Mark Antony was known not only for his battles, but for his extravagance and revelry, his perfumed banquets and lions on leashes. When he wasn’t on campaign, he sought out pleasure with the same intensity as war. To imagine where he might have stayed today is to look for hotels that carry that same masculine gravity: commanding in scale, steeped in history, and softened by the rituals of water and intimacy. Baths mattered to Rome – as restoration and theatre. They were a place where soldiers shed armour and alliances were struck. These hotels offer more than luxury – they offer scale and grandeur, but also sanctuary. Picture mosaic pools and contemporary spas founded on ancient rituals. These are 10 hotels fit for a Roman emperor – hotels Mark Antony would have checked into with his whole entourage.
Palazzo Talia, Rome
Sicilian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino (Call Me by your Name, Challengers) has put his atmospheric staging to work inside this 17th-century Roman palazzo. The leather-wrapped staircase railings, walls of blown-mirror tiles and original ceiling frescoes make for a grand and domineering space that Mark Antony would approve of. Renaissance spectacle meets a Hollywood-approved crowd in the Italian capital.
The Venice Venice Hotel, Venice, Italy
Housed in a Gothic palace on the Grand Canal, this address is thought to be the oldest stone building in the whole of Venice. Inside, there’s a dialogue between the centuries where 300-year old ceilings and gondola views meet sculptural furniture and contemporary art. The indoor pool sits at the same height as the canal and is the only one like it in Venice. This is a hotel that revolves around water – the only way to come and go is by boat.
Amanzoe, Pelopponese, Greece
Overlooking Heli Bay, amid cypress trees and olive groves, the landscape here takes centre stage. Antony, who spent his youth in Greece with his lover Curio and developed a lifelong love of its culture (much to the annoyance of his fellow Romans) would have appreciated the spa’s herb-based treatments rooted in Greek medicine. The main pool is often wonderfully empty, and the library barely visited. A grand yet intimate retreat, where guests leave feeling thoroughly restored.
Belmond Hotel Caruso, Ravello, Italy
The Amalfi coast is full of stately hotels with arresting views, but at Caruso the vaulted ceilings, cool marble, and frescoed salons hold the gravity of history without fuss. Bedrooms are elegant, yet masculine. And the infinity pool with its views over the Bay of Salerno feels like a watchtower – one appropriate to spy an enemy’s approach.
Bulgari Hotel, London, United Kingdom
In London’s opulent Knightsbridge, Antony would’ve found a spa worthy of his status. At the Bulgari Hotel, onyx, oak, and Vicenza stone-clad chambers evoke the grandeur of the ancient thermae. The Private Onyx Suite — complete with its own steam room, oversized Hydro Tub, and private treatment space — offers seclusion and splendour in equal measure. Upstairs, black Marquina marble bathrooms are lined with Bulgari products, while soundproofed rooms cocoon guests from the city’s relentless pulse.
La Posta Vecchia, Italy
An Italian villa just 30-minutes outside of Rome, La Posta Vecchia has been a retreat since Ancient times. Since then, it’s been the home of Jean Paul Getty, but now part of a small collection of stays from the Pelicano Hotels Group, the standard is a standout. Greek marbles and remains of a Roman summer house unearthed by Getty dating back to the 2nd century BC can be found in the basement museum. The ultimate Roman escape.
J.K. Place, Rome, Italy
In Rome, Antony would have felt at home within the walls of J.K. Place – a townhouse of quiet power and impeccable taste. Tucked just off Via Condotti, it’s a place where old-world grandeur meets modern luxury. Velvet upholstery, marble fireplaces, and neoclassical busts evoke the splendour of imperial Rome, while the bar’s amber light and mirrored shelves offer an ideal setting for private conversation. This is where Antony would have plotted between battles: a refuge of refinement, sensuality, and control in the heart of his own city.
The Ned, London, United Kingdom
Tucked in the heart of the City of London, The Ned is the hotel of choice for power players seeking refuge from the outside world. Housed in a grand, Grade I-listed former bank designed by Sir Edwin ‘Ned’ Lutyens, it encompasses ten restaurants and bars, a private members’ club, gym, rooftop, and 250 cosy bedrooms inspired by the glamour of the Roaring Twenties — essentially, everything required to unwind in style. The real jewel lies underground: a dimly lit pool and steam room that make the basement spa The Ned’s crowning glory. Should Antony have wished to surface, the marbled ground-floor lobby — complete with 92 original African deep green verdite columns — provides a suitably magnificent setting to hold court.
Six Senses, Rome, Italy
Housed in an elegant 18th-century palazzo smack in the centre of Rome, this was Six Senses first city hotel. The spas the brand is known for is a huge draw – state-of-the-art, but also drawing on the city’s ancient bathing traditions. A hotel to mingle with a Missoni-clad crowd over botanical cocktails.
Portrait Hotel, Milan, Italy
In Italy’s most stylish city stands the Portrait Hotel – a dazzling new opening housed within a former archiepiscopal seminary. History seeps through every detail, from baroque stone hallways to a column-lined swimming pool reminiscent of an ancient cistern. A bold black-and-crimson palette conjures the drama of a general’s quarters, while Carrara marble bathrooms and the serene Longevity Spa provide respite from life’s battles – or simply a day’s shopping along nearby Corso Como.