Viale Machiavelli, 18 50125 50125 Firenze − Italy
Member of Leading Hotels of the World
Villa Cora is located inside a centuries-old park that overlooks the Boboli Gardens, on the hills just outside the historical center of Florence.
The villa is an aristocratic residence built at the end of the XIX century upon commission by Baron Oppenheim reflecting the architectural styles of that period, dominated by a strong eclectic decor that provides the villa with different, sometimes even bizarre, artistic styles. Villa Cora, inaugurated when Florence was the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, has become throughout the years one of the major cultural and cosmopolitan symbols of Florence. Villa Cora earned its reputation by hosting international guests of great importance, such as Princess Eugenia, wife of Napoleon III, and the Russian composer Tchaikovsky, and being considered the most beautiful residence of the Tuscan capital.
Villa Cora became an exclusive grand hotel at the end of 1960 and reopened in late 2010 after a detailed three-year restoration.
The hotel has 45 rooms and suites, divided into the main villa and in two adjacent buildings, which were restored to the minutest of details with the aim of conserving the original architectural style as much as possible. In the main villa, there are 29 suites and rooms divided into 4 floors, each with its own style. The first, known as the "noble floor" is strongly characterized by its marvelous frescoes; the second dedicated to the ex-empress Eugenia widow of Napoleon III and to the roses that were her favorite flower: the third is the floor dedicated to the Orient, in pure Moorish spirit. Lastly, a pearl, the junior suite 401 inspired by the American fabulous '50's.
Villino Eugenia is a small guesthouse overlooking the Boboli Gardens. With 14 different accommodations, each has been decorated and furnished according to the bourgeois styles of the late 19th century with ceilings representing rare and exotic subjects. The spa is located inside the Villino Eugenia.
Lastly, La Follie, a small guesthouse located at the edge of the park that surrounds Villa Cora has a particular charm and discretion with only 2 rooms, providing complete and total privacy.
The common areas, located in the attractive rooms on the ground floor of the main Villa, have been restored with full respect for the original items and offer different options for meeting and business lunches, events and presentations.
The Moresque Room is perfectly adapted to meetings and formal dinners, and can host up to 20 seated guests. The Mirror Room is the biggest and most majestic, suitable for every type of event, thanks to the charm of the original Baroque decorations. Musical evenings with live piano music enrich the offer of this beautiful place. Overlooking the Mirror Room is a wide and elegant terrace that dominates the park and the hills leading toward the city.
Rooftop On top of the roof there is a large and elegant terrace overlooking the park and the hills of Florence. Thanks to the breathtaking view of the city, the large panoramic terrace, extending over 150 square meters, is the ideal location for scenographic events at sunset.
The Grand Hotel Villa Cora was originally known to the Florentines as Villa Oppenheim, an elegant residence built at the end of the 1860s, during the period when Florence was the capital of Italy. The story goes that Baron Gustave Oppenheim built this sumptuous villa in honour of his young bride; over the years he and his consort organised numerous society events here, which were attended by the cream of the Florentine and international aristocracy. Villa Cora was designed by Pietro Comparini and Giuseppe Poggi, who was the architect commissioned to carry out the redevelopment of Florence at the time when it was capital, including the construction of Piazzale Michelangelo and the Viale dei Colli.
The Oppenheim family was a German dynasty of Jewish origin and had been a leading player in the banking and finance sector on the European markets since at least the 18th century. In partnership with the Banca Fenzi, it funded the project for the construction of the Suez Canal in Egypt, which was opened in 1869.
Suspecting his wife of being unfaithful to him, Baron Oppenheim attempted to set fire to the Villa. Eugenia left her husband in the 1870s, and later remarried, this time to Count Giulio Prina Ricotti. Following the scandals that tarnished the name of the Oppenheims, the residence was abandoned. It was subsequently purchased by the widow of Napoleon III, the Empress Eugenié, and then in 1894 passed into the hands of Egidio Cora, from whom it took its present name. Egidio's son, Giuliano Cora, was an ambassador of Florence in the world and became a personal friend of the Emperor of Ethiopia, Hailè Selassie. Guests at the villa in this period included great artists, emperors, princes and pashas, including the Japanese emperor, whom the imperial suite is named after, and Enver Pasha, who stayed in the villa at the turn of the nineteenth century.
