Portrait Suites

Rome, Italy [view map]

Style: Roman fashion house
Setting: Spanish Steps shopping streets

This apartment-style boutique hotel in Rome’s most couture-conscious quarter is an elegant outpost of the Ferragamo fashion empire, and its rooftop terrace boasts one of the best views in the city.

Need to know

Rooms: 14, including three suites.
Rates: Low season €380–€550; high season, €480–€690, including Continental breakfast; excludes 10 per cent VAT.
Check-out: 2pm; later check-out may be available.
Facilities: DVD library, free WiFi throughout. In rooms: kitchenette, flatscreen TV, DVD/CD player, iPod dock.
Children: Under-threes can stay free and extra beds can be provided for older children (check rates when booking). Babysitting should be organised 48 hours in advance, and costs €20 an hour.
Also: Small pets are welcome; just make sure they accessorise with your shoes.

In the know

Our favourite rooms: Deluxe Studio 53 gets our vote, with its large marble bathroom and a balcony that’s ideal for scenic city breakfasts. The Penthouse Suite (51) occupies the hotel’s top two floors and boasts an L-shaped terrace overlooking the Trinità dei Monti, as well as a shower-sauna in the bathroom. Superior Studio 11 has a lovely view over via Bocca di Leone. As you’d expect from a hotel so deeply ensconced in the world of the fashionista, all mirrors are triple-panel hinge screens, all photographs feature Ferragamo’s shoe designs, and all soft furnishings create seamless colour contrasts (tan leather-covered desks, soft blue sofas, unexpected flashes of pink and green on the curtains).
Packing tips: An empty suitcase and a credit card with room to breathe – the myriad chichi boutiques of Via Condotti are easy on the eye and punishing on the purse.
Also: Portrait Suites is within walking distance of almost everything you’d want to see in Rome, but the hotel can organise a chauffeured car if you’re too lazy for legwork.

Food & drink

Rome hotels: Portrait Suites, food and drink

Hotel restaurant: There’s no restaurant at Portrait Suites but a breakfast platter of cereals, pastries, eggs and yogurt is served on the rooftop terrace.
Dress code: Palazzo pants and platforms.
Top table: Perch on the edge of the terrace with a glass of champagne and look out over the Eternal City’s skyline as the sun sets.
Last orders: The bar is stocked 24 hours a day, so just grab a drink when the mood takes.
Room service: Drinks and a small snack menu are available in rooms between 7am and 11pm.
Hotel bar: Cushioned wooden furniture, lanterns and shrub lanterns line the roof terrace, which also boats an open fire for warming wintry cockles. There’s an honesty bar with a wide selection of refrigerated drinks. €20 a day gets you unlimited access.

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