Tuscany’s capital is a Renaissance wonderland of artwork and terracotta tiles. Florence is without doubt one of the hottest metropolis breaks in Europe, and it’s acquired the superstar standing to show it. You’ve acquired the Florence Cathedral, cobbled streets stuffed with impartial boutiques, and the Arno River working via the town middle. Florence is stuffed with artwork and tradition – however the place do you keep to see all the primary sights? How do you select the place to keep in Florence?
Best Places to Stay in Florence
Florence is a lovely metropolis to go to. There’s artwork and sweetness in all places. When it comes to the primary sights, you will have the Etruscan Archaeological Museum, the bustle of Piazza del Duomo, and the grandeur of Palazzo Vecchio. You’ve acquired loads to look ahead to.
Where to keep in Florence is totally different for everybody and each go to. Central Florence has practically ten totally different areas, every with a mixture of fashionable boutique accommodations and sights. You can go native and keep away from the vacationers or pay the worth and be inside strolling distance of all the things. After numerous visits to the town, we’ve whittled it down to six neighborhoods for you to select from – we wish you to have the very best.
1. Centro Storico
Centro Storico is the guts of Florence and its historical past. Picture church buildings that date again centuries, slim streets, and views of the gorgeous major attraction in the town: Florence Cathedral. Centro Storico is absolutely the hub of the town, and everybody is aware of it. All the very best accommodations get booked out over the summer time, and crowds of vacationers descend on the neighborhood year-round. Most of Florence’s major points of interest are condensed into this tiny pocket of historical past, and the temptation is an excessive amount of for many guests to resist. It’s even UNESCO-recognized.
With this nice location, you might be inside simple strolling distance of points of interest just like the Uffizi Gallery, Piazza della Signoria, Palazzo Vecchio, and the National Museum of Bargello. The neighborhood is a vigorous mixture of main websites. You can’t beat staying right here in order for you to discover on foot.
In abstract, Centro Storico is the place to keep in Florence in the event you’re a first-time customer, dedicated to sightseeing on foot, or solely have a few days in the town. It is completely handy, with the added bonus of being completely beautiful (primarily thanks to the Duomo’s terracotta domes).
Luxury: Rocco Forte Hotel Savoy
Rocco Forte Hotel Savoy is a sublime 5-star lodge proper subsequent to the Uffizi Gallery. You can guide rooms with distinctive views, together with one in every of Piazza del Duomo or the well-known bell tower. Rooms don’t come low cost, however you’ll get world-class therapy in trade.
Rocco Forte Hotel Savoy is well the most effective luxurious accommodations in the historic middle of Florence.
Mid Range: Hotel Della Signoria
Hotel Della Signoria is a three-star property with a five-star location, simply steps from Piazza della Signoria and Ponte Vecchio. It provides a variety of rooms, together with a superior room with a non-public terrace.
This lodge is sweet worth for cash and a pleasure to expertise. The terrace room is certainly an awesome shout, providing a little bit of solace in the busy metropolis middle.
Budget: Dante’s Rooms
Dante’s Rooms is your easiest selection for price range lodging in the middle of Florence. You get all of the fundamentals: free wi fi, snug beds, and TVs in every visitor room.
Does it have a rooftop pool? No, however the cut price keep is definitely worth the trade-off. If you’re keen to go for a extra B&B fashion expertise, Dante’s Rooms is a superb price range lodge selection in central Florence.
Pros Of Staying in Centro Storico
Walking distance from main points of interest just like the Duomo, Uffizi Gallery, Piazza della Signoria, and Palazzo Vecchio.
Plenty of buzz and an thrilling environment.
Lots of lodge decisions.
Cons Of Staying in Centro Storico
Heavy crowds.
Hotels can include a hefty price ticket.
You solely see the “main area”, with out the encircling countryside or suburban areas.
2. Santa Maria Novella
Santa Maria Novella is no-nonsense. The neighborhood is centered across the Santa Maria Novella practice station. It is stuffed with in-and-out guests and, as such, has loads of budget-friendly lodging. It can get sketchy across the practice station at evening, with drug use and the odd opportunistic lurkers prepared to bag snatch. But as an entire, the Santa Maria Novella district is the place to keep in Florence in order for you an affordable and simple place to keep. You are only a quick stroll into the historic metropolis middle and to all the primary sights, simply with out the expense of paying via the roof for extra central lodging.
