From Venice to Sicily, these are Italy’s most exciting new hotels

An Italian summer holiday can feel like familiar territory: centuries-old palazzi, leisurely aperitivi and endless Mediterranean sunsets. Yet this year’s crop of hotel openings and restorations proves there’s still plenty of room for reinvention. From painstaking renovations that breathe new life into historic landmarks to design-led beach retreats in Sicily, these are Italy’s most exciting hotel openings, reopenings and reimaginings for 2026.

All that’s new in Italian hotels this summer

The Dolomites

Hotel Ambra Cortina d’Ampezzo

The beloved family-run mountainside bolthole Ambra Cortina has emerged as one of the Dolomites’ most fashionable hotels in recent years, thanks to its forward-thinking hospitality concepts that rival the design-led boutique hotels of Paris or London. Recently, the 24-room boutique hotel opened Lanterna HiFi Bar & Lounge, the first of its kind in the Dolomites. Spend a post-hike evening listening to vinyl in the lounge, or sip cocktails at Zelda’s Cocktail Club, a cosy drinking den decorated with playful ephemera by Toiletpaper magazine.

Hotel Ambra Cortina d’Ampezzo is located at Via XXIX Maggio, 28, 32043 Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy

Rosapetra Spa Resort

Italian furniture brand Henge has ventured into hospitality with the unveiling of the Henge Suite at Rosapetra Spa Resort in Cortina d’Ampezzo. Perched beneath the timber eaves of the five-star hotel overlooking the Unesco-listed Dolomites, the design-forward retreat was conceived by architect Isabella Genovese as a contemporary interpretation of alpine living. Eschewing chalet clichés in favour of a restrained palette of bespoke joinery, natural materials and sculptural furnishings, the suite features a private sauna, a freestanding bathtub, a fireplace and a 50-square-metre terrace framing uninterrupted views of the Tofane peaks.

Rosapetra Spa Resort is located at Località Zuel di Sopra, 1, 32043 Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy

Florence

La Darbia

A peaceful escape with access to wineries in Chianti and Florence (just a 25-minute drive away), La Darbia sits on a hilltop estate spanning 15 hectares of olive groves, meadows, and lavender fields. Restored by Studio Primatesta, the intimate retreat is the result of a meticulous renovation that preserves the 11th-century site’s original character and heritage. A contemporary spark comes through local materials – pietra serena, terracotta, travertine, and wood – and traditional craftsmanship techniques, such as intricate woodwork by Flavio Bettio, which ground its sense of place. Tucked into a trio of historic farmhouses, each of the 17 light-filled suites (four of which cater to families) is individually decorated with layered textures, while the windows frame the rolling countryside. The restaurant, led by Chef Sebastiano Pagliaro, serves seasonal Tuscan cuisine. All guests have access to two panoramic swimming pools. LC

La Darbia is located at Via Case Sparse (Greve), 16, 50022 Greve in Chianti, Italy

Villa San Michele, A Belmond Hotel, Florence

The much-anticipated reopening of Belmond’s Villa San Michele, a former Franciscan monastery in Florence’s Fiesole hills, was celebrated in April 2026 with a star-studded bash that counted Gwyneth Paltrow and Alexa Chung among the guests. But the real draw this summer is the property’s restyling by Luigi Fragola Architects, whose elegant facelift of the historic hotel included a brand-new Guerlain spa, the new dining concept Antesi by Chef Alessandro Cozzolino, and the intimate Bar Doccia for relaxed aperitivi.

Villa San Michele, A Belmond Hotel, Florence is located at Via Doccia, 4, 50014 Fiesole, Italy

Hotel Savoy

Following openings in Milan and Rome, Rocco Forte is continuing its Italian Grand Tour with a new outpost in Florence. The Hotel Savoy Rocco Forte opened this spring in the city’s Piazza della Repubblica neighbourhood, bringing together 79 elegantly appointed rooms and suites by Olga Polizzi, a museum-worthy collection of contemporary Italian art, the restaurant Irene and Bar Artemisia, where legendary bartender Salvatore Calabrese serves signature cocktails beneath frescoed ceilings.

