The ten design-worthy Milan hotels we are checking into now

Travel | 21 Sep 2018

Italians do it better. From low-key boltholes to lavish five star accommodation, the city of Milan has it all. Drawing crowds year-round thanks to its world-renowned fashion and design industries, the city has experience in hosting some of the most discerning guests, and boy does it show. These are the ten design-worthy hotels we are checking into right now. §

Lobby space at Room Mate Giulia, Milan, Italy

Room Mate Giulia

Located in Milan’s city centre, and a quick two-minute stride from the Piazza del Duomo, the 85-room Room Mate Giulia is the result of a canny collaboration between Spanish architect and designer Patricia Urquiola and the budget friendly hotel group Room Mate. The prices might be economic, but the finishings are definitely top-rate, with most of the furnishings designed by Urquiola and custom-made by Cassina, where she is creative director. In guestrooms, bold armchairs by Kartell and Moroso sit alongside lamps by Flos and Oluce, while grid patterned Kvadrat curtains provide visual texture. Downstairs, an eclectic mishmash of furnishings and colour combinations form the lobby space, which is also lined with artwork by local creatives.

Via Silvio Pellico 4, T +39 02 8088 8900, www.room-matehotels.com; Rates from: €200

Senato Hotel

Run by the Ranza family — fourth generation Milanese entrepreneurs — Senato Hotel unfolds within a five-storey neo-classic building that was once their private residence. For the interiors, architect Alessandro Bianchi has roped in a host of local Milanese talent — including lighting company Bottega Gadda — to build on his sleek interiors, which are an assembly of plush materials; marble, brass and rich velvet furnishings amongst a palette of matt black, bottle green and shimmering gold. Meanwhile, in the courtyard, Bianchi has unusually opted to create a novel slate grey stone pool of shallow water that reflects the building’s architecture.

Via Senato 22, T +39 02 781236, www.senatohotelmilano.it; Rates from: €220

Rooftop space at Park Hyatt Milan hotel, Milan, Italy

Park Hyatt Milan

There are at least two reasons why savvy travellers are invariably smitten by the Park Hyatt Milan. One is the property’s faultless location. A smart left turn at its exit takes guests straight onto Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the Piazza Duomo and Teatro alla Scala. Another is designer Ed Tuttle’s soothing interiors of cool stone, marble and warm fabrics, which dress 106 chic guestrooms and suites that are also outfitted with Tai Ping rugs and hand-blown Murano glass lamps. The property’s four food and drink outposts include the two Michelin-starred VUN Andrea Aprea, where modern Italian cuisine made with locally sourced ingredients charms both visitors and locals.

Via Tommaso Grossi 1, T +39 02 8821 1234, www.hyatt.com; Rates from: €550

Communal space at Armani hotel, Milan, Italy

Armani Hotel

Blanketed in Armani’s instantly recognisable brand of understated chic, the luxe Italian fashion brand’s Milan hotel — the second from the label — isn’t so much a gateway into the Armani aesthetic as it an experience of the Armani lifestyle. Fully furnished with pieces inspired by the Armani/Casa home collection, the property exudes Armani’s signature calm beauty while simultaneously respecting the 1937 rationalist style building in which it is housed, designed by Enrico A. Griffini. As such, the 95-room property features a plethora of stylish linear sofas covered in chic fabrics, walls lined with Silk Georgette, a smooth limestone from Asia, and striking swooped staircases in the Armani Presidential suites which allow guests to have the grand entrance they deserve.

Via Alessandro Manzoni 31, T +39 02 8883 8888, www.armanihotelmilano.com; Rates from: €600

Lounge at Mandarin Oriental hotel, Milan, Italy

Mandarin Oriental

Presenting 104 rooms carved out of three 19th-century piles, Milan’s outpost of the Mandarin Oriental wholly embodies the grand elegance that is now firmly the brand’s MO. Located near La Scala, and just a stone’s throw from the city’s smart Brera quarter, the property screams high-end glamour, bolstered by decor by Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel Interiors, who have stuck to Mandarin’s signature moodboard of muted hues and Asia-lite decorate touches, accented with timber floors, customised Egyptian cotton bed linen and organic Panpuri bathroom products. The indoor swimming pool isn’t bad either.