Apart from the primary practice station (very helpful for day journeys), the neighborhood has the beautiful marble Basilica of Santa Maria Novella. You may take a look at the antiques alongside Via dei Fossi, a well-liked purchasing road, and a few of the metropolis’s extra budget-friendly nightclubs, like Space Club. There are museums, too, together with the Marino Marini Firenze Museum and Palazzo Strozzi.
We’d counsel staying in the lower-eastern area of Santa Maria Novella, away from the practice station and alongside the Arno River. It has extra of a central attraction and is a brief strolling distance from Centro Storico anyway, which is a pleasant contact. Santa Maria Novella is well the most effective neighborhoods in order for you a extra budget-friendly various to Centro Storico with out sacrificing a lot for handy sightseeing.
Luxury: Portrait Firenze
Portrait Firenze is a beautiful 5-star lodge simply 30 meters away from Ponte Vecchio. Portrait Firenze is the place to keep in order for you luxurious with water views, they usually have superb lodge rooms with marble loos and home windows overlooking the Arno River.
This luxurious property is well the most effective accommodations, centrally situated, providing tasteful decor and upscale rooms.
Mid Range: Novella House
Novella House is stuffed with character, with a boutique lodge inside that includes patterned wallpapers and frescoed ceilings. It is fantastically situated in the Santa Maria Novella district, inside a straightforward stroll of Ponte Vecchio and Piazza della Signoria.
Novella House is about in a Seventeenth-century constructing, which is simply the cherry on prime. It is a historic spot and the most effective accommodations in order for you loads of persona.
Budget: Foresteria Sociale Florence Center by New Generation Hostel
Foresteria Sociale Florence Center by New Generation Hostel is ideal for anybody who likes a cut price. The most cost-effective rooms are dormitory choices, with female-only and mixed-sex rooms accessible. There are additionally costlier personal rooms with mid-range costs in the event you favor privateness however nonetheless need a hostel setting.
You may entry a shared kitchen, loos, and laundry amenities.
Pros Of Staying in Santa Maria Novella
It is barely cheaper than Centro Storico.
It continues to be in the town middle, that means you’re inside strolling distance of main points of interest.
It has a enjoyable environment.
Cons Of Staying in Santa Maria Novella
The space across the practice station and Piazza Santa Maria Novella may be sketchy at evening.
You’re nonetheless in the town middle, so the very best accommodations may be costly.
Santa Maria Novella nonetheless will get crowded with vacationers and native individuals utilizing the practice station.
3. San Niccolò
San Niccolò is a lovely place to keep in Florence. The historic neighborhood is a community of cobbles and twisting streets backed by artisan workshops earlier than exploding into open expanses of inexperienced areas and villa gardens. It completely balances historical past, tradition, and nature. And for these wanting to dodge the crowds, it sits a protected distance away from Florence’s manic metropolis middle, overlooking the cityscape from throughout the Arno River.
San Niccolò is on the town’s south financial institution, which is the alternative facet of the Arno River to Centro Storico and Santa Maria Novella. Because of this, you’ll need to plan some further journey time to attain the town middle and sightsee issues like the key attraction of Florence Cathedral. However, it solely takes round 20 minutes to stroll from San Niccolò to Florence’s central vacationer district – how simple is that? You’ll cross over the long-lasting Ponte Vecchio bridge or Ponte alle Grazia, each of that are pedestrian-friendly.
There can be a lot to see and do in the neighborhood itself. The Piazzale Michelangelo is a panoramic viewpoint overlooking Florence, with a bronze David duplicate standing guard. The Terzo Giardino and Villa Bardini are additionally nice locations for peaceable walks in serene nature.
San Niccolò is the place to keep in Florence in order for you to expertise a quiet tradition in the town. It’s stuffed with gardens and serenity, with an opportunity to expertise Florence with fewer crowds.
Luxury: Hotel Lungarno
Hotel Lungarno is one other lovely riverfront property. It is situated only a quick distance from Ponte Vecchio and provides suites overlooking the water. The lodge is adorned with helpful artwork, together with authentic items by Picasso.
Onsite eating places and wonderful eating choices can be found, and practically each visitor room or suite provides gorgeous marble loos.
Mid Range: Serristori Palace Residence
Serristori Palace Residence is situated in the far west of San Niccolò. The Nineteenth-century constructing has a mix of luxury-furnished flats, supplying you with the right self-catering base.
Every condo has a kitchen and laundry amenities. You additionally get entry to a small however fairly shared backyard. It’s a soothing base for visiting San Niccolò on a mid-range price range.
