Milan to Get ME by Meliá Hotel Next Year

Meliá Hotels' ME by Meliá brand is set to debut in Milan, close to the “fashion quadrilateral” at the Piazza della Repubblica, in 2015. It will be the first ME by Meliá hotel in Italy, where the company already manages the Gran Meliá Rome, Meliá Villa Capri and Meliá Genoa. ME Milan Il Duca is set to open May 2015.

The ME Milan Il Duca, which will be housed in a building designed by architect Aldo Rossi, will be completely renovated to match the style of the late architect. The boutique hotel will have 132 guest rooms, including 34 suites, as well as conference rooms and a lounge-bar and restaurant. For business meetings, the hotel will have "ultra-modern" conference rooms. CEOs will want to book the signature "Suite ME" penthouse and the rooftop bar with panoramic views of the city (including the Garibaldi towers).

Other upcoming hotels in the ME by Meliá pipeline include the ME Mallorca (May 2014), ME Ibiza (June 2014), and Zaha Hadid’s ME Dubai (2016).

Milan is getting attention from other hotel brands, too: After a five-year renovation of the 17th-century Palazzo Cramer, the Palazzo Parigi Hotel has opened its doors. (Good to know: Top designer Pierre Yves Rochon oversaw the decoration.) Set in a private park in the Brera District, the palace hotel has 98 rooms and suites, each equipped with a private balcony or terrace and designed in one of two styles: Milan (think contemporary Italian) or Paris (classic French).