Italian Renaissance

The town of Santo Stefano di Sessanio (population 116) in the mountainous central Italian region of Abruzzi may seem an unlikely place to find a boutique hotel. The village's heyday was between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, when it was an important wool-trading hub. As the demand for wool declined, so did Santo Stefano. Now, under Italian-Swedish philosopher and preservationist Daniele Elow Kihlgren, the town is undergoing a $5.1 million restoration. He recently transformed a handful of 15th-century buildings into the Albergo Diffuso Santo Stefano di Sessanio, a rustic-chic 30-room inn (14 more rooms will open this summer), complete with a weaver's atelier and herbalist. In a nod to the city's traditions, the emphasis throughout the hotel is on local craftsmanship, from the olive-oil soaps in the bathrooms right down to the handwoven bedcovers colored with Abruzzese plant dyes. 39-085/497-2324; www.sextantio.it; doubles from $178.