Budget: QK Costa58 Home Tower
QK Costa58 Home Tower is as budget-friendly as this neighborhood will get. Luckily, the gorgeous setting of this property makes these further pennies worthwhile. Forget reserving a cookie-cutter lodge with a swimming pool or rooftop terrace. Instead, you may be staying in an actual medieval tower. You enter the stone tower via basic wood doorways – an actual expertise.
The double room is your most budget-friendly choice and has nice views over the town beneath.
Pros Of Staying in San Niccolò
There are extra peaceable areas of nature and inexperienced area.
There are artisan workshops, villas, and off-the-beaten-track tradition.
You expertise fewer crowds.
Cons Of Staying in San Niccolò
There are fewer accommodations to select from.
You are farther from the town middle.
There are fewer main vacationer points of interest.
4. Santa Croce
Santa Croce is extensively hailed as essentially the most “charming” place to keep in Florence. It has tons of lingering heritage, being the ultimate resting place of big names like Galileo and Michelangelo. You have bars and cafes, plus recent produce offered on the healthful road market of Sant Ambrogio. It’s a romantic and ever so barely eclectic neighborhood. You’ll discover monumental tombs of the late and greats on one road and al fresco eating and markets on the following. We love its sense of road tradition and out of doors residing. And in order for you someplace with historical past however laidback tradition, city Santa Croce is the place to keep in Florence.
Santa Croce sits east of the town middle, lower than a 15-minute stroll from all of the central sightseeing and points of interest just like the Uffizi Gallery. The south border overlooks the Arno River, whereas the east borders the Florence ring street, offering swift entry for these driving or catching a taxi to the airport. It’s central sufficient to nonetheless be handy however far out sufficient to escape the stifle of different weekend metropolis breakers.
In Santa Croce itself, you’ve acquired the Florence National Central Library, Casa Buonarroti, the beautiful Basilica di Santa Croce di Firenze, and monumental tombs. It’s nice for artwork, literature, and academia. And while you aren’t embracing artistic historical past in Santa Croce, you may be looking for recent fruit and greens. The normal consensus is apt; Santa Croce positively has a “charm”.
Luxury: YiD Cantoria
When staying in Santa Croce, YiD Cantoria is by far your finest luxurious choice. The gorgeous condo has a non-public entrance and inside designs to die for. Fresco-style paintings items adorn its partitions, and loads of wood notes. It’s a combination between fashionable and conventional, and it sleeps up to six individuals – group journey, anybody?
You additionally get a non-public balcony with beautiful road views. It’s a superb selection for anybody wanting privateness and independence in Santa Croce.
Mid Range: Borgo Signature Rooms
Borgo Signature Rooms is a guesthouse in Santa Croce with splendidly adorned rooms. It is the place to keep in order for you aesthetically pleasing guestrooms on a mid-range price range. The combination of wood furnishings and paintings is simply lovely.
As if all that wasn’t sufficient, you might be simply minutes from the Basilica di Santa Croce Firenze. Borgo Signature Rooms are lifeless centrally situated.
Budget: Bargello Guest House
Bargello Guest House provides guestrooms in a B&B fashion with quite a few shared areas, together with a snug lounge space. Each room has a non-public ensuite with complimentary toiletries and a TV for downtime after sightseeing.
Bargello Guest House is without doubt one of the few budget-friendly lodging choices in Santa Croce, so snap it up whereas it’s accessible.
Pros Of Staying in Santa Croce
It is central and inside strolling distance of all the primary points of interest, together with the Uffizi Gallery.
It has a lovely market scene for laidback, genuine residing.
There’s tons of fascinating historical past, particularly artwork historical past and monumental tombs belonging to Galileo and Michelangelo.
Cons Of Staying in Santa Croce
It can get busy nonetheless.
You nonetheless have to stroll a bit longer than in the event you stayed extra centrally (quarter-hour on common reasonably than 5 minutes or so).
Accommodation may be costly and promote out in peak months.
5. Santo Spirito
The Santo Spirito neighborhood is fashionable, with an electrical sense of nightlife. This is the place you’ll be able to keep in Florence in order for you events after darkish, and it has an elegant assortment of vibrant bars that keep open lengthy into the early hours. Santo Spirito is a implausible place to embrace the native vibe and socialize in your journey to Florence. Oh, and it additionally has nice eating places, if these vigorous bars weren’t sufficient for you. Unsurprisingly, it’s thought of the most effective neighborhoods in Florence.
Santo Spirito is situated south of the river, like San Niccolò. However, it’s barely extra central, situated simply off the steps of the Ponte Vecchio bridge. Because of this, you might be already on the outskirts of the town middle and only a quick stroll to Florence’s major points of interest just like the cathedral and Piazza della Repubblica. It’s only a bit extra handy.