The exterior of the building was designed by Comparini, and the interior decor by Edoardo Gioja, the engineer who had designed the Suez Canal.
The Moorish Salon: with an Arabian-style dome and a chimney of black marble inlaid with semi-precious stones.
The White Salon: with a fireplace sculpted in white Carrara marble bearing the coat of arms of Baron Oppenheim.
The Ceramics Hall: with ceramics set into the wooden panelling. This was originally the dining-room and banqueting hall.
The Cards Room: the games room.
The Hall of Mirrors: with gilded friezes in Louis Quinze style, for which Gioja drew inspiration from the Royal Apartments in Turin.
The frescoes and decorations in all the rooms were executed by famous artists of the time, including Pietrasanti and Samoggia, the sculptor Barzeghi and the engravers Norini and Barbetti. These artists used the most precious materials available: Carrara marble, the yellow marble of Siena (which is no longer to be found), Murano glass, ebony and silks from the famous factory of the Fréres Braquenie d'Aubusson.
All this has been miraculously preserved, surviving the marriage and the phantasmagorical lifestyle of the Oppenheims, who in the end left their Florentine home and put it up for sale. But the rooms of the villa were soon restored to their splendour, even more lustrous than before, thanks to the new inhabitants: the former Empress of France, Eugenié, her son Louis Napoleon and Prince Murat.
The first reception that was held at Villa Oppenheim was so lavish that it was the talk of the town among the Florentine nobility.
The Hotel offers every type of room: classic and deluxe, family, duplex junior suite and nine exclusive suites. Every detail was designed to create unique surroundings where luxury and elegance are combined harmoniously and aesthetic taste is accompanied by high quality comfort.
Every room is equipped with king size or twin beds, air conditioning, flat or plasma satellite TV, electronic safe, cable and wireless internet connection, telephone with integrated answering machine, private bathroom and a mini bar with a fine selection of local products.
The bathrooms are entirely in Carrara marble and offer all the European comforts with either a bath or shower and have an exclusive assortment of courtesy beauty products by Annick Goutal.
Each room is original in its style, with rich decoration and unique antique furnishing, offer to its guests a warm and accommodating feel within a very prestigious location.
The Superior rooms offer a breathtaking panorama of the principal Florentine monuments but also that of the hills that surround the city, thus gifting its guests with unique and
memorable views. Some of them have balconies. Selected furnishings and attention to detail make each room unique and precious to those looking for an exclusive style.
The Deluxe rooms of Villa Cora, offer a view on the internal park and on the hills that surround the cradle of the renaissance. Located on the Moorish Floor of the main villa (3rd floor), with a breathtaking view or on the Noble Floor
(1st floor) with frescoed ceilings or in our dependence Villino Eugenia by the pool.
Luxury and elegance are the predominant elements of each room; precious fabrics and antique furniture complete this unique style.
The exclusive Duplex rooms are located on the "Noble Floor" and are composed of two separate rooms dislocated on two levels connected with an internal stair case. The master bedroom and a relax area are located on the ground floor while two twin beds can be found on the upper floor. Each detail
has been attentively thought out to create unique ambiance where luxury and elegance are harmoniously blended and where esthetic taste is accompanied by high quality comfort. The rooms offer original 19th century frescoes, antique furnishing and wooden floors.
The Family Room is situated in the Principal Villa on the third floor known as the "Moorish Floor". It is composed of two spacious and beautiful rooms. The first is the master bedroom while the second has two single beds.
There are two marble bathrooms with prune color wooden floor and a panoramic terrace. The Family room can accommodate up to 4 adults.
The Junior Suites are located in the main villa. The junior suite on the first floor, known as the "Noble Floor", has original wooden floors and frescoed ceilings with a four-poster bed. On the second floor the rooms have woodwork paneling with a rose
theme, while the Junior Suite on the fourth floor – the room 401 - is unique with its private lift and violet velvet finishing, hand painted decoration in white and gold and three large windows overlooking the internal garden.
These rooms are inspired by the famous people who have stayed at Villa Cora, namely Tchaikovsky, Princess Eugenia, Grace Kelly and Madame Debussy. The suites are located on the first floor, the "Noble Floor" and on the second floor known as "The Rose Floor". All the rooms are elegantly furnished with
four-poster beds, wooden floors and antique furniture. The suites are composed by an ample bedroom, a separated living room with a sofa and a working zone. Each detail has been meticulously thought out to create a perfect harmony between elegance and comfort.
