Where? In the illustrious quarter of San Frediano in Florence, Italy, near the Lugarno and the Ponte Vecchio bridge.
Sounds like a traditional number:
On the contrary, the newly opened Vittoria is flagrantly flamboyant, although its exterior has hardly changed since the early 1900s, when the building served as a warehouse for a removal company.
But inside it's hyper-glamorous, right?
Indeed. From the moment you set foot in the lobby, which has a mosaic floor that sweeps towards the ceiling and loops the loop before morphing into the reception desk, you know you've entered an arena of breathtakingly theatrical proportions.
Tell us more: Although the public spaces are reminiscent of monastic crypts, the design is far from morbid. The mosaic tiles are outsized versions of traditional needlepoint designs, the low-level seating resembles a giant spring, and materials such as leather and lame warm the whole thing up.