eerickso

Some of this may depend on when you’re planning to travel and availability as well as the specific areas you want to visit. If I wanted to have a car at my disposal (and even if not) one of my favorite places to stay is Hotel David. A huge plus is that the parking is free to guests and the hotel is right outside the ZTL. It is walkable to Ponte Vecchio (about a mile) and other areas of the city center, and it is also right on a bus line in case you don’t feel like walking or the weather doesn’t cooperate. It is a small hotel, though, and quite popular so availability may be limited. Other times when I’ve not wanted to deal with a car, I’ve booked small group tours with tour operators like Grape Tours or Walkabout (both highly recommended) or just used a private driver (with or without a guide).

JMN57

Where in Florence works best for you to stay?? Somewhere close to where your daughter is? A particular area you prefer? Good options depend on answers to those questions.

gold23

Thanks. Will definitely check that hotel out. We have a cancellable reservation with Palazzo Vecchietti, which was highly reccomended to us by a family that visited their son last year while he was abroad. We've stayed at the Portrait, Westin Excelsior, and a boutique hotel during our honeymoon that I wish i could remember in visits past and have enjoyed them all.

I guess one major question I'd have is that, in everyone's experience, if a hotel promises that they will "phone in" or otherwise report our license plate to the authorities if we're going to be entering/exiting ZTL in order to park, should we bank (no pun intended) on that? Our initial thought was to pick up a car at either FCO or FLR- whichever we end up flying into- and keep it for the 3-4 days we'll be leaving Florence during the daylight hours to explore. We've thought abouot tours and drivers, but our favorite part of driving through the Tuscan countryside is flexibility and ability to simply stop wherever and whenever we choose....

JMN57

In my experience, it's the garage that phones in the plate to the authorities (when they first created the ZTL's the hotels did but recently, it's the garage) I primarily use Garage Lungarno which is just next to the Ponte Vecchio on the Oltrarno side of the river. Great location but one has to be comfortable with entering the ZTL and navigating to the garage (you have to basically ignore a pedestrian zone sign to stay right and drive in front of the Palazzo Pitti to get to it. It's right next to our favorite hotel in Florence (Hotel Lungarno) but there is a decent cheaper one also close (Hotel Pitti Palace al Ponte Vecchio).

Study up on the ZTL as hours depend on which part of the zone and also time of day, day of week and season. In many cases, you could drive out before 7:30AM and enter after 7:30PM. Also, there is a parking area off the highway (Parcheggio Autostradale "Drive and Tramway” Villa Costanza). One option is to park there and take the tram or the bus to where you are staying. That's why I asked location you'd like to stay. If it's easy access to the tram, it's an option but if where you want to stay is not convenient to public transport from the parking area, don't bother. Depending on where you want to go, the train may also be an option.

gold23

This is super helpful. We're definitely going to need a car with the places we're visiting- public transportation simply would triple or quadruple our time. We've been to Tuscany/Florence enough to know that having a car in Florence is not a good strategy, and have never had one before. But the logistics of wanting to spend the nights in Florence with our daughter, combined with a desire to venture out of the city rather than spend a week there, make this the right choice for us on this trip. We've been to all of the towns and cities where a train can take you multiple times over the past three decades, so while we could do that we prefer to continue to explore the nooks and crannies of the region.

Very helpful info on the Lungarno. We've never stayed there, but my parents love it (I actually think my sister just stayed at the Lungarno apartments...not sure if that's the same group managing). With a garage that close, might be the right move.

JMN57

If you do decide to use Garage Lungarno the easiest entry point is Porta Romana (there's a camera there that takes pictures of the cars entering the ZTL "gate"). You basically go straight on the road but the tricky part is that when you reach via Maggio it's tempting to take it instead of going straight. Especially when you see the pedestrian zone sign on the building to the left as you enter Piazza de Pitti. But you need to go straight and DO NOT TAKE THE LEFT (you can't get to the garage if you do). You'll drive in front of Palazzo Pitti which as you exit the Piazza funnels into a small street that goes straight to the Ponte Vecchio. First time you do it it is easy to think that you're not where you are supposed to be but it is OK. When you get to the Ponte Vecchio you turn left onto Borgo San Jacopo and the garage is 40 meters or so down on the right. Below is a map from Porto Romana to Garage Lungarno and then from Lungarno back to Porta Romana (there are other exits from the ZTL but this is a pretty simple, for Firenze, route.

(PS - yes the Lungarno Apartments are part of Lungarno Collection which is run by the Ferragamo family)

PWMTrav

JMN57 is correct, but he left out a very important step. Make note of where you drive through Piazza Pitti. On your left there will be a wine bar called Enoteca Pitti Gola e Cantina. Once you park your car, you'll want to backtrack in that direction and spend the evening there.

gold23

Printing out and putting in our travel folder. Many, many thanks.

JMN57

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/i...hio/index.html

RomeUARA

MH Florence Hotel is a newly built establishment situated in the heart of Florence, just 150 metres from the central SMN station and a 3-minute walk from the city's main monuments. The hotel is equipped with WiFi and it offers double, superior double, triple and suite rooms that are stylishly decorated.

JMN57

To be clear, if you consider the "main monuments" to include the Cathedral, the Ponte Vecchio and the Uffizi, be prepared for a 20+ minute walk as they are about a mile away.

samburger48

Here are some options:

1. Hotel Paris - This hotel is located in the heart of Florence, just a few minutes walk from the train station and the main attractions like the Duomo and the Uffizi Gallery. It is a 3-star hotel.
   
2. Hotel Boccaccio - This hotel is located in the Santa Maria Novella neighborhood, just a short walk from the train station and the historic center of Florence. It is a 3-star hotel.
   
3. Hotel Astor - This hotel is located near the train station and within walking distance of the main attractions in Florence. It is a 3-star hotel.
   
4. Hotel Delle Nazioni - This hotel is located in the historic center of Florence, just a short walk from the train station and the main attractions. It is a 3-star.
   

ivan_harris

Hello everyone!

I'm on the hunt for hotel recommendations for a short 2-3 day trip to Florence. I'm particularly interested in accommodations that truly embody the Florence spirit and are conveniently located for a dose of sightseeing.

Your insights and recommendations will be invaluable to me!

Smyd

Thoughts on location of Anglo American Hotel? It's been rebranded to a Hilton Curio property and is slated to open April 1st. I'm going to be in Florence mid May for 4 days for the first time. Currently have Martelli 6 Suites booked for about $1500 CAD for the 4 nights. Could switch it to Anglo American and book on points which would save us the cash. Seems like it's about a 20 minute walk to the city center. Think that is a huge issue? Martelli is in a very central location but saving the cash would be nice.

PWMTrav

Looking at google maps, "meh" is my reaction to this location. It's in a small business district with a lot of other midrange hotels, with proximity to the American consulate and the city's main train station. It doesn't really look like much of a neighborhood otherwise, so you're also not really getting much in the way of places to eat and drink that aren't hotel-captive. Good chance you leave here thinking, "What's the big deal about Florence anyway?"

As a first timer with 4 days in the city, I'd suggest being further into the historic center. I like the location of the Martelli 6 Suites that you mentioned a lot better. I've never stayed there, but first-hand, the location itself is great in terms of being in the middle of it. We used to stay on that block quite often. The primary downside is that it's 100% tourist foot traffic there, but hey, you're there to be a tourist. If it works for your budget, I'd stick with that.