Villa San Michele review: This hotel is a reminder of what Florence used to be — a peaceful sanctuary of beauty and inspiration
Villa San Michele, A Belmond hotel, has just reemerged 18-month-long renovation. Luke Abrahams was one of the first through the new doors.
Behind a fortress of wild white roses, I spy, from the comfort of my own bed, perhaps, the most magnificent view in all of Italy laid out beneath me: the city of Florence. Where is this bed, I hear you ask? In Villa San Michele, a Belmond hotel.
I have been coming to this part of the world since I was a child. My English aunt, Maureen, married an Italian, Gino, and, with their three daughters, lived a 25-minute or so drive away from this lavish villa in the dinky town of Montelupo Fiorentino — a place I remember fondly for its brilliantly creamy gelato and sleepy pizzerias.
I’m spending two days in the stately villa, which serves as a reminder of why the cradle of the Renaissance continues to fascinate and intrigue. Since the 15th century, San Michele has led countless lives, firstly as a humble Franciscan monastery and later as a wartime base for the French republic’s rebel, Napoleon.
It became a hotel in the 1950s and has been visited by a dizzying array of stars and nobility from The King (then the Prince of Wales), to Julia Roberts, Robert De Niro, George Clooney, and Gwyneth Paltrow.
A few weeks ago it emerged from an 18-month-long renovation, overseen by Florence-based interior design studio Luigi Fragola Architects, with 39 rooms and suites, three restaurants and Italy’s first Guerlain spa. The question is, was the refurb worth the wait? The devil really is in all of its fantastical details.
What to do while you’re there
- Don’t miss The Masters of Savoir-Faire tour with resident Florentine Barbara Chiucini. The chance to meet some of the city’s best artisans is among the three-hour-long tour’s highlights
- Read the information cards lying around at breakfast. They often cite quirky stories from the Villa’s history
- Set your alarm for sunrise to enjoy Florence as Leonardo da Vinci once saw it. The sight of sunlight filtering through the morning mist and bouncing off the Duomo is priceless
- Explore Florence’s Oltrarno neighbourhood, specifically the San Frediano and Santo Spirito parts. This is where real Florentines spend their time
- Go for a walk in the surrounding woods. Rumour has it Leonardo da Vinci first tested his flying machine in the early 1500s, in the nearby Ceceri hills
The 27 suites and 12 bedrooms pay homage to local Tuscan craft and to the country’s botanical heritage. Think ornate, floral tapestries and frescoes (the latter were restored by Florentine artists), scagliola furniture and restored Baroque fireplaces. Impruneta terracotta has been used with wild abandon in the floors and all of the bathrooms have been clad in green-veined cipollino marble. The bathroom in the Signature Garden Suite is a particular showstopper.
The best room in the house is the Limonaia Suite — a two-storey, Fiesolan-style villa that’s full of curios, antiques and collectibles. To my delight, the minibar was stuffed full of Ginori teacups. The gloriously plump bed sits beneath a beautifully ornate mural of woodland and fluttering birds. And there’s a private garden and plunge pool with 180-degree-views and a sightline to the Duomo.
The main gardens are extensive — and one of San Michele’s most impressive assets — tended to, during the renovation, by Luca Ghezzi Garden Design. The terraced sprawl — paved avenues, immaculate flowerbeds and borders , a 200-year-old wisteria — currently covers an immense 10,000sq m. Blooms include lavender, rosemary, agapanthus, hydrangea, pomegranate, iris and boxwoods, plus bountiful citrus trees (lots of lemons) and a stately 42m-long avenue of roses.
The driving design force is geometry, not just for aesthetics, but to evoke the Roman ideal of otium (Latin for ‘leisure’). The garden is a space for contemplative leisure, relaxation and the pursuit of tranquility, conversation and appreciation. Essentially, garden gossip.
Food? Hit and miss. Executive chef’s Alessandro Cozzolino’s menu reinterprets (a word I often shudder at on Italian menus) Tuscan classics, and while bold in presentation and setting (on the terrace) the dishes at the San Michele Restaurant often miss the mark by falling victim to the chef’s ‘twists’ and attempts at experimentation. That said, the Neapolitan’s talent shines when it comes to pizza — the margarita, for example, is a total triumph. No easy feat.
Despite the new money crowd who like to show off at golden hour on the veranda it’s all very relaxing. The new Villa San Michele has been designed with Belmond’s ‘slow living’ philosophy in mind, and, as such, there are ‘Energy Raiding’ programmes and yoga decks available on demand. Yes, the Guerlain spa is pretty, and yes, the treatments are indulgent, but reading your book on your own, rose-scented balcony will put you in a similarly transcendent state. Is there a greater pleasure in life? I think not.
While the Florence of my youth has changed beyond recognition — thank you overtourism – Villa San Michele serves as a reminder of the city that once was. A peaceful sanctuary of beauty and inspiration.
Rooms at Villa San Michele, a Belmond Hotel, start from £1,400 on a bed and breakfast basis.
