Florence: Relais Santa Croce (5 Star Hotel)

0.3 business

Address: Via ghibellina 87 , Florence 50122, Italy

Lonely Planet review

  • Robert Landon
  • Lonely Planet author
Florence's newest five-star crib occupies a palazzo built in the 17th-century as a gift from the Pope to his beloved finance minister. Apparently he kept the Holy Father in the black, because this place is at once elegant and truly grand.

Designers have done an excellent job preserving the contours of the old palace while fitting it out with plush, new furnishings. They've even wrapped the old chandeliers in stylishly gratuitous gauze; why not? The standard rooms themselves are smallish considering the prices, though not necessarily by Florence standards. They lack any of the building's original architectural details, but in return you get top-of-the-line beds and linens, marble-lined baths, and large flat-screen TVs that double as computer screens. With the wireless keyboard, you can surf the web from your very cushy bed. Many of the front rooms have views of the Duomo, while back rooms look onto Santa Croce, just two blocks to the south. The hotel's coup de grace is its salon, with impossibly high ceilings and remarkably preserved frescoes - truly a dream of a room.

Hotels & hostels home

Hotels & hostels in Florence

Need help?

Author pick

Atmosphere: Boutique and Low-key

Check-in / Check-out Earliest check-in: 3:00 PM
Latest check-out time: 12:00 PM