Via Andegari, 9, T +39 02 8731 8888, www.mandarinoriental.com; Rates from: €580

Guestroom at ME Milan Il Duca hotel, Milan, Italy

ME Milan Il Duca

The location of ME Mila Il Duca, is by no means a fluke. Conveniently positioned on Brera’s Piazza della Repubblica at the edge of the city’s fashion and design district, the property steadily draws in the fashion crowd it has set out to court. Originally designed by late architect Aldo Rossi the building is characterised by its large Carrara columns, green Mergano stone and an expansive windows. Now, it’s just as noteworthy for its interiors by local outfit Mortini’s Studio, who have provided a balance of traditional and contemporary Italian design. This is best exemplified in the 132 guests rooms; each a medley of muted tones unified by luxe textures and furniture designed by an Italian dream team of Gio Ponti and Luca Meda in collaboration with Rossi.

Piazza della Repubblica 13, T +39 02 8422 0108, www.melia.com; Rates from: €240

Indoor swimming pool at Bulgari Hotel, Milan, Italy

Bulgari Hotel

The benchmark for luxury at any Bulgari Hotel is pretty high. And yet, perhaps unsurprisingly, the brand’s very first foray into hospitality continues to exceed expectations nearly 15 years after opening. At Bulgari Hotel Milan, world-class design — by architects Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel and Partners — a multifaceted spa and five locally lauded food and drink outlets combine for the full luxury effect. But the stars of the show are undoubtedly the 58 contemporary rooms and suites, all generously lined with Zimbabwean marble, solid teak and oak, with most offering views over Il Giardino, the hotel’s multifunctioning gardens designed by Agata Ambroise.

Via Privata Fratelli Gabba 7b, T +39 02 805 805 1, www.bulgarihotels.com; Rates from: €700

Rooftop pool at Hotel VIU Milan, Milan, Italy

Hotel VIU Milan

The newly minted VIU Milan, a striking addition to Milan’s Porta Volta skyline, announces itself in a grand manner. Carved from a central block of glass panels bookended with green walls festooned with jasmine, ivy and clematis, the seven-storey building cuts a dramatic figure amongst this up-and-coming neighbourhood. Every aspect of the hotel — from the 124 guestrooms, to the lobby and bar — has been furnished by Molteni&C who have injected the space with an unified moodboard of warm brown tones and low slung pieces framed by a backdrop of oak parquet flooring, black basalt tiles, and Rubelli textiles. A restaurant by the Michelin-lauded Giancarlo Morelli, and Milan’s first hotel rooftop pool provide ample distraction, the latter an ideally positioned spot from which to enjoy the scent of rosemary and honeysuckle drifting up from the garden wall.

Via Aristotile Fioravanti 6, T +39 02 800 10 910, www.hotelviumilan.com; Rates from: €216

The lobby at Excelsior Gallia hotel, Milan, Italy

Excelsior Hotel

Starwood Hotels and Resorts has never been short of statement accommodation. Case in point the Excelsior Hotel Gallia, which is located in Milan’s former Palace Gallia- an iconic hotel designed by architects Giuseppe Laveni and Aldo Avati in 1927. Now reinvented by local studio Marco Piva, to include a sleek glass extension, the hotel has also been upgraded by furniture brand B&B Italia, whose use of materials such as aluminium, glass and marble tie in with an Art Deco-inspired theme. Guestrooms are a medley of custom-made pieces from brands ranging from Poltrona Frau to Cassina, while public spaces feature specially commissioned installations including a 30-metre high Murano glass chandelier by De Majo. The addition of a two-storey spa, a rooftop bar and restaurant, complete this revamped landmark.

Piazza Duca D’Aosta 9, T +39 02 67851, www.marriott.com; Rates from: €300

Photography: Matteo Barro

Suite at Fifty House Milan hotel, Milan, Italy

Fifty House Milan

Defined by a seamless blend of luxury, design and informality, Milan’s Fifty House presents a haven of warmth and comfort in a city that constantly bustles. Housed in a in building that was once a boarding school, the hotel feels more like a house — hence the name — than it does a traditional hotel, with smatterings of gathered objects, collected art and eclectic furnishings by Driade stylishly placed in and around the 50 suites. With walls draped with bold wallpaper by Flamant and lighting in both internal and external areas supplied by Antonangeli Illuminazione, each space here is touched by a penchant for the bold and the beautiful. An elegant and highly manicured courtyard garden rounds things off with Eastern-inspired statues and plant life.

Via Benvenuto Cellini 14, T +39 02 5455654, www.fiftyhouse.com; Rates from: €200

The ten design-worthy Milan hotels we are checking into now

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