Casa Benci

There are just four rooms, so it stays wonderfully quiet inside even though the hotel is on a busy street lined with restaurants and bars. I couldn't hear the street at all. The place was spotless and beautifully designed, with a stocked minibar, working air conditioning, and a lovely smell as soon as you walk in. Reception was so kind and helpful with tips for the city. I felt right at home and will definitely stay here again next time I'm in Firenze. Thank you for such a great stay.

The location is excellent, with a taxi rank just steps away and Florence's main sights nearby. Sadly, that was about the only upside for us. We booked the Rovere Room without realizing it was directly above Moyo Bar, where music blasted until 3:50 a.m. every night. People drinking crowded the street below, but the nonstop bass was worse and made sleep impossible, even with noise cancelling headphones. No one warned us about this before booking, though I imagine it's a common issue. We asked to move rooms and were told the hotel was fully booked. This felt more like an Airbnb than the small boutique hotel we expected. We never met the owner or staff, everything was handled through WhatsApp, and we had to pick up our key cards at Moyo downstairs. The room had several other problems: the window air conditioner was mostly hidden behind long curtains, the lighting was very dim, and the mini-fridge wasn't cold enough to use. The toilet kept flushing unless we adjusted it by hand, and there were no temperature markings on the shower controls. I hate leaving a negative review, but I wish we'd known about these issues ahead of time.

The breakfast was tasty, with four options that each included several items. It did improve my impression a little, though the poor sleep overshadowed it. The website said breakfast was included, but there was no information about when or where it was served. The bar staff didn't seem to know at first, though that turned out not to be true later. There also seemed to be two breakfast cards, and one only gave 10% off. We paid €279, which felt very expensive even for Florence. The location is good, but no better than other places in the centre, and it's on the far side of the centre from the train station, through crowds of tourists that aren't moving in any particular direction. The room, Cypress, smelled of smoke and stayed at 24c. We couldn't change the air conditioning despite trying several times. We had asked for twin beds, but found one double instead, with so little room at either side that we kept hitting our feet and heads on the wood. We slept worse than anywhere else on the trip and changed accommodation the next morning. The shower smelled and the water temperature kept shifting. Its round wooden controls were slippery when wet, hard to set between hot and cold, and had to be twisted to stop the water, so there was no way to keep a setting for next time. The WiFi router kept flashing and didn't work, even after we turned it off and on twice. The coffee machine water hadn't been changed, the cups were dirty, and there weren't enough cups. The full hand soap pump didn't work, probably because the hose was split. The slippers were fine, the robe was too hot in the evening, and the tea was nice. The window gave a narrow view of sky and a wall. The reception balcony is nice, though you can't use the Mac. We arrived at 4pm as agreed, after they had insisted on a time despite check-in being listed as 1-6pm, or a €20 fine. There was no sign of management when we got there. After we messaged to say the beds weren't twins, they went silent even though we kept trying to reach them. The room is a converted floor above a bar with fancy decor, but the service and experience were terrible. The shower and room smelled, it was too hot, the WiFi failed, and our request for twin beds was ignored. I wouldn't stay again.

We often come to Florence for work, and a last-minute cancellation at the place we'd usually stayed turned out to be lucky. We found this hotel instead and loved it. The room was stylish and really comfortable, easily five stars, and Raluka was such a nice, accommodating host. Amazing value for the money!