Near to the hotel you can find the Fortezza da Basso which plays host to Florence's Centro Congressi or Congress Center i.e. where all of the major exhibitions in Florence are held including the Pitti Fashion fairs, the BTC tourism fair and much much more. Consquently, if you are looking for the perfect hotel in Florence where you can hold your "Meeting a Firenze" or medium to small conference then look no further as the hotel Athenaeum is the ideal choice.

The Fortezza da Basso which is where most of Florence's major fairs and exhibitions are held is absolutely huge but we are near the side where the main entrance is. the Fortress itself was like so many of Florence's major monuments by a Medici (Alessandro de') and designed by the award winning architect Antonio Da Sangallo Il Giovane some time between 1532 and 1535. Labelled the best fortress in Europe it was never actually put to the test having never seen combat.

It's only meaningful military contribution came on the 27 of April 1859 when the Italian Tricolour flag was raised on its ramparts, the first time the Italian flag was raised ever! The Fortress remained a military barracks until the mid 1960's from whence it bacame a venue for exhibitions and business conferences.