Who says you can’t reinvent a classic? In late April, the Pantheon Iconic Rome Hotel, Rome’s newest five-star accommodation, opened its brass-gilded doors. Housed in a renovated structure from the 1800s, and drawing inspiration from the Pantheon’s iconic geometry, dramatic lighting, and legendary flourishes, designer Marco Piva of Milan’s Studio Marco Piva has outfitted the hotel with golden touches, modernist edges, and Sahara Noir marble that extends from the lobby floors to the bespoke details of each room’s iPhone outlets. With sizeable circular lighting fixtures throughout the lobby meant to conjure the Pantheon’s legendary oculus (and creating ideal selfie-backdrops), the hotel pays homage to the decadence of ancient Rome while dazzling with its contemporary take on Italian art deco glamour.
Each room also contains luxe amenities like OLED Smart TVs, Acqua di Parma toiletries, a glass case displaying a rotating selection of local events (and which doubles as spy movie-worthy flatscreen TV), Italian linens and plush comforters, and a Wi-Fi enabled Samsung Smartphone Manet that can be taken outside of the hotel and used for navigating Rome’s notoriously winding streets.
Each of the hotel’s 20 suites offers views of Rome’s skyline framed by honeysuckle vines and, depending on where you’re staying, look out over either the Pantheon, Piazza Sant’Eustachio, Via di Santa Chiara, or simply a stunning sunset. (Also nearby are the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and the Colosseum.) At night, retreat from the thick of it all, or wander downstairs and sample from an assortment of rustic-chic eateries, including Ristorante Archimedes—which serves a gnocchi worth booking a flight for.
Opening in July, the hotel’s Dionysus Restaurant will serve luxe Mediterranean under the steady hands and refined palate of Michelin-starred Chef Pasquale Palamaro. A native of Ischia, Palamaro earned his stripes (and star) at Hotel Regina Isabella’s Indaco Restaurant. Open now is the Divinity Terrace Lounge Bar, which offers 360-degree views of the city’s terracotta roofs and sharp spires, and a chef’s tasting menu boasting seafood dishes like capelli d'Angelo pasta aioli shrimp with friggitelli vegetables and Caviar Malossol, and sea urchins on buffalo mozzarella with salted lemon sauce. In the morning, guests can sample a rooftop continental breakfast that includes locally-cured meats and cheeses, fresh salmon, seasonal fruit, Pan Cake allo sciroppo d’acero (an Italian twist on traditional pancakes) and even vegan and gluten-free pastry offerings.
Before heading out to one of the city’s many museums and shopping destinations, stop by the downstairs gallery to see the hotel’s impressive selection of local artists and tastemakers, or shop the in-house bespoke boutique curated with luxury Italian designers. Then, get ready to experience the best the Eternal City has to offer. Rooms from $489.
