/216854)
- [press.bmwgroup.com](https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/article/attachment/T0450367EN/632251)
- [press.bmwgroup.com](https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/article/detail/T0456558EN/concorso-d%E2%80%99eleganza-villa-d%E2%80%99este-2026)
- [api.2025.concorsodeleganzavilladeste.com](https://api.2025.concorsodeleganzavilladeste.com/storage/files/r8SyQ3Np5keaSmTPib5a7Kxxbj7RLVxxoxUtGXkC.pdf)
- [bmwgroup-classic.com](https://www.bmwgroup-classic.com/en/clubs-community/events/concorso-deleganza-villa-d-este.html)
- [press.bmwgroup.com](https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/austria/article/detail/T0079881DE/spektakulaere-schoenheiten-am-comer-see%3A-die-gewinner-beim-concorso-d%E2%80%99eleganza-villa-d%E2%80%99este-2010?language=de)
- [press.bmwgroup.com](https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/italy/article/attachment/T0281519IT/408849)