Hotel de la Ville, a Rocco Forte Hotel

What the classifiers highlight

Above the Spanish Steps, the 104 rooms run to jewel tones and velvet divans, a nod to 18th-century grandeur without the stuffiness. Chef Fulvio Pierangelini runs the fine-dining room, the rooftop Cielo Bar turns a full circle over the historic center and Vatican, and the courtyard trattoria Mosaico keeps things simpler. The Irene Forte Spa rounds it out.