The charm of the Grand Visconti Palace lies in its ability to place its guests into a dimension of welcome comprising atmospheres, feelings and areas in which they can take care of themselves, and settings far away from the bustle and noise to relax and work in. At the Grand Visconti Palace you are in the heart of lived-in Milan, the Milan of the Milanese. In a district which sprang up at the beginning of the 20th century, with straight roads and beautiful precise buildings now known as Old Milan style. Close to a railway branch which is now no longer in use, in a building which stands on the area of one of the reference points of industrial Milan. From 1920 onwards this area accommodated the Verga Mill: trains used to come right into the courtyard to load flour to be transported all over Italy. Nowadays that courtyard, which houses the bedrooms, the Health Centre and the Conference Centre, is an extraordinary spacious green area in the Italian garden style. A hotel that is both modern and old, classical but without trimmings, fashionable but without being trendy, and sober, elegant and true, the Grand Visconti Palace presents itself forward as a dynamic, versatile reality - an area to experience as a natural, prestigious location for events, shows, exhibitions, fashion shows and much more besides.
The city's image has always been linked with the world of work, and hotel guests' choices of hotel are made almost exclusively in order to optimize the time available, with their own wellbeing often taking second place. Up to now it was not thought that "A Resort in the City" could be realized in Italy's economic capital: so we created a green oasis in an attempt to offer our guests the chance to take care of themselves before and after a busy working day, and to rediscover the pleasant feeling of treating themselves to a little calm and relaxation. After thinking up and realizing this project from the structural point of view, our desire was to satisfy your needs and humour your expectations. We wish to reintroduce the pleasure of "offering hospitality" which was in use last century in grand hotels throughout the world, when the doorman was the butler, the barman the keeper of secrets and the manager the watchful, discrete landlord.
In most cases the origin or the idea that leads to the designing of a building built to "offer hospitality" is not known. We would like to tell you about how the Grand Visconti Palace project came into being.
It was 1999 and we were seeking an area in a central position for the creation of a hotel in Milan. Two opportunities came up - the first was a building in the heart of Milan which could house around 90 bedrooms and limited common areas, and the second a 12,000 square metre area situated in a central position with easy access. The Verga Mill stood in this area in 1920. The mill later became the premises of a famous biscuit factory, which moved elsewhere at the end of the ’90s. We chose the second route - certainly the more difficult but also the more ambitious. In December 1999 "the die was cast" and the idea took shape through the architects' plans.
The work started in September 2001: part of the building was refurbished and another part was demolished and rebuilt with the specific desire of maintaining intact the design of the old building which dated back to the early years of last century. The intention was to capture the charm which only period buildings can transmit, and to allow it to be experienced in the future. 172 rooms, a conference centre, a banqueting hall, a restaurant, a health centre with an indoor swimming pool, a park, a garage with spaces for 70 cars and a car-park for 3 coaches complete the offering. For the name of the hotel we chose the name of an important Lordship - the Viscontis, who from the end of the fourteenth century and the beginning of the fifteenth century were in charge of what was the largest and most powerful state of Italy at that time. Tradition united with innovation.
The names of the rooms are those of the main city gates of Milan, while for the restaurant and the bar we opted for more original and modern names, playing on the letter “V” in our logo. Thus the “Al V Piano” restaurant (corresponding exactly to the floor on which it is situated) and the “Visavis” Bar (intentionally Italianized in the writing) came into being.
The hotel has 162 rooms of the Classic, Quality and Exclusive type, and 10 Suites ranging from the Junior Suites to the Tower Suite. While the bedrooms are classical, many of the suites have been given touches of a slight minimalist design, for tastes which are sophisticated but not traditional. The hotel has 4 Junior Suites, 3 Executive Suites, 2 Grand Suites and the exclusive Tower Suite.
The hotel has 162 rooms of the Classic, Quality and Exclusive type, and 10 Suites ranging from the Junior Suites to the Tower Suite. Sophisticated decoration, precious Italian polychromatic marble, and Murano crystal lamps and lights cocoon our guests in an atmosphere rich in warmth and solid elegance. The Grand Visconti Palace has rooms for the disabled, and two floors of the building are reserved for non-smokers. The exquisitely classical style of the furniture is matched by the innovation and practicalness of the complements - in fact all rooms have a WI-FI connection, ISDN telephone wiring and satellite TV with pay per view. Some rooms are half-corner rooms while others extend into a bow-window, and every room has a unique flavour thanks to the history of this industrial architecture. But who knows, perhaps that is only because of the flavour of Milan which comes in through the windows. Room Facilities • Minibar • Safe-deposit box for laptop computer • Bathroom telephone • Satellite TV with pay per view, Sky Italia • Independent temperature control • Air conditioning • WI-FI Internet connection for laptops • ADSL telephone lines • Smoke detectors • Fire alarm • All rooms are soundproofed.
