Hotel Duchessa Isabella

The Duchessa Isabella occupies a sixteenth-century palazzo on Via Palestro, in the heart of Ferrara, a few minutes' walk from Castello Estense and Palazzo dei Diamanti. Its name honours Isabella d'Este, born in Ferrara in 1474, and the building still carries the mark of the Este court: coffered ceilings with pure gold friezes, lacquered sixteenth-century doors, columned fireplaces and frescoes by the Ferrarese school.

The ground floor holds the reception rooms, a breakfast room overlooking the inner garden, a bar and meeting and event spaces for up to 90 guests. The Oasi Isabella spa, a 24-hour front desk and on-site parking complete the picture. The railway station is about 2 km away, Bologna airport around forty minutes by car.

The hotel belongs to the GSA Hotels collection and is managed by Angelo Golisano. The front desk is open around the clock and can arrange bicycle hire, the easiest way to get around Ferrara, as well as car rental with delivery to the hotel.

On-site parking is unattended, charged and subject to availability. Small pets up to 12 kg are welcome. The hotel is entirely non-smoking.

Rooms come in three types: Classic, Family and Suite. Furnishings are classic in style, with pastel tones, carved headboards, chandeliers and, in several rooms, frescoes by the Ferrarese school. The larger Suites have a period fireplace and a sitting area; Family rooms sleep up to four.

All rooms have air conditioning, flat-screen satellite TV, minibar, safe, free Wi-Fi and a private bathroom with hairdryer and toiletries.

The hotel has no restaurant of its own. Breakfast is a buffet served in the room overlooking the garden, beneath the original coffered ceiling: fresh juices and yoghurt, jams, cakes and pastries, eggs, bacon and savoury dishes. On request, breakfast can be served in a period carriage set up in the garden.

For lunch and dinner, the historic centre offers trattorias and restaurants serving Ferrarese cooking, from cappellacci di zucca to salama da sugo, all within a short walk. The hotel bar is open for an aperitivo or an evening drink.

The Oasi Isabella Wellness SPA is set within the historic rooms of the palazzo, with a Finnish sauna, Turkish bath, hot tub, experience showers with chromotherapy and aromatherapy, and a herbal tea corner.

It is open daily from 9 am to 8 pm, also to non-residents; access is charged, lasts at least two hours and includes bathrobe and cap. Massages and treatments are available on request.

Ferrara, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995, is the city the Este family turned into a Renaissance capital. Castello Estense and its moat, the Cathedral of San Giorgio, Palazzo dei Diamanti and the Addizione Erculea are all less than ten minutes on foot from the hotel; the city walls, almost nine kilometres still intact, can be walked or cycled.

Nearby lies the Po Delta, also a UNESCO site, with Pomposa Abbey and the Comacchio lagoons less than an hour's drive away. Bologna is about 50 km away, Ravenna and Padua around an hour.