In the spring of 2008, for our first stop in Florence, we selected this Bed and Breakfast based on Trip Advisor's reviews. The Bed and Breakfast is located on a quiet small street in the Oltrearno district of Florence, a few minutes from the Palazzo Pitti and Ponte Vecchio, but a pleasant longer walk through the historic center of Florence (about 1 mile or 1.5 km) to Piazza della Signoria. We loved the location, away from the hustle and bustle of tourists and did not mind the walk. The Bed and Breakfast is indeed a converted apartment as most of the other Bed and Breakfasts in the city are. The furniture was basic, and could be considered dated by NorthAmerican standard, but the room we stayed in was quiet, large and clean, with a small clean refrigerator and safety box, and a private large washroom. Could not avoid thinking that this is how most Florentines live. We have been in very expensive 5 stars hotels in NA where people in rooms beside or above where noisy, and nothing could be done about that, and where a refrigerator had not been cleaned from previous users! It happens. Here, our room was very quiet and perfect to recover from jet-lag. We could have had access to free Internet connection, but we did not bring a laptop and had no chance to try it out the connection. We did have free access to a computer in the common room, and it did the job, but it was a frustrating experience as, at the time, the computer was fairly old and still running Windows98!. We did not take advantage of the breakfast coupon for the nearby cafe'. Breakfast in Italy mostly consists of a brioche and cappuccino, so we had no other expectation. Because of that, we thought we may as well have it wherever we felt like, and, were we missing the more substantial NA breakfast, we could alway buy some of the amazing food that can be found in any small grocery store nearby. We booked the Bed and Breakfast by email and were asked by Massimiliano our arrival time as well as calling as soon as we arrived into town. We did that and had no problem checking in. Massimiliano was very friendly and gave us some maps, and all kind of suggestions to sites and restaurants. However, after the checking in, we rarely saw either Massimiliano or Paolo, hence one is basically on its own. That is fine, as long you don't expect anything else. We did have their phone numbers in case of need. Still, whenever they were around, they were very helpful (carrying our luggage up and downstairs, giving suggestions on how to drive out of the city the last morning when we rented a car, etc.). We were counting on the bottle of wine that other TA guests received, but, no luck.... :-( Overall, we enjoyed our stay and loved the location among ordinary Florentines, plus having access to some quite amazing trattoria nearby (e.g. Da i Conte Dilladarno in Via dei Serragli 108, look for it on the web). If you are looking for a reasonably priced B&B in Florence, mixing with locals, and are not looking for 5 stars NA accommodation or touristy place, this is a B&B worth considering. We would not hesitate to stay there again.
