Palermo’s Grand Hotel et des Palmes, part of Icona’s Collection, the luxury brand from Mangia’s Hotels & Resorts dedicated to icons of Italian hospitality, is preparing to celebrate its 150th anniversary in 2027. The milestone reflects the vision of Icona’s Collection: to safeguard unique places deeply connected to their destinations, preserving their identities while reinterpreting them through a contemporary approach to hospitality. For Grand Hotel et des Palmes, this means building on its extraordinary legacy to remain a vibrant destination and an integral part of Palermo’s story.
This vision shapes the plans for the 150th anniversary: a celebration of a historic milestone and the beginning of a new chapter for the hotel, encompassing the preservation of its heritage, the renewal of its spaces and the evolution of its guest experience. Palermo will also be part of this journey through a program of cultural events open to the city.
The hotel’s origins date back to the 19th century. The building was originally the residence of the English Ingham family, situated outside Palermo’s city walls and surrounded by an extensive garden where the palm trees that inspired its name grew. In 1874, entrepreneur Enrico Ragusa purchased the property and began transforming the residence into a hotel. Grand Hotel et des Palmes opened in 1877, beginning a story that would span a century and a half of life in Palermo and establish the hotel as a landmark of the city’s cultural, social and international life.
The work of Ernesto Basile, a leading figure in Italian Art Nouveau and international modernism, played a defining role in shaping the hotel’s identity. His design left a lasting imprint that remains visible throughout the hotel, from the Winter Garden and decorative stained-glass windows to the painted decorations, woodwork and ornamental details that characterize the building. Throughout its history, the hotel also became a place to stay and gather for prominent figures in European culture. Among them was Richard Wagner, who spent several months here in 1881 while working on Parsifal. The suite that now bears his name retains its 19th-century stucco work and the piano associated with the composer’s stay.
This legacy provides the foundation for a new chapter today. Following a restoration completed with the hotel’s reopening in June 2021, Grand Hotel et des Palmes joined the Mangia’s Group in 2025, marking the Group’s entry into the city hotel segment and further strengthening its connection to Palermo, where the company is headquartered.
Ahead of its 150th anniversary, the hotel is preparing for a new renovation designed to celebrate its historic identity while supporting its evolution through a contemporary design approach. Rooted in Sicilian Art Nouveau and the legacy of Ernesto Basile, the project aims to restore and bring greater prominence to the building’s distinctive features, balancing preservation, functionality and the changing needs of hospitality.
The interiors will be reimagined around a palette of olive green, red, gold and muted blue. Guest rooms will feature custom furnishings, layered materials and carefully selected restored antiques, incorporating textile wallcoverings, marble, natural woods and fabrics. Particular attention will be given to the Wagner Suite, where a sensitive renovation will preserve its historic features while enhancing its use for today’s guests.
The project will also encompass the hotel’s shared spaces, restoring and adapting signature settings such as the lobby bar, the Hall of Mirrors and the Winter Garden so they can once again take center stage in hotel life. The renovation will also include the existing apartments, expanding and diversifying the accommodation options, as well as the restaurant and its terrace.
“One hundred and fifty years tell much more than the story of a hotel: they tell the story of a part of Palermo, of the people who have passed through it and of its ability to open itself to the world. Today, we have the opportunity to safeguard this extraordinary legacy while also writing its future. We want Grand Hotel et des Palmes to remain a vibrant place, open to the city, where hospitality, culture and beauty can come together and inspire new stories. For us, celebrating this anniversary means exactly that: honoring the first 150 years while looking ambitiously toward those to come,” said Marcello Mangia, President & CEO of the Mangia’s Group.
The hotel’s renewal will be accompanied by an extensive cultural program dedicated to its 150th anniversary, beginning in December 2026 with Emma Dante’s Le stanze fatate (“The Enchanted Rooms”) and continuing throughout 2027 with events open to the city. More than a calendar of celebrations, the program will pay tribute to Palermo, its art, its history and its cultural identity, bringing together figures connected to Sicily and new generations of artists and performers. This initiative will reinforce Grand Hotel et des Palmes’ role as a place for gathering and cultural exchange, with the ambition of leaving a legacy that extends beyond its 150th anniversary.
