Bernini Palace Hotel

A five-star hotel in a 15th-century palazzo facing Palazzo Vecchio, where Italy's early parliamentarians gathered in the 1860s and breakfast is served under frescoes from their era.

Bernini Palace puts you in a 15th-century palazzo facing Palazzo Vecchio, a stone’s throw from Piazza della Signoria and the Uffizi. The shops of Via Tornabuoni are minutes away on foot.

The history here is political. Between 1865 and 1870, when Florence was the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, the hotel was a meeting place for parliamentarians and figures of the Risorgimento. Their era survives in the circular frescoes of the Sala Parlamento, where breakfast is now served from 7:00 to 10:30.

The building keeps its irregular shape, with frescoed ceilings, Renaissance niches and rooms that follow the palazzo’s original walls. Every room has parquet floors, and the Deluxe rooms and up add antiques and Murano glass lamps. The Grand Deluxe rooms with view look over Piazza San Firenze to the Duomo, the Palazzo del Bargello and the bell tower of the Badia Fiorentina, while the Tuscan Floor on the first floor takes its look from the Renaissance. The entry-level Basic Double Room is 12 sq m, so book up if you plan to unpack.

Dinner is at La Chiostrina, set in a renovated 15th-century portico lit from the inner courtyard, with Tuscan and Italian cooking every evening. The Lounge Bar pours cocktails and Italian wines. The concierges belong to Les Clefs d’Or, and pets arrive to a welcome pack with their own bowls.

The hotel lists no spa or pool, so this is a hotel for people who spend their days outside it. On a first trip built around the Uffizi and the Signoria, you will barely miss them.

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