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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
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Photography: Courtesy of Milu hotel
Milu Hotel opens in Florence’s fashion district next month inside a townhouse that dates back to the 1400s. But the space has a surprisingly modern character…
It is housed inside a cluster of buildings on Via de’ Tornabuoni that was built for the city’s bourgeois elite. They were converted into a single palazzo by artist and architect Giovan Battista Silvestri in 1835.
But time has been tough on the five-story structure: ‘The building was in poor shape when we started work on it and has therefore gone through major renovations,’ says architect David Ohayon who designed the hotel’s interiors.
![Photography: courtesy of Milu Hotel](https://thespaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Milu-Hotel-8.jpg)
Ohayon retained its historic facade and 19th-century stone staircase but has transformed the interior spaces. ‘I wanted to give its interiors a contemporary feel rather than another neoclassical design,’ he says. ‘The building’s signature features set the perfect background for a mix between past and present’.
The staircase acts as an artery connecting all floors while doubling as a vertical gallery space for Milu’s art collection, which includes works by Galia Gur Zeev, Inbar Algazi, Maya Gelfman, and Carmel Ilan, all offered for sale.
![Photography: courtesy of Milu Hotel](https://thespaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Milu-Hotel.jpg)
‘The experience at Milu is of a modern Florentine townhouse,’ explains Ohayon. ‘I wanted the guests to feel like they are staying in a big private residence, where everything has been hand-picked for them and no room is typical.’
Each of its 22 bedrooms has a distinct color palette and is furnished with hand-picked furniture by the likes of Italian designers Moroso, Minotti, and Desalto. They feature Italian marble, parquet flooring, brightly-colored glass screens, and tiled walls.
Milu welcomes guests with rooms starting at €160.
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