Rome has gained the second position in the world, behind London, in Luxury Travel Intelligence's ranking of cities with the most new extra-luxury hotel openings. Brands and investors are focusing substantial resources on the capital, so much so that a 30% increase in extra-luxury rooms is expected by 2025, an estimate set to double in the next five years. Among the most anticipated openings is that of the Orient Express La Minerva, scheduled to open in the spring to coincide with the launch of the La Dolce Vita Orient Express, the luxury train that will stop in Rome, among other places. The hotel, a short walk from the Pantheon, will be the first in the Orient Express chain (Accor group). Kicking off this multi-star new wave was, in June 2023, the Bulgari Hotel, a temple of luxury hospitality in a monumental palace, formerly the headquarters of the INPS, in Piazza Augusto Imperatore, right where the Mausoleum of Augustus stands: the latter and the entire square are at the center of a restoration, redevelopment and enhancement project. Also in 2023, inside Palazzo Salviati Cesi Mellini, in Piazza San Marcello, the first Italian hotel of the Six Senses brand was inaugurated, which is also about to open a 5-star hotel in Via Brera, Milan. In Piazza San Silvestro, Palazzo Marini, home until 2015 to the deputies' canteen, will become a Four Seasons in 2026: the chain's first in Rome. And if the historic headquarters of the PCI party, on Via delle Botteghe Oscure, will become the first Thompson Hotel by Hyatt in Italy at the end of next summer.