Palazzo Sogni opens on 1st October 2026 in Florence · 30 couture keys steps from the Duomo

There are streets in Florence where nothing more can be built, only restored. Via de’ Martelli is one of them: it connects Piazza del Duomo to the Palazzo Medici Riccardi, and every façade bears a name. It is here, in a 16th-century palace that belonged to the Martelli family, that Palazzo Sogni will open its doors on 1st October 2026, with just 30 rooms and suites. The name states the programme, “sogni” meaning dreams, and the concept, championed by its creators, is called couture hospitality: a hotel tailored to measure, like a dress, rather than a large-scale palace.

A Martelli palace, a Bandinelli nymphaeum and 19th-century frescoes

The Martelli family, bankers and allies of the Medici, left their name to the street and several residences in the neighbourhood. The palace that houses the hotel has survived five centuries while retaining the essentials: a monumental nymphaeum adorned with a fountain attributed to the sculptor Baccio Bandinelli, the creator of Hercules and Cacus in Piazza della Signoria, and frescoed ceilings signed by Luigi Catani and Antonio Marini, two 19th-century Florentine painters. These decorations were restored by local artisans prior to the installation of the rooms, several of which sit directly beneath the frescoes.

Couture hospitality according to Elena and Giulia Sella

The artistic direction is signed by Elena and Giulia Sella, who designed the interiors like a wardrobe: damask velvets, silks and floral fabrics woven by traditional Florentine workshops, scalloped headboards, alcoves and wardrobes lacquered in powdery blue, touches of pink and sage green set against an ivory backdrop. The bathrooms lean into blue-veined marble and brass, featuring clawfoot bathtubs and products from the Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella, the pharmacy founded by the Dominicans in 1612 just a few streets away. The bed linen comes from Rivolta Carmignani. And in every room, an engraved brass “Press for Champagne” button summons service.

A rooftop facing Brunelleschi’s dome

At this address, the view is a selling point in its own right. Several suites and the top-floor terrace look directly out onto Brunelleschi’s dome, less than two hundred metres away. The rooftop hosts a restaurant with tables set facing the Duomo, extended by a ground-floor bar featuring midnight blue velvet and backlit display cases. The major sites of the centre, Piazza della Signoria, the Uffizi Gallery, the Ponte Vecchio, are all within a five-minute walk; Santa Maria Novella station is ten minutes away.

Our perspective

Florence is not short of palaces converted into hotels, but it lacks human-scale addresses on its most central streets. With 30 keys, Palazzo Sogni positions itself against the city’s recent major openings, such as W Florence and its 119 rooms, in an opposite register: that of the private home. The Sella sisters’ gamble is to sell a design as much as a bed, and the images show a rare coherence between heritage and contemporary fabrics. The risk for this kind of address lies in the noise of Via de’ Martelli, one of the busiest in the centre: the courtyard-facing rooms and the nymphaeum should be the most sought-after. Discover hotel news in Italy on La Revue des Hôtels.

Practical information

• Address · Palazzo Sogni, Via de’ Martelli, 50129 Florence, Italy
• Opening · 1st October 2026
• To see on foot · Duomo (2 min), Palazzo Medici Riccardi (1 min), Piazza della Signoria (5 min), Ponte Vecchio (7 min)
• Official website · palazzosogni.com