Holy Week in Florence in a 13th-century palazzo (where a descendant of Mona Lisa lived)

March 4, 2026. With the arrival of the Easter holidays, many travelers choose European cities like Florence to enjoy getaways that combine culture and history with transformative experiences.

If this is your case and you are looking for a hotel with history, the centrally located Casual Rinascimento Firenze & Spa stands out as one of the most unique offerings in the city, housed in a palazzo with origins dating back to the 13th century, which today fuses heritage, contemporary design, and hospitality.

2026 Trend: stays in hotels with history:

Long after its construction in the 13th century, the building, linked to the golden age of Florence under the rule of the Medici family, was donated in 1435 to the condottiero Baldaccio d’Anghiari, a military figure in the service of the Florentine city-state. After his death, the palace passed through different local noble hands, such as the Riccialbani, Pepi, and Seriacopi families, until it consolidated into the Bartolini-Baldelli lineages, linked to the textile trade and the economic development of Tuscany.

By the 19th century, the building achieved strong historical symbolism by housing Count Bernardo Pecori-Suárez and his wife Maria Giulia Niccolini, a descendant of the also-Florentine Lisa Gherardini—the woman portrayed in the famous Mona Lisa—, symbolically connecting the property with one of the most universal artistic icons of the Renaissance.

Since 2022, the palazzo has been part of the Spanish hotel chain Casual Hoteles, which commissioned its renovation project to the prestigious studio Rizoma Architetture, founded in Bologna in 2009 by architect Giovanni Franceschelli and specialized primarily in the development of innovative hotel and restaurant projects.

The Rizoma Architetture studio, which has been internationally recognized with the MIPIM 2019 for Best Mixed-Use Development, the shortlist for The Plan Award 2024, and the Top ID Award 2025 in interior design, among other awards, created an atmosphere that transports the visitor to 4 aspects that fully define the Italian Renaissance: games and entertainment activities; art and architecture; science and discovery; and the relationship between the sacred and the profane.

Their interior design concept managed to reinterpret the Florentine Renaissance from a contemporary aesthetic, combining history, art, and sensory design, and making nods to different characters from Florence’s golden age, such as, precisely, Lisa Gherardini.

In this context, rooms 203 and 307 pay a veiled tribute to the Mona Lisa through artistic reinterpretations that evoke her historical legacy. A passage of time that has been preserved in other spaces like the breakfast buffet, whose ceiling maintains original 18th-century frescoes, and the spa, located over the remains of an ancient Roman amphitheater, which includes a heated Jacuzzi pool and sauna.

Getaway to Florence as a couple, family, or with a pet:

Casual Rinascimento Firenze has 37 rooms and suites distributed across three interconnected Florentine palaces—Palazzo d’Anghiari, Palazzo delle Poste, and Palazzo Baldaccio—, located on Via dell’Anguillara, just a few minutes from some of the city's main symbols such as the Uffizi Museum (a 5-minute walk), Santa Croce, Piazza San Firenze, the Duomo, and the Ponte Vecchio.

One of the aspects that visitors to this well-known hotel highlight the most is the spaciousness of its rooms and its triple and quadruple suites, with surfaces ranging between 22 and 95 square meters, ideal for those traveling as a family or in a group of friends. In addition, some of them have a terrace, from which you can observe the bell towers and rooftops of Florence as if it were a live postcard.

Casual Rinascimento Firenze & Spa is also a pet-friendly hotel, allowing free accommodation for up to two pets of maximum 25 kg each, provided the reservation is made through the official website.

If you are looking for a central hotel where romance, art, and the history of Florence can be felt in every detail, Casual Rinascimento Firenze & Spa offers a different way to experience the city: between the past of the Renaissance and the present of contemporary hospitality. We look forward to seeing you!

EASTER IN FLORENCE IN A 13TH-CENTURY PALAZZO

At Casual Rinascimento Firenze

Double room with breakfast from 257 euros per night

Note: includes free access to the sauna and spa pool | pets stay free if you book on the website

For more information and reservations here

Casual Hoteles, a chain that turns every hotel into a narrative universe:

Casual Hoteles was born in Spain with a clear conviction: traveling is also interpreting the world. Since its founding in Valencia in 2013 by Juan Carlos Sanjuán, the chain has worked to ensure that each hotel is more than just a place to sleep; that it is a narrative universe in which design, creativity, and local identity merge. Its network spans cities as diverse as Valencia, Madrid, Barcelona, Benidorm, Bilbao, Cádiz, Granada, Málaga, San Sebastián, Seville, and Ibiza in Spain; Lisbon and Porto in Portugal; Florence and Milan in Italy; and Athens in Greece.

In each of these cities, Casual Hoteles deploys its theme-based philosophy: each accommodation has a personal decor, inspired by the soul of its destination, and offers central locations, high quality standards, and affordable prices. This disruptive creativity has been recognized with awards such as the Hostelco for Best Hotel Concept, as well as awards in sustainability and corporate social responsibility.

In addition, Casual Hoteles integrates sustainability and solidarity as strategic axes of its business model, through initiatives such as its solidarity policy, the Bosque Casual environmental project—aimed at offsetting the carbon footprint through reforestation—and the Habitación Solidaria (Solidarity Room), which allocates part of its income to support social causes. The chain maintains a firm Code of Ethics and is committed to responsible growth that places people and the planet at the center of its activity. Today, with 26 hotels and 1,005 rooms in 16 cities across Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Greece, Casual Hoteles reaffirms its ambition for cultural and thematic expansion, making every hotel a manifesto of a meaningful journey.