Carolus Hotel - Florence, Italy     

We booked the Carolus on lastminute.com as one of the "Top Secret Deals" - meaning that we only got a brief description of the hotel, no specifics before booking, at which point you learn the details of where you'll be staying. The idea is that these hotels don't want their name published with such a low rate, leading one to believe that you're about to get a great deal. And we did get a good deal... but the description was a little misleading: Beautiful Hotel in a XIX century building! - 4* - Florence This is an exceptional hotel, close to the most exclusive shops of this city. With the famous monuments and historic places nearby, this hotel has a great location in the centre of Florence. This contemporary property has been furnished with modern furniture and original art work. The lovely, spacious guestrooms and good facilities are perfect for both the leisure and business travellers. In REALITY this hotel is not close to the most exclusive shops in Florence at all, the shops surrounding it are small average locally owned businesses. The area with the exclusive shops is much closer to the river Arno and the center of the city. The furnishings are of average quality, a little staid - certainly not what I would expect from a four star hotel in Italy. The breakfast is nothing special - quite average for a European breakfast. (**Note to Americans - please don't be disappointed by the cold breakfasts offered in European hotels - this is what's called a "Continental Breakfast" and it is what most people on the continent actually eat in the morning!) The layout of the hotel lobby is awkward and leaves a good 50% of the lower level unused by my estimation. The breakfast room is located directly to the left of the large automatic entry doors and so if eating breakfast in the winter season one is subjected to strong blasts of frigid air every few minutes. Our room was just okay, probably comparable to an average American Holiday Inn. The real issue I had was with the bathroom, it was a tile covered box, I think in a medicinal blue color... the toilet sink and shower were all contained in the "box" without any separation - after taking a shower the entire room was soaking wet. Certainly not the luxurious and relaxing bathroom I was hoping for. Two of the lamps in our room were also missing light bulbs. The advantage of this hotel is that the location is pretty good - it is within walking distance of the train station and the center of Florence - BUT Florence is a small city and there are plenty of hotels in the center. Next time I'll be booking with one of them.

Wow, when we got to the hotel, there was a doorman to take our bags! We weren't expecting that. This hotel was great. The reception staff were friendly and helpful for eating & shopping tips. The rooms were a decent size, and clean. I couldn't quite get my bearings in Florence, but every time I thought that I was completely lost, I would look down the street and see the hotel. Close to the station, and actually walking distance to everywhere that we wanted to go. There are a couple of great wine bars down the road. The breakfast is fantiastic. Loved the hotel, loved Florence.