Hotel Letizia

PALERMO CRACKLES WITH LIFE. Narrow helter-skelter streets crammed with age-worn buildings give way to squares and piazzas filled with grand mansions, palazzi and cathedrals. Hotel Letizia is in just the spot if you want to stay close to the city’s heartbeat without spending handsomely.

Simple elegance is the Letizia’s hallmark, and pleasing cheerfulness is the message. Reception areas are burnished with mahogany antiques, gilt mirrors and Persian rugs. There’s a lobby lounge and bar overlooking a small sun-drenched courtyard (great for sunny start-the-day cappuccinos) whose whitewashed walls have been livened up with arty murals.

Hotel Letizia's airy bedrooms (most having been recently renovated) have antique wooden headboards, free-standing wardrobes, polished wood floors and – in some – jacuzzi baths for two. Listen out for the church bells.

Horse-drawn carriage

Staff at Hotel Letizia are engaging and helpful; they’ll be happy to tell you where to eat, people-watch and bar hop after the sun goes down. The hotel can also arrange candlelit Sicilian dinners out in the evening.

Nearby is bustling Corso Vittorio Emanuele (lined with posh shops) and Piazza Marina, rated one of the city’s most romantic spots and minutes from the big cultural sights. From here, you can clip-clop around old Palermo in a horse-drawn carriage; go cultural and study the fabulous gold mosaics in the cathedral; get spendy in the shops along Corso Vittorio Emanuele, or swim and sail on nearby Mondello beach.

© Room for Romance