Palazzo Portinari Salviati

Palazzo Portinari Salviati

Beatrice Portinari once slept behind these walls, and so, later, did Cosimo I de' Medici before he became Grand Duke of Tuscany; the frescoes overhead date to the 1700s, added long after either of them left. Palazzo Portinari Salviati keeps that layered history inside just 13 suites spread across four floors in central Florence, close enough to the Bargello Museum, the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo and Giotto's Campanile to reach on foot. In the Grand Executive King Suite, Brunelleschi's dome fills the window; elsewhere the draw is the original Tuscan terracotta underfoot and the marble that has outlasted several centuries of Florentine politics. What sets this palazzo apart from the city's other historic addresses is ATTO di Vito Mollica, its Michelin-starred restaurant, where the chef's seasonal menus turn small-producer ingredients into something worth planning an evening around, with the Salotto Portinari bar next door for a quieter one. There is a spa with sauna, a gym and a pool for guests who want to counter the wine list, and staff who handle concierge requests, tour arrangements, ironing and luggage without fuss. Pets are welcome and the building is wheelchair accessible, including into the restaurant. This suits travelers who want Renaissance history with a serious kitchen attached, and who don't mind that parking here is a paid, reserved affair, or that a cleaning tax lands separately on the bill at checkout. It won't suit anyone chasing a large hotel's anonymity or a wide spread of room categories; with only 13 suites, what you book is close to what you get. Check-in is at 2pm, checkout at noon, and a credit card is required at the desk for incidentals. Thirteen suites inside a Medici-era palazzo, a Michelin-starred restaurant run by Vito Mollica, and Brunelleschi's dome from the window: this is Florence with the history left in. It suits couples and history buffs who want a serious kitchen attached, not those wanting free parking or a big hotel's variety.