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St Regis Florence: world class luxury hotel with incredible location and F&B

St Regis Florence: world class luxury hotel with incredible location and F&B

Old Oct 10, 2018, 2:07 pm
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Originally Posted by offerendum
What was included in the excursion? Was it 2000 for 2?
Using the Bentley for 8 hrs was 3500 euros, I think...though I didn’t investigate more once I saw that price.

Our 3 out of town excursions were 1000 euros each (using Mercedes van):

(1) Day trip with car and driver to Pisa and Lucca, with guides in both Pisa and Lucca.
(2) Day trip with car and driver (and guide, owner of tour company) to Chianti wineries
(3) Day trip with car and driver (and guide, owner of tour company) to Chianti wineries and Siena, ending at La Bandita Townhouse in Pienza for our next hotel stay

We also had a 400 euro private walking tour of the major sights of Florence in town.
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Old Oct 10, 2018, 2:18 pm
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Good thing the accommodation was free on points!

Yes, I would not likely pay that kind of premium just to be driven in a Bentley when the same excursion is significantly less expensive with a different vehicle type.
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Old Oct 10, 2018, 2:22 pm
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Originally Posted by bhrubin


Using the Bentley for 8 hrs was 3500 euros, I think...though I didn’t investigate more once I saw that price.

Our 3 out of town excursions were 1000 euros each (using Mercedes van):

(1) Day trip with car and driver to Pisa and Lucca, with guides in both Pisa and Lucca.
(2) Day trip with car and driver (and guide, owner of tour company) to Chianti wineries
(3) Day trip with car and driver (and guide, owner of tour company) to Chianti wineries and Siena, ending at La Bandita Townhouse in Pienza for our next hotel stay

We also had a 400 euro private walking tour of the major sights of Florence in town.
OK. Regarding this we are very differnt, I would never pay such prices. I stayed 1 night near Pisa and Lucca so no excursion and did a 1 day trip to Siena, San Gimignano and Volterra. As I drive myself I only took a rental car.

Do also Walking tours by myself, and think 400 € even for one whole day is a little much.
Btw: How long was it? The Major sights in one walking tour seems to be "sportive".

But of course, that´s only my opinion and I know many people enjoy such tours.
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Old Oct 10, 2018, 2:42 pm
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Originally Posted by offerendum
OK. Regarding this we are very differnt, I would never pay such prices. I stayed 1 night near Pisa and Lucca so no excursion and did a 1 day trip to Siena, San Gimignano and Volterra. As I drive myself I only took a rental car.

Do also Walking tours by myself, and think 400 € even for one whole day is a little much.
Btw: How long was it? The Major sights in one walking tour seems to be "sportive".

But of course, that´s only my opinion and I know many people enjoy such tours.
All of those excursions departed around 9:45-10:00 am and returned/ended around 5:00-6:00 pm. We had about 2 hrs each with guides in Pisa and in Lucca—totally at our speed and doing what we wanted.

As I lead group tours for a living, I always want to have a private guide whenever possible. My husband, in particular, enjoys the details a guide often provides. I move at a much faster pace but we usually find a nice compromise...or else I also can wander off and reconnect whenever the tour or my husband get too glacial for my tastes. (My husband says my favorite way to see a museum is to fly over it in a 747.)

The last time we were here in Florence and Tuscany, we did drive ourselves. This time, I wanted to do it with a car and driver and guide when appropriate. Especially since we had my mother, who also appreciates the details like my husband (and who moves much more slowly).

Having the car and driver made things very easy in Chianti. Having the tour company owner with us as a guide provided a lot of intimate and very interesting information and details we wouldn’t have gained otherwise. His presence also allowed him to see exactly what we liked and adjust accordingly. He changed our winery visits the second day based on my responses from the first day.

The final Chianti-Siena-Pienza excursion actually saved me from having to do a separate transfer between the StR Florence and La Bandita Townhouse in Pienza. I also didn’t want to rent a car with my mother and deal with GPS and parking issues in the many small hill towns in rural Tuscany. That allowed us to do whatever we wanted and have the car ready to meet us wherever and whenever we wanted. For me, that’s the luxury for which I’m paying.

I save a lot of money by using points for our luxury hotel stays, including both our rooms at the StR Florence, one of our rooms at the La Bandita Townhouse, and both our rooms again at Atlantis by Giardino in Zurich. Makes it much easier to spend money on luxury for our tours and our fine dining.

I obviously appreciate that not everyone will pay for private guides or for cars and drivers, but this is the Luxury Forum.

I guess I should mention that I also arranged in advance (for an extra 500 euros charged by the winery) for one of the Chianti wineries (Badia Di Coltibuono) to open older vintages for us. We had tastings of their 2011, 2006, 2000, 1988, 1980, 1977, 1974, and 1966 Chianti Classico Riserva bottles. It was incredible. The 1977 and 1966 bottles actually were corked, and I noticed and said so...but it took the winery rep a good 10 min and a check with superiors before she agreed! So they opened a second bottle of each bottle with their original corks...causing the 1966 cork to basically disintegrate on opening, requiring a decant. So we tasted and then got the entire decanted bottle to enjoy with our lunch there at the winery. That’s what I call a priceless experience. A 52 year old Chianti. It was sublime. And worth every euro.

Last edited by bhrubin; Oct 10, 2018 at 2:52 pm
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Old Oct 10, 2018, 3:14 pm
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So you did everything right^
Regarding wine as someone who drink alcohol it´s of course not my world. But I fully understand that such a tour must be heaven for every wine-fan.

