Antica Dimora Sant'Anna

This is a monastery rather than a hotel. The nuns who live in the building are very nice, polite, and friendly, though not very chatty. They sing and chant every morning and evening. We could hear them, but it wasn’t loud enough to bother us. It was kind of nice and unusual. The location is very quiet and central in Firenze, a short walk from the train station, main attractions, and most guided-tour pickup points. The garden in the backyard is beautiful, but its plants and puddles seem to attract plenty of mosquitoes. They got into the room every day, even with the balcony door closed. By the time we got home, we were itchy and had about 30-40 bites each. We know Italy has mosquitoes from previous visits, but this was the worst. Be prepared. There really should be nets over the beds and windows. We kept the bathroom door shut both because of a mouldy smell and to trap some mosquitoes in there. The beds were hard and uncomfortable, and the bathroom was freezing when we stayed in March. There was an old heater in there that seemed not to have worked in years, and the heat pump in the room did nothing for the bathroom, even with the door open. The room also had very little furniture, so you have to sit on the bed.