While the bedrooms are classical, many of the suites have been given touches of a slight minimalist design, for tastes which are sophisticated but not traditional. The hotel has 4 Junior Suites, 3 Executive Suites, 2 Grand Suites and the exclusive Tower Suite. The latter, which extends over 120 sq. m. and three floors linked by a winding staircase and a private lift, gives guests the excitement of a view of the roofs of Milan and the spires of the cathedral while they relax in the comfort of the Jacuzzi in the mini pool.
Suite Facilities • Minibar • Safe-deposit box for laptop computer • Bathroom telephone • Satellite TV with pay per view • Independent temperature control - Air conditioning • WI-FI Internet connection for laptop computers • ADSL telephone lines • Plasma screen • Marble bathroom with Jacuzzi • Bathroom with shower • Walk-in wardrobe • All suites are soundproofed.
The Grand Visconti Palace is the ideal place for your professional meetings, conferences, presentations, banquets and events. The 12 meeting rooms bear the names of the city gates of Milan, many of them have natural lighting and all are equipped with the latest most sophisticated systems for audio-video support, WI-FI connection, videoconferences by satellite, and a control room/simultaneous interpreting booth. The comfortable rooms have a capacity of from 10 to 260 delegates and 1000 seats in total. But the versatility of the Grand Visconti Palace also allows other areas - such as the Winter Garden or the park, for example - to be used for organizing events. In this way a total of 3000 people may be accommodated.
ROOMS For the names of our meeting rooms and conference rooms we have chosen the names of some of the city gates of Milan (those closest to our hotel) because their history has always tallied with the history of our city. The following equipment is available as standard in your meeting rooms and conference rooms in Milan: • Flip chart • Overhead projector • 1 microphone • Screen
The Grand Visconti Palace can boast a green area of rare beauty. The park is a masterpiece of simplicity, and yet it has all the character of a classical Italian garden with an English-style lawn. Gneiss stonework marks out its design. There are hedges of intoxicating lavender and a fountain spurts horizontally with its jets in almost musical succession. Two huge braziers are ready to light up in summer Lounge evenings. Three theatrical cast-iron gazebos house an open-air bar, tables and sofas.
One of these gazebos can also be used in the cooler seasons, as it can be fully closed like a conservatory as protection from the wind and the cold. Cane chaise longues appear among the flowers in the garden at the start of spring. As well as the braziers, the lovely pool in the health centre appears through a large glass window.
Restaurant "al V piano" - both by name and in reality. Overlooking the roofs of Milan, it is accessed via a lift. It is a cosy area with a half arched ceiling, a large antique mirror as scene design, ostrich chairs and design lamps. The design is essential but not cold - modern classicality in every shade of dove-grey and sand. The restaurant is the realm of light, but sophisticated cuisine based on the Mediterranean influence while daring to effect some creative touches, and without neglecting the great classic Lombardy and Milanese dishes and some old dishes. Fusion and reminiscence are the words which chef likes to use for summing up his cuisine. The Visavis bar is the ideal place for pre-dinner drinks and informal meetings in an intimate setting, in which to enjoy the best cocktails or even just a coffee. The Salone Visconti is available for banquets and functions. Bright and elegant, its large windows overlook the park.
VISAVIS LOUNGE BAR Compared with Milan's other cocktail bars, the Visavis is the ideal solution for enjoying spending time in. Named Visavis precisely because it is vis-à-vis or face to face, you can come here with colleagues to discuss matters, with friends to joke with them, with your partner or soul mate to make plans, or sometimes even on your own to do some thinking.
BANQUETS: A vast selection of rooms is available to meet your every need in terms of functions, banquets and shows in Milan. Try to imagine a wedding banquet in the setting of a luxury hotel in Milan, overlooking its splendid park - the absolute best for your wedding. After visiting the sophisticated elegant settings and savouring the typical charm of an exclusive hotel, allow the experts of the Grand Visconti Palace in Milan to assist you in the organization of your event. All events will be arranged down to the last detail in one of the best settings for special events to be found in Milan. Banquets for your special memorable occasions can be organized at the Grand Visconti Palace.
Every week, the winter garden of the Grand Visconti Palace is transformed into "Not Just Jazz" - the most intimate and appealing of Milanese music clubs, and a stage for thrilling live appearances open not only to the hotel guests but also to all music lovers, not just jazz buffs. Not Just Jazz was born thanks to the specific desire of General Manager Claudio Gnoni, who right from the very beginning wished to strongly connote the hotel as a meeting place for musical and cultural events. The idea behind the project was to create a veritable "cultural salon", a club promoting the quality music culture and which would abolish the artificial barriers between the public and the artists to allow exchanges of ideas and a refreshing reciprocal transfer of emotions, ideas and perceptions. The intuition of the founders of Not Just Jazz was to bring Jazz to the hotel, by moving into Italy a means of exploitation that is unusual here but absolutely normal in the USA, and without neglecting other types of music on condition that it is high level music. The programming is managed with skill and passion by the Art Directors of the Grand Visconti Palace. It puts forward all "colours" of Jazz music and other music too, through concerts and evenings with artists of national and international importance. In addition, the hotel's art directors can offer any type of artistic service on a "turnkey" basis for functions, events and conferences.
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