The Florentin hotel in Frankfurt earns a Michelin Key nine months after reopening in the former Villa Kennedy

Nine months after its reopening, the former Villa Kennedy in Frankfurt has entered the red guide through the front door. The Florentin by Althoff Collection was awarded a Michelin Key on 18 September 2026, the guide’s hotel distinction, in a global selection that adds only ten new German hotels this year. The 1901 villa in the Sachsenhausen district has thus accumulated, in under a year, two stars for its restaurant, a Falstaff award, and a Key.

From Villa Speyer to The Florentin

The house has had several lives. Built in 1901 for the Speyer banking family, the villa became Villa Kennedy in 2006, one of Frankfurt’s favourite hotels, before being completely reimagined by the family-owned Althoff group, which reopened it in early December 2025 as The Florentin. The interior courtyard, with its arcades and grand tree, remains the gravitational centre of the address; surrounding it, 147 rooms and suites connect the historic building to contemporary wings.

Nine Signature suites occupy the older section, featuring high ceilings and wood panelling. The property includes two restaurants, a bar, and a spa with a swimming pool, saunas, and treatment rooms, ten minutes from the financial centre and central station, on the south bank of the Main.

The Dune, two stars upon opening

The house’s reputation was built first in the kitchen. The Dune, the gourmet restaurant entrusted to chef Niclas Nußbaumer, was awarded two Michelin stars upon entering the guide in June 2026, alongside the title of Opening of the Year, a rare feat for a six-month-old hotel restaurant. In April, the Falstaff guide had already named The Florentin Best New Opening in its 2026 edition.

A Key, how it works

Created in 2024, Michelin Keys distinguish hotels just as stars distinguish dining tables: one Key for a unique stay, two for an exceptional stay, three for an extraordinary stay. The 2026 global selection, unveiled on 18 September, features 2,832 hotels across 79 destinations, including 470 new addresses and 155 three-Key properties. Germany gains ten hotels in the selection, including The Florentin; Schloss Elmau, in Bavaria, wins the special wellness award.

For the hotel, the Key acts as an international passport: the guide’s inspectors travel anonymously and judge the entire experience, from service to design. Frankfurt, long known as a convention city rather than a leisure destination, now boasts an address capable of drawing travellers on its own merits.

Our perspective

The case of The Florentin is instructive: gastronomy preceded hospitality in gaining recognition, and the Key validates what the two stars hinted at. Althoff has succeeded where international groups try at great expense, turning a business hotel into a destination venue without compromising the 1901 villa. It remains to be seen whether this will endure once the novelty effect wears off and competition from Europaviertel openings makes itself felt.

We have not yet stayed at The Florentin. A Key and two stars in under a year of opening warrant a visit, which we will schedule this winter.

Practical information

• The Florentin by Althoff Collection, Kennedyallee 70, Frankfurt-Sachsenhausen, Germany
• About ten minutes by car from the central station and banking district
• The Dune, dinner only, booking recommended several weeks in advance

Photo credit The Florentin by Althoff Collection · Daniel Schäfer