I'm considering the following hotels, and any experiences you may have with any of them would be appreciated.

Hotel Costantini

Residenza il Villino

Hotel Cimabue

Florence Old Bridge

I've added Hotel Cestelli to the list.

Any experiences, good or bad?

Therese,

These don't seem to be getting any feedback. Why don't you search here for Florence hotels, and your budget range, and see what you come up with. I don't think any of these are popular with the board, but I could be wrong.

What is your price range?

I stayed at the Hotel Cimabue, but that was about 5 years ago. At that time it was a deal and we got one of the rooms with a frescoed ceiling, so we didn't mind the tiny (TINY) bathroom. Also there was a very lovely young woman, kind and helpful, working the front desk at night. All these things made us really like the place.

That said, I haven't been back to that particular hotel, so I'm not sure I can wholeheartedly recommend. What kind of place are you looking for?

I'd check tripadvisor.com for reviews as well.

Good luck in your search!

Thanks for the feedback, Leely and tuscanlifeedit.

As you point out, searches here at Fodor's yield little or nothing for these properties. Several are well-reviewed at tripadvisor or slowtrav, and that's largely why I'm considering them in the first place, but I was hoping to get some independent feedback here as well (if there is any to be had).

I'm traveling with a friend who is on a much tighter budget than I am, and so I'm trying to keep things on the less expensive side, around 100 euro/night (per room, not per person). So the very bottom end of the market for Florence (if we want to stay in town, which we do). All of these properties are in that price range, and all are best described as bed & breakfasts rather than traditional hotels.

I think that Cimabue may changed owners within the last few years.

you should also check comments on tripadvisor.

Hi Therese,

Well, if you're getting the Cimabue for 100 Euros or less, I'd certainly consider it. We had a triple, the one with the wooden bed and frescoed ceiling, so it was pretty atmospheric. Didn't see the other rooms, but ours was big.

Then again: a) I don't know how picky you are about hotels (I'm not picky at all!), b) We lucked out with a great room, c) The girl working the desk was soooo nice, and e) We liked the area because we like to walk and it is a little bit out of the heavy-duty hustle and bustle of Florence.

Also, I don't know the other hotels you've mentioned. Maybe they're better? But I was talking to the friend I stayed at the Cimabue with last night and we both agreed we'd stay there again.

It's not dazzling, but we thought it was perfectly fine.

Let us know what you decide--and how your trip goes.

Hotel Cimabue's got a "classic" room for 110 euro/night, a "liberty" room (with ceiling fresco) for 126 euro/night.

Cestelli's sounding like the best deal so far at 85 euro/night. Excellent reviews at tripadvisor, but not too many, so I'm still a bit wary.

I've also added River Hotel to the list: it's right on the Arno with nice public spaces, 135 euro/night for a smaller room on the ground floor (nicer rooms available for more money).

Any experience with River Hotel?

I've booked at Hotel Caravaggio, well-reviewed at both tripadvisor.com and venere.com. I'll post on my experience after the trip, but if anybody has any strong opinions to share beforehand (the trip's in September, 2005) feel free to share them here.

Therese,
I just returned from Rome last night--it's great that you made a decision, and I hope it'll be the right one for you.

In any case, I'm sure you'll love Florence.

Have a wonderful trip!

I'd check out (I hink as suggested) Venere.com. They have reviews on "Old Bridge". I chose this B&B for my upcoming trip because of the favorable reviews.