Hotel Savoy
The Savoy is now the most fashionable hotel in Florence. Brilliantly situated on the pedestrianised Piazza della Repubblica, a stone's throw from all the main sites it has been beautifully rennovated using techniques and materials of the finest quality.
Olga Polizzi, the sister and creative partner of Rocco Forte has worked her magic (as she has done with the Hotel de Russie in Rome) and created a finely balanced combination of contemporary furniture and design with the odd antique or leathercraft that reminds you of the city's reputation. Rooms are beautifully laid out with large comfortable beds, plasma TVs and modern art on the walls. The green marble bathrooms are mostly a good size (they all have bath tubs) and the own-brand products are fine. The Presidential Suite is a strange combination of Louis XIV furniture and contemporary black and wihte photographs of shoes on the walls. There are plans to knock down an interior wall and make this suite even larger (it is the only room with a small balcony overlooking the square) and we would suggest that the interior decoration is looked at at the same time.
There is a great bar and restaurant downstairs which spills out onto the Piazza della Repubblica during the warmer months. The staff are impeccable, especially Luca the front of house manager who is so courteous and efficient that you feel the hotel has been there for ever.