19/03/2026
‘A stylish guesthouse with a spot-on retro vibe and a wonderful location in the hip Oltrarno district – with reasonable prices to boot. This place will appeal to independent travellers and fans of vintage design, and there are cultural attractions right on the doorstep, including the Pitti Palace and Ponte Vecchio.
Standing on a busy street (albeit a very elegant one, lined with antique shops), Soprarno lies just south of the river at the heart of the boho-chic Santo Spirito neighbourhood, with its daily market and varied choice of restaurants, bars, cafés and shops. This is known as Florence’s “artisan quarter”; the narrow streets surrounding Via Maggio are home to gilders, framers, book binders, jewellers and upholsters. It makes for fascinating wandering. The Pitti Palace is steps away and the Ponte Vecchio a five-minute walk; cross the river and a five- to 10-minute walk will bring you to the Duomo, Piazza della Signoria and the Uffizi.
The 13 delightful bedrooms vary in size, but many are huge with lofty windows, frescoed ceilings, dark hardwood floors and in-room tubs. All are loosely themed around a particular feature: the “Camera del Tipografo” (printer’s room) has shelves of ancient wood rescued from a former printshop, and “Viaggiatore” (traveller) features framed maps and a multi-coloured, beaded Kenyan throne. One top-floor room has a private terrace tucked among the terracotta roof tiles. There are thoughtful extras too: Nespresso machines and kettles, notebooks and shopping bags. Gorgeous bathrooms come with walk-in rain showers, C.O. Bigelow products, proper hair-dryers (secreted away in cloth bags) and robes and slippers. ‘ Nicky Swallow
