DCFlyer0306

I will be at the Westin for 2 days on a C&P reservation with my mom in a couple weeks, and had a couple questions

1. Anyone have any luck getting the hotel to split the "king" bed into two twin beds? If so, is this something to email about ahead of time or ask once we get there?

2. Saw some people used the concierge for tickets to the Uffizi - again, is this something I need to arrange in advance or can the concierge help with this once we arrive?

Would appreciate your advice - thanks!

beachfan

Two weeks is already too short a time for being sure of getting your first pick of time slots. Call the concierge today.

treznor

If we were talking about a year or two ago I'd agree. However, tourism seems to be way down in Italy currently. We were there the beginning of March and the only line we saw in Italy was a 10-15 minute line at St Mark's in Venice and a 10 minute line at the Vatican to enter St Peter's Basilica.

We called a couple days ahead for tickets for the Uffizi, Borghese, Vatican Museum, etc. and had our choice of any times we wanted. When we got to the Uffizi to pick up our tickets there was absolutely no one waiting in line, in either the advance pickup or the regular line. We were rather amazed.

That having been said, it's still probably better to go ahead and get your tickets now if you have a fairly set schedule that you'd like to stick to, just to make certain it doesn't get messed up at all.

escog

Just got back from a long vacation, and spent 2 nights at the Westin Excelsior. Overall, a great stay - loved the heavenly bed and the large (by European standards) bathroom. Staff was excellent and very friendly. I thought the buffet breakfast very overpriced, but they had a deal for Starwood members - 23 Euros for the breakfast buffet plus 1 hour of internet access at the business lounge at the Grand Hotel.

The lines may have been short in the spring, but I was there at the beginning of July, and the line for the Uffizi was huge. I was very glad I had booked ahead. The Accademy Gallery had about an hour long line when I got there at 1:00, but was much shorter when I left later that afternoon.

Late afternoon seems to be the best time to visit if you don't have a reservation since most of the big tour groups have moved on. Same is true for Rome - there was basically no line for the Vatican museums late in the afternoon, but mid-to-late morning was horrendous.

sierranevada

1. Should be no problem to spilt the king bed into 2 twins - we did it when my sister and I were there in Oct.

2. I would arrange the tickets in advance - it saves waiting in line.

BTW - loved this hotel!! The service was exceptional and the room was great!

dingo

On the Uffizi, you can make reservations using a phone number but the call costs. I found the cost of the call to be less than the markup the hotel wanted to charge me when I went in November. I don't recall the specifics, but the hotel was adding at least a couple euro per ticket for the service. Reservations are a must...how you choose to obtain them may depend on your budget.

rdchen

According to the hotel's website, the hotel is only 1km away from the Santa Maria Novella Station, however, the cab fare is listed as 40 euro, is it a typo?

mauld

It's a 5-10 minute easy walk, so unless you have a lot of luggage, you may want to opt for that. As for the 40e cab fare, perhaps they are meaning a hotel limo ?? In any event I would assume it really wouldn't be any more than 10-15e at most.

sdcarver

A few years back I took a cab after getting turned around and getting lost and the cab was about 10-15 euros tops.

sdcarver

Tak

There are many one way streets in Florence.
According to the GOOGLE Map, if you walk, it takes about 7 minutus(0.6Km - actual distance).
If you take a cab, it takes 13 minutes(5.0Km) becuase the car has to take a long way to get to the hotel.

Forstbetrieb

Oh yes, and all taxidrivers are not from florence...

BTW: there is all day long a lot of traffic in florence. If you are able to walk, then walk! ^

Frozentech

I was paying about 8-10 euro from the Grand (across the plaza from the Excelsior) to S.M.N. station. I agree that walking Florence is fun, but it was rainy and the cobblestones can beat the heck out of your wheeled luggage Actually when we checked out of the Grand, they just put us in the hotel mini-van for the trip to the station, at no charge.

rdchen

Thanks for all the replies.

FrAAmer

Our stay at the Westin Excelsior Florence was in the middle of our Sorrento Florence Brussels trip. The not so little FrAAmer is a student at Florence University of the Arts and we booked a fast trip using points and miles for a visit and to bring home her winter clothes.

After departing from Naples via Eurostar we arrived in Florence at the Santa Maria Novella train station. Although it had been raining, the ground was fairly dry and we only had small carryon suitcases, so we decided to walk to the hotel as it is very close by and we knew our way from prior trips.

On our last trip, we had a wonderful stay at the Grand. Having read the Excelsior vs. Grand debate on Flyertalk, and knowing that we really could not go wrong by choosing either property, we decided to stay at the Excelsior so we could give a more experienced base opinion of the two hotels.

We arrived at the hotel at 3PM after a 5-10 minute walk from the train station. There is a direct way where there isn’t much to look at, and a more “scenic” way that has some interesting shop windows. Either way is very doable if you have light luggage as we did, and it isn’t raining or the ground is not too wet. Without luggage it is a fast, short walk.




