Six Senses has announced its first Italian property and spa, Six Senses Rome, is on track to open in early 2023.

Designed to set a new level of consciousness in sustainability and wellness in a downtown setting, Six Senses envisions the hotel will become a green oasis amid Rome's urban rush.

Six Senses Rome will occupy a UNESCO-listed palazzo building from the 18th century, called Palazzo Salviati Cesi Mellini, and open nearby historic landmarks such as the Pantheon and Trevi Fountain.

In order to create a true urban wellness retreat, the hotel will be complete with a five-treatment-room spa designed to honour the ancient Roman tradition of communal bathing.

Featuring a caldarium, tepidarium and frigidarium, the spa is being created with the intention to connect international travellers with the local community through a social contrast bathing experience.

Beyond the baths, there will be a hammam, biohacking space, meditation rooms, a sauna, a solarium, an outdoor yoga deck, a fitness centre and a nail bar. Guests will also be able to learn about the therapeutic power of herbs and plants at the Alchemy Bar.

Six Senses revealed to Spa Business that skincare brands Seed to Skin, Biologique Recherche and Organic Pharmacy will power its spa menu and treatments.

The spa’s design will take inspiration from Greek mythology to recreate a bygone Roman feel and open with walls embellished with a bas-relief inspired by the myth of Daphne and Apollo.

“My team and I are working with enthusiasm to translate the brand’s core values of wellness, emotional hospitality and sustainability into a Roman context,” says Francesca Tozzi, general manager of Six Senses Rome.

“For us, high quality and luxury include out-of-the-ordinary experiences and respect for the local community, while keeping things fun and quirky.

“I’m honoured and proud that this milestone is happening in my home city.”

Thoughtful design

Interiors at the 96-key hotel will be contemporary in style with sustainable architecture and design accents, featuring imaginative planting, natural light and breezy open spaces. The concept is the vision of architect Patricia Urquiola who’s celebrated for her responsible and human-centric design development.

With airy rooms, sun-filled terraces, soaring high ceilings and historic bay windows, Six Senses wants the design to help guests focus on wellbeing and a sense of conviviality.

Rustic cuisine and active excursions The resort will be crowned with a rooftop terrace with panoramic views of Rome, complete with an organic fruit and vegetable garden from which chefs will harvest ingredients to recreate traditional Roman cuisine.

The destination will also feature a restaurant offering a modern interpretation of Italian cuisine, while following the three-part Six Senses ethos of ‘natural ingredients’, ‘local and sustainable’ and ‘less is more’.

Six Senses Rome is also gearing up to take guests behind the walls of some of the most significant Roman cultural institutions, including the Palazzo Colonna and selected galleries such as the Borghese, and Doria Pamphilj.

The plan is for the hotel to be rich in opportunities for hands-on and multi-sensory art, archaeology, fashion and gastronomy experiences.

Six Senses Rome is now accepting reservations for stays in early 2023.