Travel · Lifestyle · Il Salviatino
A Florentine Villa With a Long Memory
A 15th-century villa in the hills above Florence, where a family summer moves at the pace of the dolce vita.
Rising from the hills of Fiesole, minutes from the centre of Florence, Il Salviatino is a 15th-century villa once frequented by Salvador Dalí and reimagined, under owner Alessandra Rovati Vitali, into a retreat for those who travel with intention. Its gardens are presented as an art installation, a deliberate dialogue between landscape and design, and time here is engineered to slow down.
It is also, quietly, one of Tuscany’s most family-minded addresses. Children under twelve stay free when sharing with their parents, and the days are built for every generation at once.
Renaissance Heritage, Worn Lightly
Il Salviatino wears its Renaissance heritage lightly. A member of Preferred Hotels’ Legend Collection, it is the kind of place where a suite might be named for Dalí and still feel like somewhere a family can breathe out. The gardens hold a permanent art installation, Terzo Paradiso, and the whole estate is designed less as a hotel than as a private house that happens to open its doors.
Thirty-Nine Rooms, No Two the Same
The villa’s 39 rooms and suites each carry their own character, from the Artist Suite to the Ojetti Penthouse, the Dalí Suite to the Greenhouse Suites set among the gardens. Each is designed for the kind of deep, unhurried rest a summer holiday is supposed to deliver.
Rooms With a View of the Duomo
All of the accommodations look out either onto the Florentine skyline and its Duomo or across the villa’s park to the Tuscan countryside. Waking to that view, with the city close enough to visit and far enough to escape, is a large part of the magic.
A Table Worth Travelling For
Dining is anchored by Da Giacomo al Salviatino, which brings the spirit of Giacomo Milano, a Milanese institution since 1958, to a panoramic Florentine terrace and the intimate Sala Alfresco. The cooking runs from Giacomo’s classics to the seasonal tastes of Tuscany, and there is a dedicated menu for younger guests so the table genuinely works for everyone.
Golden Hour, and a Negroni or Two
As the light softens over the villa, the Rosa Bar takes over with aperitivi and expertly mixed cocktails, a refined pause with nowhere to be. For families travelling with older children there are even Negroni masterclasses, while by day the Pool Bar keeps things easy with seasonal bites under the sun.
The Ritual
Unhurried Indulgence
The Rosa Bar captures the pleasure of an evening with nowhere to be, a refined pause before dinner as day fades into night across the hills.
A Spa in the Greenhouse
Wellbeing lives in Aquae Vitali, a spa set within the villa’s former greenhouse and guided by a resident wellbeing curator. The philosophy is regenerative and holistic, tending to the whole self the way the estate tends its land. Mornings can begin with yoga or meditation in the Italian gardens.
The Day That Ends Above the Duomo
Beyond the gates, Florence is the playground. The villa’s bespoke experiences run from private art tours through the city’s hidden galleries to cycling tours through the hills and cooking classes in the kitchen. And then there is the one that stays with a family longest: a hot-air balloon at dawn, drifting over the historic centre with the Duomo, Palazzo Vecchio and Ponte Vecchio laid out below. It is the rare view that impresses a teenager and a grandparent in the same breath.
The Essentials
How to Go
Rooms start from 2,926 AED per night on a bed-and-breakfast basis, with under-twelves staying free when sharing with their parents. Il Salviatino is a member of Preferred Hotels’ Legend Collection.
The Setting
Room to Breathe
Gardens, a pool and the Tuscan light do most of the work here, giving every generation somewhere to move at its own pace before meeting again by evening.
The Case for Slowing Down
For Boujeez, the best family travel is not the busiest. It is the kind that gives every generation room to move at its own speed and still meet at the table by evening. Il Salviatino understands that a great villa does not need to entertain a family constantly, only to give them a beautiful place to be together, and then let Florence do the rest.
Plan a stay at Il Salviatino.