Rome is enjoying a luxury hotel boom.

Bulgari Hotel Roma has been crowned the best hotel in the world by Virtuoso Travel, a leading global network of agencies specialising in luxury travel, in its 2024 rankings.

The recognition was welcomed by Italy's tourism minister Daniela Santanchè who wrote on X: "Italy never ceases to excel. Now even the best hotel in the world is Italian. It is in Rome and it couldn't be otherwise".

The five-star hotel, which faces the ancient Mausoleum of Augustus in the heart of the historic centre, was inaugurated by luxury jeweller Bulgari just over a year ago.

L’Italia non finisce di eccellere. Ora anche il miglior albergo del mondo è italiano. È a Roma e non poteva essere altrimenti. pic.twitter.com/dIFX2AFkM5

— Daniela Santanchè (@DSantanche) August 17, 2024

“We are proud that the Bulgari Roma has been awarded by Virtuoso Travel as the best hotel of 2024", stated Rome's tourism councillor Alessandro Onorato, who hailed the "precious and successful" partnership between the city and Bulgari.

Onorato said the award given to the 114-room hotel was also an "excellent recognition" for the capital which is experiencing "a revolution in the luxury sector".

Rome was the European city that grew the most in terms of tourism in 2023 - Onorato said - up more than 45 per cent compared to the year before, with the numbers for 2024 set to be "even better".

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Bulgari has sponsored several major restorations in Rome over the past few years, from the Spanish Steps to the archaeological site at Largo Argentina, and recently it held a fashion show at the Baths of Diocletian.

Luxury Travel Intelligence (LTI) last December ranked Rome second only to London for attracting the world's top luxury hotel brands in 2023.

The Italian capital performed particularly well in the LTI list of the top luxury hotels in the world, with Bulgari Roma in first place and the Six Senses, located on the central Via del Corso, ranked seventh.