When you aren’t partying or strolling briskly over Ponte Vecchio for inner-city sightseeing, there’s a lot to do in Santo Spirito. The largest attraction in the neighborhood is Pitti Palace. Pitti Palace is an artwork gallery complicated inside a Renaissance royal palace and opens onto the Boboli Gardens.
Santo Spirito is undoubtedly the place to keep in the event you love to get together and expertise nightlife in new cities. However, it’s equally a superb place to let your hair down in nature and admire paintings – the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens are two of Florence’s most spectacular outer-city points of interest.
Luxury: Brunelleschi Imperial House
Brunelleschi Imperial House is a lovely two-bedroom condo in central Santo Spirito. The design is extravagant, with heat lighting and spectacular options like a stone hearth. You even get entry to a sizzling tub. With all this on supply, the luxurious of self-catered lodging to slink again to for privateness, peace, and quiet after an extended day is good.
The condo sleeps up to six individuals. You have a spacious lounge and excellent kitchen amenities, so it’s a lovely spot in order for you spacious lodging in Florence.
Mid Range: Hotel Palazzo Guadagni
Hotel Palazzo Guadagni oozes custom and sophistication. Its most eye-catching high quality is its stone rooftop terrace, adorned with stone columns. The entire property is adorned with antiques and frescoes. If you need someplace memorable to keep in Santo Spirito, that is the place to select.
Some rooms overlook the Pitti Palace, and a few bookings embody a every day breakfast (on the terrace, in fact). If you actually need a memorable expertise, you’ll be able to guide one of many rooms that includes an open hearth. This is a pleasant choice in winter.
Budget: Home in Florence
Home in Florence is a standard little condo with terracotta-tiled flooring and a wrought iron mattress body. Staying right here is equal to stepping right into a novel or TV present. The property’s barely fundamental, rough-around-the-edges attract offers it that genuine vibe. Think of Emily in Paris if Emily moved to Florence as an alternative.
This one-bedroom condo has all the things a pair or solo traveler wants. You get a kitchen, lounge, and a toilet with a fantastically tiled bathe. Quaint and mild on the pockets, Home in Florence is a implausible budget-friendly choice in Santo Spirito.
Pros Of Staying in Santo Spirito
It has a stylish bar scene for after-hours socializing.
It is only a quick stroll over Ponte Vecchio to attain the town middle.
You’ve acquired lovely points of interest like Pitti Palace and the Boboli Gardens.
Cons Of Staying in Santo Spirito
You nonetheless have a 15-minute stroll or so through the Ponte Vecchio to attain the northern metropolis middle’s points of interest, just like the Florence Cathedral and Piazza del Duomo.
It may be rowdy and busy in components.
There are fewer accommodations, so guide in advance for peak months.
6. San Lorenzo
San Lorenzo is a lovely neighborhood to the northwest of the town middle. It’s proper on the cusp of being in the central historic district, making it some of the handy locations you’ll be able to keep in Florence. So, other than its location, what precisely makes San Lorenzo so particular? In a phrase: meals.
The entire neighborhood revolves round hospitality and culinary experiences. It is the place you’ll discover the Mercato Centrale, promoting road meals from 9am till midnight seven days per week and a mix of low-light wine bars and upscale eating places. If you’re taking a meals tour in Florence, San Lorenzo is the place guides will take you. So, in the event you’re a foodie, you could as properly skip that and simply guide to base your self there as an alternative.
It isn’t all meals in this culinary-focused neighborhood (though what could be flawed with that?), and also you’ve acquired points of interest just like the Basilica di San Lorenzo and the Museo di Casa Martelli. You are additionally lower than a 10-minute stroll from main sights just like the Piazza del Duomo, so you’ll be able to simply spend your days sightseeing. This neighborhood is the place you’ll be able to keep for leisurely sightseeing and culinary experiences in the galore.
Luxury: Hotel Cerretani Firenze
It doesn’t get extra beautiful than Hotel Cerretani Firenze on this facet of city. This 4-star lodge is simply 300 meters from Florence Cathedral, and a few of its rooms have views of the terracotta dome. Each room oozes magnificence, with complimentary particulars like slippers and robes. You can select from a mix of superior rooms and suites. Almost each reserving features a complimentary every day breakfast service, with 24-hour room service accessible.
Hotel Cerretani Firenze is about in a Seventeenth-century constructing. It provides a lounge bar and onsite eating places, so mainly, all the things you want is inside its 4 partitions.
