Where Jean Kraft built and inaugurated the HOTEL BERNERHOF. Jean Kraft had previously managed the famous GASTHOF KRONE in Bern since 1851, where he gained his first experience.
In 1878, Jean Kraft, Gerardo's youngest son, moved to Turin, Italy, to live with his uncle Costantino Kraft, owner of the Grand Hotel in Turin. In 1880, he went to Rome to manage the Hotel Quirinale and, in 1883, he married Emma Wegenstein, thus becoming part of another renowned family of hoteliers, owners of the Hotel Schweizerhof at the Rhine Falls in Neuhausen.
In 1897, he purchased the Hotel Royal de la Paix, which he renovated by adding a fourth floor and renamed the Grand Hotel, bringing it to 120 rooms and 240 beds. On April 1, 1928, he expanded the Hotel Italia in Piazza Ognissanti in Florence, transforming it into the Hotel Excelsior Italia, built in the same architectural style as the Bernerhof and equipped with 170 rooms.
The Bernerhof is sold by the Kraft family to the Swiss Federal Government.
The Kraft family sells the two hotels to CIGA (Compagnia Italiana Grandi Alberghi), now part of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. Hermann Kraft, Emilio's eldest son and Gerardo Kraft's son, marries Ariane von der Weid, keeping the family tradition in the hotel industry alive.
Hermann Kraft takes over and transforms the Hotel Byron in Via Solferino in Florence, giving it the family name. Thus, the Hotel Kraft is born, a symbol of elegance, hospitality and entrepreneurship.
On 4 November, a sudden flood devastates the city. The Hotel Kraft also faced difficult times, but the family's determination enabled its rebirth.
The Hotel Kraft is now run by Monique Kraft, Hermann's daughter, who continues the family business with passion. With the same pioneering spirit as her predecessors, she develops new initiatives in the Tuscan countryside, carrying on the Kraft name with elegance and vision.
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