Hotel Savoy

Italy
Europe

The Experience

The Piazza Repubblica offers one of the most beautiful backdrops in all of Florence. Housed in a landmark 19th-century building, the Savoy overlooks the square, just minutes from the Duomo, the Piazza Signoria and the Ponte Vecchio. But it's hardly stuck in the Renaissance. The interiors of this Rocco Forte property have been made contemporary by his sister, famed interior designer Olga Polizzi, who has mixed in citrus tones and animal-print furniture—and, in a nod to the Ferragamo building owners, whimsical images of shoes in an otherwise neutral palette. It's a refreshing break from some of the other fusty grand hotels in town.

The Rooms

With parquet floors and lime-toned fabrics, rooms here are more spacious than most of their Italian cousins. The large marble and travertine bathrooms have particularly sumptuous, deep bathtubs. Deluxe rooms are bigger than the classics with huge windows, but it's those on the second and fourth floors that are the real gems: They have little terraces. Try to snag a room with a view of Brunelleschi's cupola when you make your reservation. And if you want a truly peaceful night's sleep, book on a higher floor or in the back of the building; buskers, fire-eaters and other tourist entertainers set up camp out front at night.

The Service

Italian staff, while known for being friendly, are not always quick or responsive. Thankfully, it's not so at the Savoy, where everyone from receptionist to bellboy understands you want things done now, not just at some point in the future. One caveat: The slow elevators sometimes make room service a late arrival.

The Highlights

Fitness is not a particularly Italian pastime, but the state-of-the-art gym does have enormous windows offering fantastic city views. If the bambini are in tow, check out the special kiddie program, for tots to 12-year-olds. Of course, eating al fresco is one of the country's greatest pleasures, and the tables outside the hotel at the L'Incontro bar and restaurant epitomize why and how you can happily while away hours on a sunny Tuscan piazza.

 

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