This prestigious room is dedicated to the Japanese Emperor Akihito that sojourned in Villa Cora in 1982. The suite is located on the "Nobel Floor" and occupies the whole facade of the villa with a view of the city and of the internal garden. The room also has a small balcony.
The Imperial suite boasts beautiful original frescoes made by Pietrasanta and Samoggia, on top of the inlaid wooden floor rests a majestic red velvet four-poster bed. The room also has a living room area with antique furniture.
The Imperial Suite also has a second room that is frescoed as well, and has brilliant blue four-poster bed. Both rooms have elegant bathrooms made with Carrara marble and furnished with exclusive beauty products.
The spa "Bené" is located on the lower floor of Villino Eugenia and is equipped with a small gym, tepidarium, sauna, hammam and three rooms. The wellness center offers Asian and European massages as well as beauty treatments in collaboration with the beauty guru Sarah Chapman, the most appreciated and affirmed facialist in London, for skincare and with Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella, founded in Florence in 1612, for body rituals. Additionally, healthy restaurant menus in accordance with the programs are offered by the center.
Villa Cora hosts a large outdoor pool, located in the Italian park in the shadow of majestic oak trees. The floor of the area and the pool water are heated. Peculiarities of the garden is the presence of more than 100 types of roses in soft pastel colors like white, pink and salmon, among the most precious varieties:
British, French and ancient roses decorating the park between evergreen hedges.
With an area of over 900 square meters, the beautiful park is perfectly suited for outdoor events and ceremonies in a romantic atmosphere.
The Le Bistrot Restaurant offers a proposal based on ongoing research that consists of seasonal products only, sourced prevalently in this area and personally selected by Executive Chef Alessandro Liberatore.
In winter the Restaurant is located in the splendid Moresca Room, one of the most evocative and fascinating environments of this charming Villa with its oriental style and domed ceiling with original frescoes by Antonio Caremmi.
In summer it is set up outdoors in the winter garden by the side of the swimming pool, open from April to October, where guests can relax in an elegant yet informal environment, while admiring the beauty of the park.
The Bar Long is located in the Ceramics Room, while a small smoking room is found in the White Room, characterized by the majesty of the monumental fireplace. The Card Room is instead dedicated to tranquility, afternoon tea and reading.
The well-supplied smoking room is in the cellars, next to the Restaurant. Here you can taste carefully selected spirits and smoke valuable cigars from all over the world.
Wine tasting Guided by the expert maitre of therestaurant guests can experience different tasting: comparisons of various wineries from different parts of Tuscany as small virtual tours of the various territories; matching with tastings of local foods and multisensory listening to music or video projections to tickle all the senses.
Located on hotel's roof top, in the summer months, it hosts a sky bar with lounge area with leather couches and large pillows.
In collaboration with the prestigious champagne house J. de Telmont, the terrace with mesmerizing view of the city offers a wide selection of cocktails and a fine selection of champagne.
At the pool, surrounded by the beautiful park where you can enjoy delicious cocktails.
Our Pizza & Champagne goes on winter break. (See you next Summer)
Starting from 22nd October every Sunday, from 12.30 pm until 3 pm.
A rich buffet and the culinary creations of our Executive Chef Alessandro Liberatore. Live music. Reserved area for viewing the Italian football league.
Lunch with entertainment for children free of charge.
Please fill this form for individuals or for groups and you shall receive an answer written by a live person at Villa Cora. This is the only way you can know exactly what room types are available for the dates you want, and the best possible rate, because you are dealing directly with the hotel.
Bear in mind that websites set up to give an automatic answer, work with allocated quotas given by the hotel, therefore when it appears there are no rooms available for the date you want, this is not necessarily true, because they never allocate ALL the rooms to third parties.
Hotel: Villa Cora
Address: Viale Machiavelli, 18 50125 50125 Firenze
Region: Tuscany
Country: Italy
Official website: http://www.villacora.it/
Telephone: +39 055 22 87 90
Fax: +39 055 228 791 99
Hotel email: info@villacora.it
From Airport:
Follow directions to City Center, then continue on Viali/Lungarni, Porta Al Prato, Ponte alla Vittoria and Cross the river Arno. You're on Porta Romana, continue to Viale Machiavelli.