DOM Hotel Roma

The DOM Hotel Rome is located inside a 17th-century palace on the city’s famed Via Giulia — taking its name from “Deo Optimo Maximo,” a Latin inscription uncovered at the church next door. It’s a welcome reminder that long before the space featured distressed wood floors, original Warhol silkscreens, and craft cocktails, it was a sacred place. (Actually, for years, and until recently, the palace held office space, but let’s focus on the historic highlights.) There’s still a sense of grandeur here, albeit one that’s been carefully updated for design-conscious travelers.

Antonio Girardi, the architect, kept many of the building’s Renaissance-era structure. But he’s infused the space with a look and feel that’s moody and modern: a dark palette of charcoal and chocolate, rich velvet, exposed brick and wood, and ornate but dimmed-down chandeliers make the place feel something like a cool Italian-style gentlemen’s club. That’s true in the guest rooms, sleek and cozy with ultra-modern bathrooms, and equally true in the Verve restaurant, where chef Adriano Magnoli and pastry chef Antonella Mascolo serve a colorful, inventive take on classic Italian flavors.

It’s not as though you’ll be hurting for romance in the Eternal City. You can walk practically everywhere from here — Piazza Navona, Trastevere, Campo dei Fiori, the Pantheon — preferably with gelato in one hand, and the hand of someone you love in the other. Then you can come back to the terrace for a nightcap. As five-star hotels in Rome go, this is a pleasingly intimate one.