P.S. What´s luxury depends - for one it´s the car with driver, for the other a Ferrari to drive yourself and for others simpl a few minutes for themself. And that´s one of the things which makes life so interesting.
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Old Oct 10, 2018, 4:20 pm
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NOT having to be at the wheel of a car, driving one’s mother and husband/wife around while on vacation really is an example of a luxury I am willing to pay for! With a professional driver and tour guide, one has peace of mind and can arrive at the destination with energy to look around and enjoy. Also, with plenty of wine, not driving oneself clearly has benefits too.
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Old Oct 13, 2018, 8:13 pm
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Superb report, thanks for sharing. We were in Rome at the St. Regis in April and this looks significantly better. We took a day trip to Florence and wished we had stayed longer. This will have to be at the top of our list for the future.
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Old Oct 15, 2018, 3:35 am
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This is exactly our philosophy when we travel. Since our first class air travel is on points and (typically) our lodging is on points our splurge is on guides and car services (and some restaurants) On this trip we had a private day trip with guide to Giverny, a private boat trip on the Seine in a beautiful Venetian mahogany boat, a private day trip with guide to Delphi, and a private sunset boat tour of Santorini. In a few days we will have a private tour with guide of the Palace of Knossos. These are experiences we will never forget.

We decided years ago since my husband will not sit behind the wheel after even a sip of wine, especially in a foreign country, that car services were the answer. And after calculating rental costs, insurance costs, and hassle, this seems like a bargain to us.

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Old Oct 15, 2018, 3:37 am
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Originally Posted by Travlur
Superb report, thanks for sharing. We were in Rome at the St. Regis in April and this looks significantly better. We took a day trip to Florence and wished we had stayed longer. This will have to be at the top of our list for the future.

I would rate our stays at St Regis Florence to be at least 3 times better than the St Regis Rome. In fact the StR Florence may be our favorite StR and StR Rome our least.
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Old Oct 15, 2018, 6:38 am
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Originally Posted by damon88
I would rate our stays at St Regis Florence to be at least 3 times better than the St Regis Rome. In fact the StR Florence may be our favorite StR and StR Rome our least.
We loved our stay at the StR Florence...but we also loved our stay at the StR Rome. I’d return to both in a second. I’m also particularly excited to see the renovated junior suites and other suite categories since the StR Rome finished its renovation.
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Old Oct 15, 2018, 7:32 am
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Originally Posted by bhrubin
but we also loved our stay at the StR Rome. I’d return to both in a second. I’m also particularly excited to see the renovated junior suites and other suite categories since the StR Rome finished its renovation.
Think about a (new) Rome trip but tend to other hotels. Stayed at StR Rome in 2009 and was over all satisfied (not amazed) but wonna try something else.In General I think prices in Rome are rarely justified.
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Old Oct 15, 2018, 7:48 am
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Originally Posted by offerendum
Think about a (new) Rome trip but tend to other hotels. Stayed at StR Rome in 2009 and was over all satisfied (not amazed) but wonna try something else.In General I think prices in Rome are rarely justified.
Yeah, the recent renovation of public spaces and the great service standard (magnified for me due to my Ambassador status) makes the StR Rome my favorite hotel by far in the city among those that we checked out.

We checked out and dined at the Eden and checked out the Hassler and the de Russie. The WA Cavalieri was too far outside town for our tastes. We still preferred the StR. The proximity to the Spanish Steps was inconsequential for us, as we found those to be laughably dumb as a sight and actually a surprisingly nice walk for us from the StR.

We didn’t even get to enjoy the benefit of the now completed renovated rooms and suites at the StR Rome, but we still really liked our junior suite there even if we obviously look forward to the renovated version (and of its bathroom).
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Old Oct 15, 2018, 9:01 am
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Originally Posted by bhrubin


Yeah, the recent renovation of public spaces and the great service standard (magnified for me due to my Ambassador status) makes the StR Rome my favorite hotel by far in the city among those that we checked out.

We checked out and dined at the Eden and checked out the Hassler and the de Russie. The WA Cavalieri was too far outside town for our tastes. We still preferred the StR. The proximity to the Spanish Steps was inconsequential for us, as we found those to be laughably dumb as a sight and actually a surprisingly nice walk for us from the StR.

We didn’t even get to enjoy the benefit of the now completed renovated rooms and suites at the StR Rome, but we still really liked our junior suite there even if we obviously look forward to the renovated version (and of its bathroom).

My problem with the StR Rome was the lackadaisical service- the only StR we experienced that. Maybe it was just bad timing,

In our prior visit we stayed at the Cavilieri and were very impressed— they upgraded us to a gorgeous suite with Vatican view and the restaurant there was outstanding. We only have stayed at a few Hiltons, but that was a very good experience.
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Old Oct 15, 2018, 9:53 am
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Service was during my stay at StR Rome also mediocre. But we will see what I book in the end...... or if I go.....

WA has a very interesting restaurant but Location is not so great. Unlike others I think StR location is very conveniant.
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Old Oct 16, 2018, 5:28 am
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Why am I always the contrarian; my wife & I loved the St Regis in Rome, we stayed in one of the Designer Suites and it was just lovely. After a bit of a screw up during check in, they got everything sorted and the staff were fabulous from that point onwards, they couldn't do enough for us. It's a bit out of the way, but nevertheless we will be returning.

Now, as to the STR in Florence, once again I beg to differ; I actively dislike it, the lobby looks like a Ralph Lauren store and the rooms are overdone, decor wise. The Excelsior, 20 meters away is, on the other hand, our favourite Starwood hotel in the world, staff are friendly and extremely accommodating, the balcony suites on the 5th floor have the best view in the city and the hotel feels Italian, its neighbour feels like an American's idea of what an Italian grand hotel should be and therefore feels completely inauthentic.

Last edited by Noctilux; Oct 16, 2018 at 5:29 am Reason: grammar
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