FORMER MONASTERIES, SAILS" AND CZECH CUBISM

H UN DR ED SOFHOTELSH AVE BE EN PHOTOGRAPH ED BY MASSIMO L ISTRIA ROUND T H E WORLD, F R OM T H E A R C T I C C I R C L E DOWNWARDS.HE REA RETHE CITY HOTELSHE RECO MM END SFORA STA Y

I have visited hundreds of hotels all over the world, from the super luxury lodges in the African savannah with 4 or 5 rooms, up to the remote hotel in Sweden with lit fireplaces and reindeer outside, obviously including grand hotels in the megalopolises. Leafing through the album of memories, here is the quick excursus of my favorite addresses: in Paris, I often go back to the Marquis Faubourg Saint Honoré (1), Relais & Chateaux housed in an eighteenth-century hotel particulier with only 15 suites, full of charm, where you can immediately feel at home. The Danieli Hotel (2) in Venice is opulent and imposing, a Luxury Collection exactly like The Augustine in Prague. In the former case we are in an aristocratic dwelling overlooking Piazza San Marco, in the latter in a former Augustinian monastery reinterpreted in a contemporary key, with design objects inspired by Czech cubism. Destination Amsterdam? I choose 717, or Seven One Seven, housed in a nineteenth-century building adorned with stuccoes and memorabilia, offering modern and cozy rooms. Going to the East, in Shanghai I suggest the Bulgari Hotel, whose rooms have full-length windows along the wall that allow you to admire the skyline over the Bund, particularly beautiful at night. In addition, it boasts two restaurants for true connoisseurs, the Bao Li Xuan, which offers refined local cuisine, next to one of the chefs who have recently conquered the world scene, Niko Romito from the Abruzzo region, awarded with three Michelin stars. When I think of the hospitality in the Far East, I also think of the Double Tree by Hilton in Jakarta, a sort of city resort rather than a business hotel, although being located only 5 minutes by car from the Downtown. It has a beautiful lagoon-style outdoor pool, set in a palm tree forest, and good restaurants. Destination Dubai? Two "classics", so to speak, that never cease to amaze, the Burj Al Arab and the Armani Hotel (4), respectively known as "The Sail" and the hotel in the highest skyscraper in the world. Going to the States, in New York I’ve tried The Pierre, an icon of the Upper East Side boasting almost a hundred years of history, which acts as a counterpoint to the unconventional style of The Standard High Line (3), overlooking the Hudson River.

#Massimo Listri Florence is his hometown. In 1970, at the young age of 17, he started collaborating with art and architecture magazines. With publisher Franco Maria Ricci he realized his first great reportages, and since then he has been sent all over the world for the most important international publishers. Author of over 70 books, he has had the privilege of setting up personal exhibitions in prestigious locations in numerous cities, including Milan, Florence, Turin, Rome, New York, Tokyo, Vienna, Bogotà.