Mid Range: B&B Lorenzo di Medici
B&B Lorenzo di Medici provides a variety of room choices, all together with complimentary every day breakfast and considerate perks like a shuttle service to the airport. The inside design is recent and trendy – a stylish base in your time in Florence. It’s simply that good step between affordable costs and luxuries you crave. And whereas these are guestrooms, not flats, you continue to get useful facilities like a microwave, fridge, espresso machine, and toaster.
It’s simple to see why the evaluations are type to B&B Lorenzo di Medici. It’s a cool mid-range spot in this foodie neighborhood in Florence.
Budget Hotel: Hostel Archi Rossi
Hostel Archi Rossi is without doubt one of the few typical hostel lodging in Florence, and it doesn’t fail expectations. It provides a enjoyable setting with white wrought iron beds in dormitories for up to 9 individuals. There’s hand-painted paintings in all places and a extremely sociable structure. It’s an awesome place to keep in order for you to stick to a price range and make loads of associates.
You additionally get a shared kitchen, which is nice for saving cash when consuming out. Hostel Archi Rossi is affordable and cheerful.
Pros Of Staying in San Lorenzo
There are lots of of meals experiences.
You are simply minutes from main points of interest.
There’s a lovely church and historic points of interest.
Cons Of Staying in San Lorenzo
It can get busy, particularly in peak seasons.
It has fewer points of interest than different neighborhoods in Florence.
Accommodation may be costly.
Best Areas to Stay in Florence: FAQ’s
By now, you might be properly ready to make your remaining resolution on the place to keep in Florence. You actually are spoiled for selection, and the town has a few of the finest accommodations, too – simply pondering of Hotel Palazzo Guadagni’s rooftop terrace makes us need to head again to Florence!
Before you make any remaining selections, although, listed below are some frequent FAQs. This part will assist solidify your selection, particularly in the event you’re visiting Florence for the primary time.
What a part of Florence is the very best to keep in?
Centro Storico is the very best a part of Florence in the event you’re visiting for the primary time or simply for a weekend. This is since you are proper in the center of all the things and only a nice stroll from points of interest like Piazza della Signoria, Florence Cathedral, and Piazza della Repubblica. It’s the guts of the town, which is great for a time restrict.
Where ought to I keep in Florence for the primary time?
Again, Centro Storico is the most suitable choice for first-time guests to Florence. Its easy accessibility to central sights is unbeatable. It’s handy and thrilling for first-time guests to be so in the thick of it. Book in advance to keep away from steeper costs and peak instances, although.
Where to keep away from staying in Florence?
We wouldn’t suggest staying on the outskirts of Florence, particularly because it’s such a metropolis break-style vacation spot. If you’re visiting for a weekend, save your time on ridiculously lengthy public transport journeys simply to attain the town middle.
What is essentially the most lovely space in Florence?
San Niccolò is gorgeous. It’s stuffed with pretty gardens, wine bars that sprawl out in al fresco seating, and views of Florence’s cityscape from throughout the Arno River.
Where not to keep in Florence
In normal, wherever in central Florence is nice. The worst you’ll have to put up with is vacationer crowds and the opportunistic petty crime that may generally entice – like pickpocketing or bag snatching. As an entire, central Florence is protected and straightforward to navigate, with most locations accessible inside a brief strolling distance.
However, we’d rule out neighborhoods in Florence’s outskirts. Not solely are these areas extra susceptible to crime, however you’re additionally battling prolonged journey instances on public transport simply to attain the town middle to sightsee. It’s the very last thing you need. Here are a number of in explicit to keep away from:
1. Peretola: The area across the airport is just too removed from the town middle and has virtually fixed noise air pollution.
2. Le Piagge: A budget-friendly area that sadly struggles with low-level crime in northwestern Florence.
3. Galluzo: A fairly disagreeable area in the south of Florence, most well-known for its giant jail facility.
Instead, in order for you a extra suburban and off-the-beaten-track place to keep, head to San Niccolò. It is about on the alternative financial institution of the Arno River, away from the town middle, with extra inexperienced area and a laidback environment.
Why we love Florence
There’s no denying that Florence is without doubt one of the prettiest cities in Europe. We adore its beautiful structure and the cultural issues to do. Choosing the place to keep in Florence is simply the cherry on prime —good lodging is heaven-sent and helps you immerse your self much more deeply into the town and its tradition.
In Florence, the neighborhoods have such particular person senses of character. You’ve acquired San Niccolò’s laidback greenery and Santa Croce’s market buzz. Or Santa Maria Novella’s no-nonsense price range lodging scene. Wherever you select to keep, we hope you will have a implausible time.