View from across the river

Check-in was efficient; the desk clerk announced that we had been upgraded to a superior room with a river view. We were presented with a print-out detailing how many Starpoints we had and the redemption options for instant awards,

Tea Ritual 750 Starpoints
Light Lunch 2250 Starpoints
Wine and Snacks 1500 Starpoints
Wine and Salmon Canapes 2250 Starpoints
Wine and Ham canapés 3000 Starpoints
Breakfast Buffet 2250 Starpoints
Dinner at Orvm 4500 Starpoints
Redemption of Starpoints at $10US credit per 750 Starpoints redeemed

and also a brochure with two other specials;

The Buongiorno Package at 23€ per person that included 1 buffet breakfast (normally 39€ per person) 1 hour of internet at the business center or in/room and a 20% discount on laundry or minibar.

Or the Orvm package at 34€ per person that included 1 dinner at the Orvm restaurant, (1 dish a la carte, one dessert, water, coffe and wine by the glass) 1 hour of internet and the 20% discount on laundry or minibar.

As is the tradition, we were escorted to our room by the desk clerk. Our room (208) was wonderful, but not the suite we had at the Grand from our last stay (but I was Platinum then and am now Gold). Still, for this (and future) visits, the room was large with a sofa, two sitting chairs and coffee table, desk, large, wonderful heavenly bed, well appointed bathroom (with heated mirror that would not fog) flatscreen TV. Miniar and safe, and two balconies overlooking the Arno. Turndown service was offered nightly and maid service was efficient and completed early (almost as soon as we left the room).












View fom the Balcony


View from the Balcony


View from the Balcony

Having come from the Hilton Sorrento Palace (see trip report in the Hilton Forum), this hotel was like going from a Motel 6 (don’t get me wrong, we had a great stay at the Hilton – but you just can’t compare the two) to the lap of luxury.

The hotel is larger than the Grand and has all the old world charm one could hope for. We found the Grand to be a bit more intimate – less of the “big hotel feel” – but both properties are top notch. They share the business center (in the Grand) and exercise facility (at the Excelsior) You can’t say either has a superior location as they are across the plaza from each other.

The windows in our room had been retrofitted with dual glazing so they blocked out the street (and river) noise. The floor to ceiling heavy drapes blacked out the room completely and added to the quiet. The bedding was sumptuous , the towels large and fluffy. Although this was our 5th night in Italy, having no agenda or feeling like there was “something we had to see” (since we had been to Florence many times before, a wonderful, relaxing way to enjoy such a special city), we slept soundly until 10:30 the next morning – and even though we did not put the “do not disturb” sign out, there was no knock from housekeeping).

The exercise room is open 24 hrs and is on the first floor, directed by signs to the Westin Workout. Part of the workout is getting to the room, which, after winding through the halls, is located down a flight of stairs. The room is well equipped, bright, and I never saw anyone else there each time I used it so I could choose the TV volume and station. There is a bathroom and shower available and fresh fruit daily (and also a water cooler).


Workout Room

We never took the hotel up on any of the redemption offers as we met the little FrAAmer daily for breakfast, preferring to walk Oltrarno and went two mornings to Mama’s Bakery where one could get bagels with the most delicious cream cheese spreads and muffins and a bottomless cup of well brewed coffee. Bagels with salmon were 5€ each. Bagels with a spread were 2.5€ Coffee is only 1€. It is an easy 5 minute walk across the bridge from the hotel. Via della Chiese 34/r look for the red drainpipe as you turn the corner

That was one of the best part of this visit, following the little FrAAmer’s recommendation of wonderful places to eat (that we never would have found or walked in to by passing them on the street). We had some wonderful meals and felt that the price to food expense was extremely reasonable.

Two excellent dinners –

Baldovino
Via di San Giuseppe, 22
055 241773

Aqua al 2
Via dell'Acqua
055 284170

Two GREAT finds for sandwiches

The Oil Shoppe
Via S.Egidio, 22R
055 200 1092
They have a deal for a sandwich, fries and a water bottle for 5€ that can’t be beat. You order by the type of bread and assorted combinations, each more tempting than the next. An easy walk from the Duomo and a great find.

Antico Noe
Volta di San Piero, 6-red
055 2340838
A little harder to find, under an arched tunnel between two streets. Look for the VINO sign above the door, When we got there, the skies opened without warning and it began to pour! We could sit at the tables infront of the shop protected by the tunnel until the rain stopped. The #9 (with extra sundried tomatoes) could be the best sandwich I have ever had.

In all it was a wonderful stay. I am amused at the posts I have read in the Italy forum by people saying there isn’t much to do in Florence and once could skip it or minimize their travel time there. I love Florence and would (and have) return whenever possible.

Either hotel would make for a memorable stay, especially for a “special” trip like a honeymoon or anniversary. And, I think for the quality of what one receives, plus the location (walking distance to everything) and the views from the rooms, either hotel is a great use of points.

It is sort of like asking which of your children is your favorite……but after a careful analysis, we still prefer the Grand, only for it’s more intimate feel, and smaller halls. Our daughter’s room (during our last stay at the Grand) was not a suite and had we received it as our room during this stay, we would have been just as happy, though the room we had at the Excelsior this stay was probably a bit nicer.

Bottom line, you can’t go wrong with either hotel.

Tak

Thank you for your detail report.

Was your bed a King or two twin beds connecting together?