The welcome
There is no hotel in Florence that is so striking on first impressions than the newly reopened St Regis. Sitting on the bank of the Arno River, the facade resembles an ornate wedding cake decoration and initially it's difficult to imagine that this sumptuous palazzo dates back to 1432, when it was designed by the great Renaissance architect, Brunelleschi, who was also responsible for the city's iconic Duomo.
The moment you walk through the entrance, you step into a plush lobby that echoes the early days of luxury travel when Florence was an obligatory stop on the Italian Grand Tour and The Grand was the place to stay. I stayed many times in the old Grand and, on recent visits, I felt like it was living a little on its reputation, being somewhat tired and dated, and in need of a makeover.
After a 10-month closure and a huge US$25 million (Dh92m) renovation, the reborn St Regis Florence has lost none of the old grandeur but has added seductive modern touches. As I check in, there is a Philippe Starck-inspired purple pouffe and zebra-striped chairs alongside precious antique furniture. In the library/lounge area, beautiful photographic books are displayed but most of the guests are reading on Kindle or browsing on their iPads. And then the impeccably dressed butler arrives to whisk me off to my suite.
The neighbourhood
Just a five-minute walk from the Ponte Vecchio and the Renaissance heart of Florence, the Piazza Ognissanti is a quiet oasis, just far enough from the tourist sites to avoid all the crowds that throng the narrow streets of the city centre. On the piazza itself is one of Florence's hidden secrets, the quite incredible 15th-century cloister frescoes of the Ognissanti church. Don't expect to find too many smart restaurants and designer boutiques, as this is still a down-to-earth neighbourhood, especially the nearer you get to the main train station.
The scene
There is a sense here of staying in a private gentleman's club or the plush mansion of a wealthy friend where guests are relaxed, having lunch in jeans and T-shirts even in the opulent surrounds of the Giardino d'Inverno. Business travellers are more likely to check in at the Westin Excelsior across the piazza, but clients of the St Regis are here for Florence's museums, exhibitions and gastronomy. The Florentines themselves are not great users of their palace hotels, like residents of London or Paris, so you won't see too many residents here unless there is a function in the majestic ballroom (definitely the city's most prestigious setting), and then the hotel comes alive with elegant Italian signore dripping jewels and wearing the latest Roberto Cavalli or Valentino designs.
The service
In general, the service here is friendly, relaxed and impeccable. The big plus for 40 of the hotel's 100 rooms is that guests are utterly spoilt by their own butler who unpacks the luggage, presses clothes, shines shoes and serves tea or coffee with the wake-up call. And the concierge is happy to recommend jogging routes through ancient Florence.
The hotel doesn't have a pool but there's a small, well-equipped gym. What is new, though, is a stunning spa operated by Clarins featuring its new Iridium range of products.
The room
Each room has its own name based on the city, so you may find yourself staying in Palazzo Medici or Campanile di Giotto. What surprises immediately is the size - even the standard deluxe rooms are very spacious. The decor is sumptuous, from the canopied beds to the gilt-edged mirrors. Guests can choose from three styles representing the long history of the hotel - Medici, Florentine and Renaissance. And while the room may be decorated with a fresco and lit by a glittering Murano chandelier, there is every modern convenience, too, including a Bose sound system, an iPod charger and a seemingly invisible TV screen set in the bathroom mirror.
The food
The hotel's glass-ceilinged Winter Garden, a jewel of Belle Epoque architecture and decor, is its life and soul, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. There is no breakfast buffet but everything from the Eggs Benedict to the selection of Tuscan cheeses is well-prepared and served briskly. The dining room is due to be under the auspices of Florence's greatest restaurant, the three-star Michelin Enoteca Pinchiorri, but this remains to be confirmed, and for the moment the current chef's Florentine cuisine is a mix of classic Italian inspiration and modern French influences, ranging from traditional Tuscan homemade "pici" pasta with succulent chunks of breaded monkfish (€25; Dh122) to main dishes such as wild duck in a sweet and sour sauce with braised endives (€28; Dh137).
Loved
The location. Views across the Arno river to the Ponte Vecchio are breathtaking, and a sunset stroll along the Lungoarno boulevard is the perfect Florentine experience.
Hated
The music. There is piped jazz day and night, from the library to reception, at breakfast, lunch and dinner.
The verdict
A welcome return to form for one of Italy's most historic and prestigious hotels, wonderfully restored to its former glory without losing any of its unique charm.
The bottom line
Prices begin at €320 (Dh1,560) per night for a deluxe room, and from €4,000 (Dh19,535) for the Bottega Veneta Suite, designed by Tomas Maier, the fashion house's creative director. The Presidential Suite costs from €10,000 (Dh48,835) per night. St Regis Florence, 1 Piazza Ognissanti, 50123 Florence (www.stregisflorence.com; 00 39 055 2761).
