Parco dei Principi Grand Hotel & Spa

A grand hotel by Gio Ponti, opened in 1964 in Parioli beside Villa Borghese, with terraces over Villa Borghese, a rooftop restaurant and a 2,000 m² spa with indoor and outdoor pools.

At Parco dei Principi Grand Hotel & Spa, the indoor pool glows with chromotherapy under a ceiling of Swarovski crystals. The Prince Spa dates from 2010 and covers more than 2,000 square metres. Outside, a four-lane pool lies in a 500 sq m park surrounded by the greenery of Villa Borghese, and the wet area has a Finnish sauna, Turkish bath and ice waterfalls. Five beauty cabins use BAKEL products, the gym covers more than 500 square metres, and the hotel bills its indoor pickleball court as Europe’s first in an urban resort.

Gio Ponti created the hotel. The entrepreneur Fernandes commissioned it in place of a building that had belonged to the Marchesa Rossi, and it opened in 1964 under the direction of Fernandes’ son-in-law, Mr Naldi. Now part of the Roberto Naldi Collection, it stands on Via Frescobaldi in Parioli, on the north-eastern side of Villa Borghese and a few steps from Via Veneto.

Superior rooms start at 28 sq m with a balcony over the rooftops, and Prestige Park View rooms look over Villa Borghese. Some rooms and suites have large terraces with views over the Villa Borghese gardens and the dome of St Peter’s. The signature suites include a 70 sq m Corner Suite and an 83 sq m Presidential Suite.

Giò Giò, the rooftop restaurant and bar, is named for Giovanni Naldi and Gio Ponti, and its green takes after the palette Ponti originally envisioned for the hotel. It serves contemporary Italian cooking every day from noon to midnight on a year-round terrace, with live music on Friday and Saturday. La Pomme is the lounge bar.

Parioli is a neighbourhood of noble palaces and gardens, and Roma Termini is 2 km away. Pets are welcome.