In Rome you will find tiny charming properties large stately homes and family guest houses and like the city, each of them has a history
Rome is nicknamed the Eternal City because time seems to have suspended its flight The ancient Roman remains rub shoulders with Renaissance palaces and large Baroque squares rub shoulders with imposing neoclassical architecture All this is dominated by a skyline punctuated by domes of churches, including St Peters Basilica, designed by Michelangelo, which attract visitors to the Vatican Over the past decade, the hotel landscape has become as complex as Rome itself
1 MAMA SHELTER
Best for kitsch
These two brutalist office buildings are landmarks in the elegant Prati district of the west of the Tiber so much so that they even featured in the 1962 Dino Risis seminal film The Fanfaron. In 2021, the interiors became as striking as the facade when the offices were replaced by the gigantic Mama Shelter hotel, which contained 217 rooms Located a ten-minute walk from the Vatican, whose St Peters Basilica is clearly visible from the rooftop bar, it is a kitsch version of Italianità Italianness, with the carpeted entrance hall decorated with pizzas and brightly colored Roman emperors and the columns of the pizzeria on the ground floor passing by the Roman baths in the basement Rooms combine shimmering carpets with Renaissance-style upholstery, such as lions raging in the foliage, while an extra charge of just over twenty euros gets you a room with balcony
Rooms from 166 € BB
2 PALAZZO RIPETTA
Best for style
Near Piazza del Popolo, this oasis, similar to a convent, served as a refuge for deprived young women between 1675 and 1961 Its history is evoked in the Roman sarcophagus located in its interior courtyard, restored by the inhabitants of the palace in the 19th century and in the restaurant, whose walls are dotted with photos of refugee women and the works of art they made Converted into a hotel in 1961 by Luigi Moretti, the Italian Gaudi,” it was transformed into a five-star family establishment in 2022 Bright rooms feature colorful furnishings and beds equipped with luxury Frette linens, while public areas feature the Crisci family art collection The courtyard La Piazzetta houses a bar as well as the premier abruzzo restaurant San Baylon
Rooms from 550 € BB
3 SIX SENSES ROME
Best for environmental impact
Sustainability is rooted in the ethics of the 15th-century Saviati Cesi Mellini Palace, located near Piazza Veneza The hotel, which opened in 2023 and received LEED Gold certification for its eco-friendly renovation work, operates using renewable energy The rooms are clad in local travertine and the restaurants menu, rich in plants, offers ingredients of local origin. Organic herbs are grown on the roof where there is a bar and are made into liqueurs A portion of the profits from each stay is donated to local community projects As for the experience, its as luxurious as you might hope, from the silky Rivolta Carmignani linens in the peaceful wood-clad rooms to the reconstructed Roman baths in the basement
Rooms from 1000 € BB
4 PALAZZO ROMA
Best for luxury
staff, whoThere is something in the air at Palazzo Roma The 2024 transformation of a 17thcentury palace on Via del Corso two blocks from the Trevi Fountain was perfumed by Romes legendary perfumery Laura Bosetti Tonatto who impregnated all toiletries and the corridors with the smell of incense At the top of the stairs and beyond the frescoed restaurant stands the flamboyant hotel The thirtynine luxurious rooms are varied to say the least from art decostyle lines mixed with brightly colored walls and humbugstyle stripes while the public spaces are just as wacky with disembodied conductor hands emerging from the wall of the music room This is all as pleasant as the staff are charming Its no wonder the hotel went straight into the Leading Hotels of the World books
Rooms from 425 € BB
5 OTIUM
Best for the view
During the postwar period, this building served as the headquarters of the Italian Communist Party. Since it became a hotel in 2022, it has been much more oriented towards capitalism, with a golden check-in counter that extends into a dimly lit bar with mirrored tables The rooms inspired by mid-20th-century fashion are small but comfortable The one to book is the “Doppia Deluxe,” with a terrace overlooking the old Jewish quarter Alternatively, have a rooftop cocktail on the fifth floor overlooking the Vittoriano and Piazza Venezia
Rooms from 200 € BB
6 HOTEL LOROLOGIO
Best for location
Do you have time? You will need it at the LOrologio hotel, which opened in 2022. The walls are covered in Rolex artwork, the bedside lamps look like moving cogs and the handles of the bathrooms drawers doors and faucets are shaped like secondhand trucks The obsession comes from the owner, who has amassed one of the largest watch collections in the world. Paintings on the walls represent his most expensive possessions And yet the hotel is surprisingly chic, like a Belle Époque palace located behind Piazza Navona in the heart of the city Facing the Pantheon, the rooftop Santa Bar serves themed cocktails by time zone Its 360-degree views from St Peters to Piazza Venezia make guests feel truly immersed in Rome
Rooms from 210 € BB
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