Luxury Hotels Atlas / Places / Italy / Rome / Orient Express La Minerva
Orient Express La Minerva
Rome, Italy · Orient Express · Grand Luxury
Built in 1620 as Palazzo Fonseca for a family of Portuguese nobility, this palace overlooking Bernini's elephant obelisk in Piazza della Minerva became one of Rome's grandest hotels in 1811, hosting Stendhal, who wrote parts of his Promenades dans Rome here, along with Herman Melville and Pope Pius IX. Reopened in 2025 after a restoration by French-Mexican designer Hugo Toro, it won the AHEAD Ultimate Accolade for Global Hotel of the Year and a MICHELIN Two Keys rating. Its rooftop restaurant looks straight across at the Pantheon's dome, seven stories below.
- 93 rooms
- Opened 1811
- Neighborhood: Pantheon
- Rooms from 269 sq ft (25 m²)
- Architect: Original palazzo architect unrecorded; 1990 renovation by Paolo Portoghesi
- Interiors: Hugo Toro (2025 restoration)
About Orient Express La Minerva
- Built in 1620 as Palazzo Fonseca, the residence of a Portuguese noble family, the building became the Grand Hotel de la Minerve in 1811, one of the favorite Roman stops on the Grand Tour.
- Stendhal wrote parts of his Promenades dans Rome while staying here, and past guests included Herman Melville, George Sand, and Pope Pius IX.
- The hotel sits on Piazza della Minerva, facing Bernini's elephant-and-obelisk sculpture and Santa Maria sopra Minerva, Rome's only Gothic church.
- French-Mexican designer Hugo Toro led the 2025 restoration that reopened the palace as Orient Express's first hotel, blending Art Deco with the building's Roman bones.
- The renovation won the 2025 AHEAD Ultimate Accolade for Global Hotel of the Year plus a MICHELIN Two Keys rating, and the rooftop restaurant looks out over the Pantheon's dome seven floors below.
History
Built in 1620 as Palazzo Fonseca, the residence of a family of Portuguese nobility, the palace became the Grand Hotel de la Minerve in 1811 and quickly became a fixture of the Grand Tour. Guests over the following two centuries included Stendhal, who wrote parts of his Promenades dans Rome while staying here, along with Herman Melville, George Sand, and Pope Pius IX.
Italian architect Paolo Portoghesi renovated the hotel in 1990, adding an Art Deco touch. Arsenale Group acquired the palace in 2021 and reopened it in 2025 as Orient Express La Minerva, the brand's first hotel, after a restoration led by French-Mexican architect and artist Hugo Toro. The 93-room hotel won the AHEAD Ultimate Accolade for Global Hotel of the Year and a MICHELIN Two Keys rating in 2025.
The setting
2-minute walk to Pantheon. 2 km from Colosseum.
Restaurants and bars
- Gigi Rigolatto Roma — Restaurant
- La Minerva Bar — Bar
- La Dolce Vita Lounge — Bar
Experiences
- The SPA — Wellness as a transformative journey, inspired by centuries of Ottoman hammam tradition, combining ancient wisdom and contemporary restoration practices.
- Restaurants & Bars — A contemporary culinary odyssey through the heart of Rome and beyond.
Amenities
- Sauna
- Fitness center
- Rooftop bar
- Pet-friendly
Awards
- Condé Nast Traveler Hot List (2026)
- MICHELIN Two Keys (2026)
- Prix Versailles (Hotels) (2026)
- World's 50 Best Hotels 51-100 (2026)
- AHEAD Europe Guestrooms (2025)
- AHEAD Europe Hotel of the Year (2025)
- AHEAD Europe Hotel Renovation (2025)
- AHEAD Ultimate Accolade (Global Hotel of the Year) (2025)
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