The fashionable hotel group soon to be on every traveller’s wish list

For decades, Rocco Forte’s hotels have been the Armani jackets of travel: stylish, luxurious, envisaged under a singular eye.

The group was established in the late 1990s by Sir Rocco Forte and Olga Polizzi, a brother and sister duo born into hotels. (The latter’s daughter, Alex Polizzi, carries the legacy as the presenter on the TV show, The Hotel Inspector, now in its 20th season.)

Rocco Forte’s group of 15 properties across Europe, its flagship in the Hotel de la Ville in Rome, reads like an impeccably curated packing list for the world’s best dressed. Think Armani muse, Cate Blanchett: fashionable, but never gauche; expensive, but not showy.

As well as the Rome property, with its enviable location at the top of the Spanish Steps, the portfolio includes the Hotel Amigo in Brussels, Hotel Savoy in Florence, Hotel Rome in Berlin and Brown’s Hotel in London.

Now the London-based company is set to bring its stylish digs to a wider audience. At the end of 2023, a Middle Eastern investment fund took a stake in it, and it has just reached an agreement with an Italian real estate firm to target properties in areas in sync with its growth ambitions.

For travellers, that means the swanky brand many have probably never heard of is likely to gain a higher profile, putting it firmly on the wish lists of those travellers seeking a special stay.

For bricks-and-mortar evidence of the group’s momentum, look to the Carlton Milan, Rocco Forte’s 16th hotel. Set to open in November, the books are now open for reservations.

It’s the company’s second hotel in Milan, alongside Rocco Forte House, which opened in September 2024, inhabiting a 19th century palazzo in the city’s most fashionable neighbourhood, Quadrilatero della Moda. Sensitively restored to its original splendour, the building houses a collection of 11 unique apartments.

It’s on the corner of Via Manzoni and Via della Spiga, while its soon-to-be-sister property, The Carlton Milan, is on the intersection of Via Senato and Via della Spiga.

Atmospheric and charming, Via della Spiga is known for its high-end fashion stores, selling Gucci, Prada, Dolce e Gabbana and the likes, perfect for window shopping if the brands are beyond your budget.

Previously the Baglioni Hotel Carlton, the Carlton’s new incarnation features interiors by renowned designers Philip Vergeylen and Paolo Moschino whose firm has worked on other Rocco Forte properties. Like all the company’s hotels, the design is in collaboration with Olga Polizzi, with each of the 71 rooms and suites aimed to feel like a private residence.

The food and wine side of the property is overseen by chef Fulvio Pierangelini, Rocco Forte’s culinary director and the force behind the famed two-Michelin-Star Tuscan restaurant, Gamberi Rosso which he closed in 2008.

The Carlton features a restaurant, cocktail bar and garden, plus the Irene Forte Spa – another family affair.

See roccofortehotels.com