Many hotels say they aspire for you to feel at home during a stay, but this delightful 30-room property, located in a 17th-century building that was once Rome’s School of Architecture, actually pulls it off. With a superb location in Rome’s historic center just off the Via Condotti and a minute or two from the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain, the sensation of being a very welcome and privileged house guest begins immediately with the warm low-key check-in in the beautiful living room with classical statuary, Berber rugs, sleek overstuffed furniture, and contemporary lighting fixtures designed by Florence-based interior architect Michele Bonan. The same casual but flawless contemporary Italian chic decoration continues upstairs, too, where many rooms have four-poster rosewood beds, dark wood paneling, and bathrooms accented with white marble. The J.K. Café Bistro serves delicious light eats like salmon tartare or sautéed prawns, along with an excellent spaghetti alla carbonara. —Alexander Lobrano

Alexander Lobrano is a Writer at Large at AIR MAIL. His latest book is the gastronomic coming-of-age story My Place at the Table: A Recipe for a Delicious Life in Paris