Hotel Bernini Palace by Baglioni Hotels - Florence, Italy 

classy and clean
Posted: Thu, Jul 17 2008
My husband and I loved this hotel. It was convenient to nearly everything (the Pitti was a trek, but so what), breakfast was wonderful, the staff were helpful, the rooms and common areas were very clean. The lobby and bar were really very nice, and made us feel like we were staying somewhere really special. A funny side note-- everybody who's been there knows that public bathrooms in Italy are rare-- the bathroom in our lobby was always spotless and stocked-- a great help in between running from place to place. The building outside was under construction, but we rarelty heard anything- miraculous.

Great Location, Very Nice Hotel, Staff is okay
Posted: Thu, Jun 26 2008
My husband and I stayed here for 4 nights during our honeymoon in October of 2007. Here's what I liked about the hotel: LOCATION: It was about a 5 minute walk to two great museums - the Uffizi which houses many of Botticelli's paintings (including Birth of Venice) and the Bargello which houses Donatello's sculpture of David. If you have time for only one, I would recommend the Uffizi. The Uffizi is adjacent to a very large square that has lots of restaurants, shops, and ATMs - hence anything you need is pretty close by. We took a cab from the train station to the hotel because we arrived in town late at night, but walked to the train station upon our departure (took about 20 minutes). Although it was my first time in Florence, I felt as though the city was pretty walkable in general. ROOM: The room was spacious by European standards - it fit a large bed (2 twins pushed together) with room to walk around, a desk, refrigerator, and TV. I did not care for the ornate room decor but I'm not living there so it didn't bother me. The bathroom was surprisingly large and everything appeared very clean and well-kept. BREAKFAST: The breakfast room was beautiful (felt light and airy) and the staff was friendly. They asked us what was liked to drink as we sat down. This was the only breakfast buffet we had in Italy but I thought it was very good. Here's an abbreviated list of what I recall them offering: pastries, breads, spreads, hard boiled eggs, smoked salmon, cold cuts (very good), cheeses, salad, cereals, yogurt, milk, juices, bottled water. What I did not like about this hotel: THE BED: As mentioned above, the large bed was actually two twins pushed together. When we tried to sleep close to each other or spoon, the beds would start to separate - so we ended up sleeping on our respective beds. I believe this is common in most European hotels though. FRONT DESK STAFF: After being in Italy for several days and reading some guide books, we finally learned that almost everyone at the hotel expects a tip - including the person at the front desk when doing any favor for us. Our receptionist walked us to our room, showed us all the amenities inside, and demonstrated how to use the phone. We were a little distracted from our train ride from Rome (almost got arrested and had money issues to clear up with American Express)- we tipped the porter but did not think to tip her. Our hotel booking came with two free tickets to the Boboli Gardens so when we came down the next morning to ask her to book the reservations for us, she had a sour look on her face. I was a little taken back and worried that we might have somehow offended her, but then realized that it was because we did not tip. Her mood was a little better after we slipped her what we thought was a generous tip (10 euros = $17 USD). Although this incident was annoying, it's not unique to this hotel. SUMMARY: Based on the rates that I've seen posted here for this hotel, we got it for a steal. In my opinion, I would not stay here for any rate higher than $250. I would rather pay less for a hotel (without sacrificing comfort and safety) and use the difference to eat at nice restaurants or take a guided day tour to Sienna. Setting all analysis aside, I really liked the vibe of the hotel. My husband and I are the kind of people that love to splurge on high quality things (hotels, food, etc.) without the fuss. This hotel felt quality without making you feel uncomfortably out of place.

Great Hotel, wonderful location
Posted: Tue, Jun 10 2008
We stayed here for three nights and loved every minute. We booked into one of the eight Executive Tuscan rooms...pricey but worth it. The rooms are large and luxuriously furnished and each evening there was proseco and canapes laid out in a small lobbey shared bythese eight rooms along with coffee, fruit and pastries the rest of the day. The location is absolutely perfect....no more than a ten minute walk to almost anywhere in Florence and a two minute walk to the Ufizzi. The front desk staff could not have been more helpful or friendly and they were very helpful in arranging tickets/tours for us. We had dinner in the hotel one night and it was very good but even better were the two restaurants recommended by the concierge. One of them, The Golden View was a very trendy modern bistro that had wonderful live jazz.. This was our second stay at a Baglioni hotel (Luna Baglioni in Venice is wonderful too) and I would definatelly recommend them. Can't wait to return!