The monastery was built in 1681 on the walls of the ancient church of Santa Maria di Grado, which, reduced to ruins, was donated by the municipality of Conca dei Marini to the abbess Sister Rosa Pandolfo, a descendant of a rich and noble Italian family. Sister Pandolfo had always expressed a desire to build, next to the church, a monastery to house the "Holy Virgins." The monastery was dedicated to St. Rose of Lima, who had taken vows in the Dominican Third Order.
Over the years the Sisters helped the local population in a variety of ways. The most important work was digging a canal from Monte Vocito to bring water to the convent, and from there to Piazza Olmo, where a fountain was built to provide running water for the inhabitants of Conca dei Marini. A memorial plaque still commemorates this noble gesture today. The nuns put their pharmaceutical knowledge at the disposal of the community, preparing medicines and remedies for the most common illnesses. And they also became known for their culinary talents: they are credited with the recipe for the world-famous Santa Rosa sfogliatella. Since they were cloistered nuns, a wooden wheel was built next to the church: although remaining invisible thanks to the anonymity that the wheel guaranteed them, they were able to bestow pharmaceutical remedies or sfogliatelle to the people and wayfarers who donated their offerings in return.
Around 1866, following the subversive laws of the ecclesiastical axis, the religious settlement was forced to move and the monastery was abandoned.
After years of neglect, the hotelier Massimilano Marcucci di Publio purchased the site, transforming it in 1934 into a hotel that soon became renowned for its excellent hospitality, the serenity of the place and, of course, the breathtaking views it offered from each of its rooms. Many illustrious personalities stayed at the hotel, including the great Edoardo De Filippo.
The Santa Rosa Hotel soon became one of 39 Relais Château in Italy, distinguished by the motto "At every window the sun, from every window the Sea."
Upon the death of the last descendant of the Marcucci family and after ups and downs, perhaps due to failing to conform to new ways of doing tourism, the hotel was abandoned and forgotten.
In 1999, American Bianca Sharma, while on a cruise with friends in Salerno Bay, is enraptured by the haunting beauty of this abandoned building overlooking the sea. The beautiful view that surrounds her does the rest-and it is love at first sight.
She decides to buy the building and turn it into one of the best hotels and spas in the world.
The Santa Rosa Monastery is thus today one of the most beautiful and important historical residences on the Amalfi Coast, a super-exclusive Boutique Hotel and Spa renovated with philological rigor and respect for its spiritual roots and the richness of its history.
