This stunning residential project in Morbegno, Italy, brings inground pools to an entirely new level — literally. The Roccolo Swimming Pool is one to remember, if the pool house embedded into a hill on the property and the underground tunnel leading to the main house is anything to go by.
Yes, you read that correctly. When was the last time you heard about a pool with an underground tunnel?
According to Act_Romegialli, the architecture firm that completed the masterpiece, a major requirement from the client was “for the pavilion to be connected to the main historic house, causing the least visual interference with the surrounding parkland.”
Coming as an addition from a recent renovation to the early 1900 home, the pavilion — made from wood or cement to match the various functions within it — features a fitness area, a small kitchen, and a space for “service and leisure” alongside the indoor pool.
Outside, the homeowners also added an artificial lake to the property, just a few paces from the pavilion. “[We located] the pavilion far away from the main house in a strategic position, to create a totally new and independent space reached by a path that emphasizes the sense of privacy,” the architects told Architonic. “It would then create an interesting and dynamic relationship between the two spaces.”
Inside the pavilion itself, the architects based the space on a sequence of simple geometric volumes, using the aforementioned wood or cement to design each section. The ventilation, climate control, automated pool cover, and other technical requirements were designed as discreetly as possible, to emphasize the simplicity and modern look of the building.
“The aim was to achieve a sense of continuity within the volume inside and outside the pool,” the architects said. “The choice of continuity of material creates an effect: a mass of water finds its natural resting state and settles in the lowest part of the volume, held by a dynamic and, at the same time, gentle form, before it slowly follows its course down to quietly settle in the pool.”
This project may be designed to be discreet, but it makes a statement with the modern design and sleek, continuous lines created throughout the pavilion. The Roccolo Swimming Pool is an exceptional testament to the strength of simple but groundbreaking architecture.
This article first appeared in the June 2025 issue of AQUA Magazine — the top resource for retailers, builders and service pros in the pool and spa industry. Subscriptions to the print magazine are free to all industry professionals. Click here to subscribe.