Hotel Savoy is located at Piazza della Repùbblica, 7, 50123 Florence, Italy

Lake Como

Casabianca Suites

The De Santis family has already made their mark on Lake Como’s hotel scene with Passalacqua and Grand Hotel Tremezzo, so it’s little surprise that their latest project similarly unites art, design and hospitality. Casabianca began life as an art gallery in the town of Como and now expands its remit with three suites that function as both guest accommodation and artists’ residences, allowing visitors to spend the night immersed in the family’s collection of contemporary art and twentieth-century Italian design. Designed by architect Corrado Tagliabue, each suite is individually conceived around the work of a contemporary artist and combines vintage Italian furnishings, bespoke interiors, private terraces and breakfast by Cova with exclusive after-hours access to the gallery.

Casabianca Suites are located at Lungo Lario Trento, 47, 22100 Como, Italy

The Lake Como Edition

Situated on Lake Como’s western shore in Cadenabbia, The Lake Como Edition balances heritage and hip, standing out among the historic landmarks of Italy’s most legendary lakeside destination. The Edition’s creative directors, Kirstin Bailey and Paul Haslhofer, in collaboration with Neri&Hu and architectural partner De.Tales, transformed a 19th-century palazzo into a modern interpretation of Italian glamour, translating the landscape – lush flora, turquoise water, pink sunsets – into a colour palette complemented by marble-faced archways and terrazzo floors. The lobby lounge is punctuated by a celadon green Sekoya marble bar and a custom Neri + Hu bauble chandelier, while the lakefront pool deck, dotted with striped umbrellas, looks ready to splash across postcards. Walnut furnishings and arched windows add character to the 148 rooms. True to the hotel’s forward-thinking ethos, there’s a state-of-the-art longevity spa for high-tech biohacking treatments and cryotherapy. SDLC

The Lake Como Edition is located at Via Regina, 41, 22011 Cadenabbia, Italy

Rome

Casa JK Place Roma

Casa JK Place Roma opened its doors this May with 12 stylishly appointed apartments set in the historic heart of Rome. A few steps in any direction lead to the Pantheon, the Tiber River, Piazza Navona and Piazza di Spagna, making this 18th-century palazzo one of the best-positioned addresses in the city. In addition to the residences, the property includes Al Ventidue, a restaurant serving contemporary interpretations of Italian classics, a private lounge and bar, a Technogym-equipped gym, and access to Biologique Recherche treatments at the neighbouring wellness space.

Casa JK Place Roma is located at Via dei Prefetti, 22, 00186 Rome, Italy

Corinthia Rome

A neoclassical former bank by the prolific Roman architect Marcello Piacentini was transformed by London- and Shanghai-based GA Studio into the new Corinthia Rome hotel. The studio turned back time after an unfortunate 1960s renovation, reconstructing mosaic floors and intricate ceiling details to restore a palatial sense of grandeur to the 60-room luxury hotel. The property also offers several dining options, including the fine-dining restaurant Viride and Ocra, for evening aperitifs and late-night drinks.

Corinthia Rome is located at P.za del Parlamento, 18, 00186 Rome, Italy

Sardinia

W Sardinia – Poltu Quatu

W Sardinia is nestled within the pre-existing architecture designed by Jean-Claude LeSuiss – he originally designed the resort's buildings in the early 2000s. The hotel replicates his signature style of white-washed facades and irregular arches (known as occhio de bue, meaning eye of the bull, a construction nightmare but one that results in a visual delight). Interior-wise, the design was spearheaded by Will Meyer and Gray Davis, founders of their eponymous New York design firm. The duo kept the architecture, flooring and pool completely original, while every interior detail is considered and locally made. There is a lot of artistic expression across the 157 rooms and suites, from the vibrant veining of the stone cabinets to the chunkiness of the makeup vanity coupled with an overlapping mirror which mimics an oceanic ripple effect. If you fancy staying for drinks and dinner, the Tanit restaurant, named after the ancient goddess of abundance, is perched overlooking the harbour where one can gaze at the yachts in transit. TW

W Sardinia - Poltu Quatu is located at SP59, 07021 Poltu Quatu, Italy

Sicily

San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel

Ever since the television series The White Lotus landed at San Domenico Palace in Taormina in its second season, this jewel of a Sicilian hotel has been a must-visit for southern Italian summer holidays. This season, the hotel is unveiling a bombastic new takeover by Dolce & Gabbana, which will dress the pool with the Sicily-born brand’s iconic prints – a fitting homecoming, considering founders Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana once called the town home.

