Relais Santa Croce by Baglioni Hotels
A noble Palazzo.
Relais Santa Croce by Baglioni Hotels is a residence, not a hotel, and the building has seen many noble inhabitants over the centuries. Midway through the18th century, Papal treasurer and sonnet composer Marquis Giovanni Maria Baldinucci, a relative of Filippo Baldinucci, who founded the first nucleus of the Uffizi’s Design Gallery, commissioned the building of the sumptuous palazzo in Via Ghibellina, on a plot of land that had once belonged to Giovanni da Verrazzano, the explorer who discovered New York harbor.
Rare beauty.
The columns framing the entrance portal were brought from Rome, and a vast hall on the main floor was designed as a concert hall. The musicians were hidden behind panels painted with historical scenes, to create the illusion that the music was selfgenerated, and filled the hall magically. An enormous chandelier in the center of the hall is held up by a complex system of trusses, built according to designs by Vasari.
Surrounded by true art.
Literati, scientists and artists have lived and worked in the rooms of Palazzo Ciofi-Jacometti over the centuries. It’s rumored that Alessandro Volta, inventor of the battery and the electric generator, was a frequent guest at the palazzo. The spirit of those times and the beauty of those rooms have remained intact. The austere façade, the entrance portal, the wide stone staircase, the halls, the parlors, the drawing rooms, the frescoes and the inlays are exactly as they once were.
The most fascinating suite.
The Santa Croce Royal Suite, 260 square meters of discreet intimacy, is the largest suite in town. For guests seeking a completely private residence for celebrations, family travel or gatherings, there is the option to buy-out the palazzo completely.