Hotel de la Ville: a love letter to the Grand Tour in the heart of Rome

At the very top of the Spanish Steps, where the crowds thin and the city seems to exhale, Hotel de la Ville presides over Rome with quiet confidence.

This five-star address in the Centro Storico is spread across three 18th-century palazzi deftly brought together around a sun-splashed courtyard, creating a retreat that feels both intimate and unmistakably grand.

Since joining the Rocco Forte Hotels portfolio in 2019, the property has been reimagined by Olga Polizzi and architect Tommaso Ziffer as a love letter to the Grand Tour. Its rooms are layered with classical references, playful objets and a rich colour palette. The result is a hotel that doesn’t simply nod to Rome’s past but revels in it – while delivering the kind of polished service, destination dining and cocooning spa that makes stepping back outside entirely optional.

Why stay here?

Location is the obvious draw: you’re moments from the Spanish Steps. But the real seduction lies inside. Our Junior Suite Deluxe, on the fourth floor, opened on to a balcony overlooking the terracotta courtyard – striped parasols and potted greenery glowing even in the soft light of January. Interiors are gloriously free of safe neutrals. Instead, there’s a confident clash of colour and texture: a navy velvet headboard against duck-egg walls, olive drapes pooling beside antique desks topped with busts and art books. It feels curated rather than decorated, like a collector’s Roman apartment.

Bathrooms dial the drama back to pure white marble, with generous rainfall showers and Irene Forte’s Sicilian botanical products. The top-floor suites come with expansive terraces and knockout views across Rome’s domes and cupolas – the kind of panorama that turns a sunset into a private show.

Downstairs, the boutique spa is a welcome counterpoint to the city’s sensory overload. There’s a hydrotherapy pool for warming soaks, a thermal circuit with salt room, sauna and steam, and the bracing option of a cryotherapy chamber for the fearless. We opted for bubbles rather than sub-zero temperatures – a suitably indulgent Roman compromise.

Eating and drinking

In a city where eating well is practically guaranteed, Hotel de la Ville still manages to raise the bar. At Café Ginori – linked to the adjoining Ginori 1735 porcelain boutique – dinner arrives on the very plates you can later buy, a clever touch that blurs the line between meal and memento. Lasagnetta al ragù and fettuccine Alfredo are comfortingly classic, while dishes such as cod tempura add a contemporary flourish. Each course is matched with thoughtful Italian wines; a bright Orvieto with the fish was a particular highlight.

Breakfast and dinner are served at Mosaico, an elegant space that spills into the courtyard in warmer months. Indoors, black-and-white floors, columns and chandeliers set a theatrical tone for a dinner menu that travels beyond Italy, weaving in flavours from North Africa and the Middle East. Mornings bring an abundant spread of cheeses, charcuterie, fruit, pastries and eggs cooked to order – a filling start before a day of sight-seeing.

Later, the jewel-box Julep Bar beckons with its vivid yellow walls and velvet seating, perfect for an armagnac nightcap. In summer, cocktails migrate to the rooftop Cielo Bar, where Rome’s skyline becomes the ultimate backdrop.

Things to do

Step outside and the city’s greatest hits are within strolling distance: the Spanish Steps, the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain and the elegant sweep of Piazza Navona. The green expanse of Villa Borghese is close enough for a morning wander, while the Colosseum and Forum are a short bus ride away.

If you’ve ticked off the icons before, Rome rewards deeper exploration. The Teatro di Marcello – a miniature precursor to the Colosseum – offers ancient grandeur without the queues. Art lovers can follow a self-guided Caravaggio trail through nearby churches, including San Luigi dei Francesi and Basilica di Sant'Agostino, dropping a coin into the light boxes to illuminate the paintings in situ – a quietly magical experience.

For retail therapy, the hotel is mere metres from Via dei Condotti, where designer flagships beckon customers craving haute couture, while Via del Corso offers a livelier, high-street passeggiata.

The verdict

Hotel de la Ville is more than a perfectly placed base; it’s a destination in its own right. Between the exuberant design, stylish rooms, accomplished dining and restorative spa, it offers a version of Rome that is as hedonistic as it is historic. Step outside and the Eternal City is at your feet; stay in, and you’re wrapped in a world of colour, craftsmanship and five-star ease. Either way, it’s la dolce vita distilled.

Vicki was a guest of Hotel de la Ville, a Rocco Forte Hotel; roccofortehotels.com