San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel is located at Via S. Domenico, 5, 98039 Taormina, Italy

South Tyrol

Hotel Bella Vista

There is a particular kind of silence that you find only at high altitude. It arrives with thin air, settling on snow-muffled valleys and plateaus. The world below feels entirely theoretical. It is this silence that the Milanese architect Matteo Thun has spent years thinking about and which, this May, took physical form in an extension at Hotel Bella Vista – a family-run retreat in Trafoi. Set deep inside the Stelvio National Park at the foot of the 3,905-metre-high Ortler massif, the tallest peak in South Tyrol, the project is, at its heart, a friendship made architectural. Thun and Gustav Thöni – Olympic alpine ski champion and co-owner of the hotel with his family – had spoken about expanding the property for years. The hotel itself dates to 1875, its original 36 rooms enduring through generations precisely because it had never tried to be anything other than what it is: a place shaped by landscape, not the other way around. Thun’s new wing, which adds 24 suites, a lounge bar, and a substantial wellness complex, cleaves close to that polestar. DW

Hotel Bella Vista is located at Via Trafoi, 11, 39029 Trafoi, Italy

Venice

Airelles Palladio, Venice

French hospitality group Airelles has finally debuted in Italy with its brand-new Venetian outpost, Airelles Palladio, Venice. Opened in April 2026, just in time for the Venice Biennale, the 45-room property has taken over the former Bauer Palladio on the island of Giudecca. In typical Airelles style – the brand is known for inhabiting history-laden locations, like its flagship Versailles outpost – the hotel spans three historic buildings and the restored Santa Maria della Presentazione Church, all set within almost one hectare of Mediterranean gardens, with three restaurants, three bars, a traditional cicchetti bar, a 1,700-square-metre Guerlain Spa, a Rossano Ferretti Hair Spa, and four swimming pools.

Airelles Palladio, Venice is located at Fondamenta Zitelle, 33, 30133 Venice, Italy

Danieli, Venezia, A Four Seasons Hotel

Few hotels embody the romance of old-world Italian hospitality quite like Danieli, the Venetian Gothic masterpiece that became a hotel in 1822 after Giuseppe Dal Niel transformed the 15th-century Palazzo Dandolo – originally built as the private residence of Doge Enrico Dandolo and a lodging for princes, cardinals and ambassadors – into one of Europe’s grandest addresses. Now, after years of graceful decline, the landmark property has been given a new lease of life by Four Seasons, whose meticulous restoration by French interior designer Pierre-Yves Rochon culminates this August with one of the year’s most eagerly awaited hotel reopenings.

Danieli, Venezia, A Four Seasons Hotel is located at Riva degli Schiavoni, 4196, 30122 Venice, Italy

Locanda Cipriani

When Giuseppe Cipriani opened his first American-style bar in Venice in 1931, he couldn’t, in his wildest dreams, have fathomed the international acclaim the name would one day hold, with bars, restaurants, and hotels now spanning three continents. With the opening of Locanda Cipriani, the institution is going back to its roots with a new hotel located on the island of Torcello, where the family first opened an inn in 1947. Reopening in June 2026 following a careful restoration, the intimate ten-key retreat preserves the spirit of the historic inn, pairing exposed antique beams, bespoke furnishings and Murano glass lighting with contemporary interiors by Fabrizio Cocchi Studio.

Locanda Cipriani is located at Piazza Santa Fosca, 29, 30142 Venice, Italy

Orient Express Venezia

In the unpolished heart of Cannaregio, a 15th-century palazzo has been transformed by designer Aline Asmar d’Amman into one of Venice’s most spectacular hotels: Orient Express Venezia. Like many of the palazzi in the city, the property has two entrances: one on the street, one on the water. The latter is the only way to do it. As your boat glides through Cannaregio’s canals, medieval façades rise straight from the water, their reflections broken by the steady choreography of gondolas and vaporetti. Asmar d’Amman approached the restoration as a labour of love requiring rare interventions, from drying the palazzo’s foundations and building a dam around the façade walls, to the removal and treatment of each stone on the walls and floors. In the guestrooms, tall windows frame canal views, while antique-inspired furnishings and rich textiles capture the essence of Palazzo Donà Giovannelli at its most romantic. AS

Orient Express Venezia is located at Strada Nova, 2292, 30121 Venice, Italy