In the historical heart of Rome, a semi-circular Neo-Renaissance building stands tall, overlooking the city’s horizon. This monolith of a building is the Grand Hotel Palace Rome, which is as monolithic in its legacy as its build.
First designed in the early 1900s, Milanese industrialist Gino Clerici took the space into his hands in 1925, entrusting famed Italian architect Marcello Piacentini to turn the historic space into a haven. Piacentini’s portfolio comprises historical and national projects — such as the reconstruction of central Rome — which explains why the luxury abode exudes tradition at every turn, even after its restoration in 2010. Time stamps aside, what this story stands to say — or rather assert — is Grand Hotel Palace Rome’s monumental testimony to Roman hospitality. With its status as a historic institution, pockets of cultural history are encased within its design. Close to a century later, these traditional bits remain well preserved against the trendy waves of excessive neon-hued urbanisation, which reflect a nostalgic and artful luxury. The sanctum has gone beyond withstanding the test of time; it has instead flipped the narrative, embracing its hold on history as its greatest asset.
For one, the hotel is situated along the indulgent Via Veneto belt, where Federico Fellini based his iconic La Dolce Vita film. The Dolce Vita utopia may materialise to others as an afternoon aperitivo set against a tranquil seascape or a lackadaisical stroll along the shopping arcades. While those ideals have their merit, the Grand Hotel Palace Rome offers a sweeter deal — the taste of Italy’s opulence in a Dolce Vita landscape at its most authentic.
The ethos of the Grand Hotel Palace Rome is simply a directive to imbibe. Imbibe in the form of the country’s richness in artistic history, the hotel’s palatial approach to retreat, and its unparalleled standards toward hospitality.
Upon entry, guests will be greeted by Renaissance-era traditions of white travertine and ochre-tinged elements of the hotel’s facade while the lobby’s locally sculpted Subiaco stone lunettes overlook every check-in experience with Hotel Grand Palace Rome’s concierge team. Signalling the hotel’s legacy as a society spot and hinting at its origins on the cusp of two great art movements is the Cadorin Salon. Pragmatically, it segues the acclaimed Ristorante Cadorin & Lounge Bar and the hotel’s Breakfast Room, but the five Venetian fresco panels that adorn the Salon are indicative of the hotel’s heyday in the 20th century. At one point in time, the space was once known as “The Ambassadors’ Hotel”, a nod to the diplomatic elites and high society — including hotelier Clerici and architect-designer Piacentini, and those who added to the hotel’s lavishness and prestige from inception — comprised a bulk of its clientele.
In line with “The Sweet Life”, the Grand Hotel Palace Rome has bolstered itself with layers of “sweet living” — emphasising the living portion. Within the 86 rooms, one will find themselves projected into a saccharine vision of the contemporary future. The five-star hotel wholly integrates, refines and reimagines the Belle Époque way of luxury into a much more modern context. Stucco decorations and post-modernist designer furniture only prelude the sheer luxuriance of one’s stay. Murano crystal chandeliers, sumptuous white marble bathrooms and a King-sized bed extravagantly decorate each suite — which at 40sqm and above, fitted with high ceilings and a private balcony — is amply spacious to accommodate any lounging and indulging in one’s itinerary. While it is hard to pick a favourite from the glamorous amenities that Grand Hotel Palace Rome offers, the best thing about a stay at the paradise of a relic is its abundant views of Rome’s most fashionable district — bestowed upon each room.
“Sweet living” also extends to the self-care portion. As five-star establishments do, Hotel Grand Palace Rome boasts an in-house Fusion Spa to indulge the mind and self. Boasting Asian-inspired wellness treatments, one can find familiar practices like Ayurveda Abhyanga and Shiatsu within the elegantly tranquil confines of the wellness centre. Of course, wellness also comes in the form of a Dolce Vita special of the hotel’s own. Guests can anticipate a tastefully curated Dolce Vita Ritual, which involves renewal programming like exfoliation, a psychophysical healing massage and opportunities to bask in serenity at its jacuzzi or sauna facilities. “Salvation doesn’t lie within four walls” is a bit from the film that kicked off the entire “sweet life” movement. It cannot be helped but agreed that salvation lies within the Grand Hotel Palace Rome’s seven storeys, Cadorin Salon, acclaimed dining hotspots, and extensive spa facilities.
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This article was first seen on Men’s Folio Singapore.
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