EMIRATES'S REVISED A350 DEPLOYMENT SCHEDULE
Edinburgh: November 4 (unchanged)
Bahrain: November 15 (from September 15); second daily service from January 1
Kuwait: November 15 (from September 16)
Mumbai: January 1 (from October 27)
Ahmedabad: January 1 (from October 27)
Colombo: January 2 (from January 1)
Muscat: March 1 (from December 1)
Lyon: March 1 (from December 1)
Bologna: March 1 (from December 1)
Source: Emirates
Kalra's feat
- Becomes fifth batsman to score century in U19 final
- Becomes second Indian to score century in U19 final after Unmukt Chand in 2012
- Scored 122 in youth Test on tour of England
- Bought by Delhi Daredevils for base price of two million Indian rupees (Dh115,000) in 2018 IPL auction
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, semi-final result:
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate
Champions Legaue final: June 1, Madrid
UAE athletes heading to Paris 2024
Equestrian
Abdullah Humaid Al Muhairi, Abdullah Al Marri, Omar Al Marzooqi, Salem Al Suwaidi, and Ali Al Karbi (four to be selected).
Judo
Men: Narmandakh Bayanmunkh (66kg), Nugzari Tatalashvili (81kg), Aram Grigorian (90kg), Dzhafar Kostoev (100kg), Magomedomar Magomedomarov (+100kg); women's Khorloodoi Bishrelt (52kg).
Cycling
Safia Al Sayegh (women's road race).
Swimming
Men: Yousef Rashid Al Matroushi (100m freestyle); women: Maha Abdullah Al Shehi (200m freestyle).
Athletics
Maryam Mohammed Al Farsi (women's 100 metres).
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
How it works
Booklava works on a subscription model. On signing up you receive a free book as part of a 30-day-trial period, after which you pay US$9.99 (Dh36.70) per month to gain access to a library of books and discounts of up to 30 per cent on selected titles. You can cancel your subscription at any time. For more details go to www.booklava.com
Pearls on a Branch: Oral Tales
Najlaa Khoury, Archipelago Books
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Haltia.ai
Started: 2023
Co-founders: Arto Bendiken and Talal Thabet
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: AI
Number of employees: 41
Funding: About $1.7 million
Investors: Self, family and friends
TWISTERS
Director:+Lee+Isaac+Chung
Starring:+Glen+Powell,+Daisy+Edgar-Jones,+Anthony+Ramos
Rating:+2.5/5
UAE players with central contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Adnan Mufti, Mohammed Usman, Ghulam Shabbir, Ahmed Raza, Qadeer Ahmed, Amir Hayat, Mohammed Naveed and Imran Haider.
The Word for Woman is Wilderness
Abi Andrews, Serpent’s Tail
How to register as a donor
1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention
2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants
3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register.
4) The campaign uses the hashtag #donate_hope
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Almouneer
Started: 2017
Founders: Dr Noha Khater and Rania Kadry
Based: Egypt
Number of staff: 120
Investment: Bootstrapped, with support from Insead and Egyptian government, seed round of
$3.6 million led by Global Ventures
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
The Little Things
Directed by: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto
Four stars
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
Developer: Sucker Punch Productions
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Console: PlayStation 2 to 5
Rating: 5/5
SPECS: Polestar 3
Engine: Long-range dual motor with 400V battery
Power: 360kW / 483bhp
Torque: 840Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 628km
0-100km/h: 4.7sec
Top speed: 210kph
Price: From Dh360,000
On sale: September
Abaya trends
The utilitarian robe held dear by Arab women is undergoing a change that reveals it as an elegant and graceful garment available in a range of colours and fabrics, while retaining its traditional appeal.
Kill
Director: Nikhil Nagesh Bhat
Starring: Lakshya, Tanya Maniktala, Ashish Vidyarthi, Harsh Chhaya, Raghav Juyal
Rating: 4.5/5
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
'Morbius'
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Stars: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona
Rating: 2/5
The biog
Name: Mariam Ketait
Emirate: Dubai
Hobbies: I enjoy travelling, experiencing new things, painting, reading, flying, and the French language
Favourite quote: "Be the change you wish to see" - unknown
Favourite activity: Connecting with different cultures
SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Confirmed bouts (more to be added)
Cory Sandhagen v Umar Nurmagomedov
Nick Diaz v Vicente Luque
Michael Chiesa v Tony Ferguson
Deiveson Figueiredo v Marlon Vera
Mackenzie Dern v Loopy Godinez
Tickets for the August 3 Fight Night, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, went on sale earlier this month, through www.etihadarena.ae and www.ticketmaster.ae.
Company Profile
Name: Neo Mobility
Started: February 2023
Co-founders: Abhishek Shah and Anish Garg
Based: Dubai
Industry: Logistics
Funding: $10 million
Investors: Delta Corp, Pyse Sustainability Fund, angel investors
Company Profile
Company name: Hoopla
Date started: March 2023
Founder: Jacqueline Perrottet
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Investment required: $500,000
The Specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 118hp
Torque: 149Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Price: From Dh61,500
On sale: Now
ACC 2019: The winners in full
Best Actress Maha Alemi, Sofia
Best Actor Mohamed Dhrif, Weldi
Best Screenplay Meryem Benm’Barek, Sofia
Best Documentary Of Fathers and Sons by Talal Derki
Best Film Yomeddine by Abu Bakr Shawky
Best Director Nadine Labaki, Capernaum