Frescoed ceilings, Art Nouveau stained glass and monumental salons give Palermo’s Grand Hotel et des Palmes a richly decorative setting. This December, its historic interiors will become theatrical spaces for a production created exclusively for the hotel by Sicilian director and playwright Emma Dante, opening celebrations for its 150th anniversary in 2027.
Mangia’s Hotels & Resorts has announced a year-long cultural programme alongside a new phase of refurbishment. The plans encompass some of the hotel’s most distinctive spaces, including the Winter Garden, Hall of Mirrors and Wagner Suite, with work inspired by Sicilian Liberty style and the legacy of architect Ernesto Basile.
The hotel occupies a former private residence on Via Roma in central Palermo. It is also the flagship city property in Mangia’s new Icona’s Collection, which launched with Grand Hotel et des Palmes and Costa Ragusa Resort, bringing together a historic urban address and a coastal retreat.
The enchanted rooms, this December
Dante’s Le Stanze Fatate, translated as The Enchanted Rooms, will launch the anniversary programme on 19 and 20 December 2026. The immersive production will be staged throughout the hotel’s historic rooms and salons, using those interiors as a fairy-tale setting. For travellers planning a December stay, it adds a specific cultural occasion to the hotel’s architectural appeal.
Dante’s connection to Palermo extends well beyond this commission. Born in the city, she founded a theatre company there in 1999 and works across theatre, opera and cinema. Her productions Le Sorelle Macaluso and Bestie di scena appeared at the Festival d’Avignon in 2014 and 2017, respectively.
Four performances are scheduled: at 5pm and 8pm on Saturday 19 December, and again at 5pm and 8pm on Sunday 20 December. Information and bookings are available through event.despalmes@mangias.com.
The December performances begin a wider programme celebrating Palermo’s art, culture and heritage. Further events will be announced as the anniversary approaches, making these four performances the first dates around which to arrange a visit.
A new chapter for the historic interiors
The planned refurbishment covers the Winter Garden, Hall of Mirrors and Lobby Bar, with bespoke furnishings, restored antiques and contemporary design additions throughout the property. The restaurant, terrace and residential-style apartments are also included. Sicilian Liberty style provides the design reference, connecting the new work to the decorative tradition already present in the building.
The Wagner Suite will receive a careful refresh. Its association with the composer makes it a particularly significant part of the project, alongside public spaces that have long accommodated the hotel’s social and cultural life. The scope reaches from these historic rooms to the places guests use for dining and drinks.
A substantial 2021 restoration, documented by Sicilia Secrets, recovered polychrome stained glass, bas-reliefs and gilded wooden decoration, along with the distinctive shade known as Green Ragusa. Historical photographs guided the reconstruction of the Winter Garden. That earlier project also added a rooftop restaurant and cocktail bar, as well as a fitness room on the floor above.
From a family residence to Wagner’s Palermo address
Grand Hotel et des Palmes opened in 1877 after the building’s earlier life as an Ingham-Whitaker family residence. Its name refers to the two imperial palms framing the entrance. Ernesto Basile is associated with its transformation and Liberty-style interiors, a legacy that remains central to the hotel’s identity and the forthcoming work.
Richard Wagner arrived in 1881 and stayed for almost a year while completing Parsifal. His accommodation had previously been the Ingham family’s principal bedroom; the present Wagner Suite commemorates that stay. The connection gives the hotel’s musical history a particular room and a particular work, rather than simply another famous name in its guest book.
The existing Richard Wagner Suite has stucco reliefs, gold-leaf decoration and a crystal chandelier, alongside a historic grand piano that the hotel says belonged to the composer. Its bathroom includes a Jacuzzi. Across the property, the accommodation totals 100 rooms and suites, combining retained historic elements with contemporary comforts and marble bathrooms renewed during the earlier refurbishment.
Winter dining beneath the mirrors
Des Palmes Neobistrot occupies the Salone degli Specchi, or Hall of Mirrors, during winter. The former Ingham family ballroom provides a setting of soft lighting and Belle Époque details for a menu combining Sicilian culinary traditions with contemporary cooking. It is one of the most distinctive existing uses of the hotel’s historic salons, with dinner taking place within the same decorative interiors included in the anniversary investment.
The hotel’s dining spaces also extend to the fifth-floor Ouverture Terrace, overlooking Palermo’s rooftops. Its offering centres on seasonal Sicilian ingredients and includes a Menù della Tradizione devoted to established island dishes. Guests can use the terrace for lunch, aperitivos at sunset or visits after dinner, with several ways to spend time above the city.
Sensus Mixology Bar changes location with the seasons: it operates in the Salone degli Specchi during winter and on the Ouverture Terrace in summer. House cocktails sit alongside established classics. The seasonal arrangement gives winter stays an emphasis on the palazzo’s enclosed, ornamental rooms, while summer drinks move to the rooftop outlook.
The sixth-floor fitness room occupies 160 square metres and has Technogym equipment. Concierge services can arrange transfers for private use, book restaurant tables, organise guided tours and create personalised itineraries, useful for arranging the wider Palermo stay around a performance or dinner at the hotel.
Planning an anniversary stay
The announced starting rate is €600 per night for two people sharing a double room, including breakfast. That gives a clear starting point for an overnight visit, whether timed to the December performances or to the anniversary year itself. Ask the reservations team for the rate and room category available on your chosen dates.
The December theatre schedule is specific enough to plan around now: choose between an early-evening or 8pm performance on either day, and contact the events address for booking information. Accommodation enquiries go to a separate reservations team, so raise the performance date when arranging your stay.
Guests booking during the refurbishment should ask which spaces will be accessible on their dates and whether the planned work will affect the restaurant, terrace or historic salons. That is particularly worthwhile if the Wagner Suite or winter dining in the Hall of Mirrors is central to the trip.
Grand Hotel et des Palmes is at Via Roma, 398, Palermo, 90139. Contact the hotel’s reservations team at booking.despalmes@mangias.com for accommodation; general enquiries can be made at despalmes@mangias.com or by telephone on +39 091 2779600.
