Art by the Spanish Steps Hotel

A Hotel born with art in the ascendant, not only because of its location or the fact of being housed in an ancient building that was once the college of one of Rome's most exclusive educational institutions, but because it was designed as a home of art. From the very outset and down to the smallest of details, it is this unifying characteristic that makes a stay in this Hotel a unique and precious experience and prepares you to plunge into the world's greatest storehouse of artistic treasures.

The key to an understanding of this elegant structure is light, the sweetly mellow Roman light that penetrates softly into the narrowest lanes and floods the large piazzas. Don't expect to see any signs. You have to know and want this Hotel if you are to find it.

It is the words of poets that guide the steps of guests to this Hotel, recently opened on Via Margutta in the true artistic heart of Rome and designed by the architects Raniero Botti and Gianfranco Mangiarotti. The worn cobblestones of this street once echoed the quick steps of Giulietta Masina as she accompanied Federico Fellini on his brief outings to bookshops in the centre of the city and it is a pathway of white pebbles that leads to the Hall of the Hotel Art.

The Hotel Art consists of a small, but extremely efficient combined Bar and Restaurant providing a broad selection of teas and herbal infusions, buffet breakfast, a brunch that is not confined to Sundays and also features organic produce, cocktails, cold dishes and appetizers. Pride of place among the latter goes to a careful selection of Italian cheeses served with honey and candied fruit mustard, Umbrian preserves and delicacies in olive oil and ham from Langhirano. The only meat cooked here is a simple grilled fillet of Chianina beef or chicken breasts for those who love more delicate tastes.

The Crystal Bar has already inspired an after-dinner drink with vodka and Cointreau and a long drink featuring Bombay Gin. Both are laced with a few drops of Blue Curacao to recall the colour of the glass protecting the altar.