Hotel Davanzati

A family hotel in the very centre

The Hotel Davanzati is at Via Porta Rossa, 5, on the stretch that runs from the Mercato Nuovo to Piazza Santa Trinita. You have the Uffizi three minutes' walk away and Piazza del Duomo five; the Ponte Vecchio is round the corner. It occupies a 15th-century building and takes its name from Palazzo Davanzati, the museum of the Florentine house almost opposite, whose decoration inspires it.

It is run by a family. In 1969 the grandfather Marcello bought the old Teti inn and turned it, with his wife Velia, into accommodation for travellers. Today it is run by his son Fabrizio with his wife Patrizia and their sons Tommaso and Riccardo. It is a three-star hotel with no pretensions to luxury: what it offers is the location, the welcome and a few touches that are not usual in the centre of Florence at this price.

The rooms

It has rooms of all sizes. The single measures 14 m², the small and classic doubles 16 m², and the superior double 20 m², with an armchair that converts into a third bed. For families there are the superior triple, of 22 m², the superior quadruple, of 25 m², with a double bed and a double sofa bed separated by a wooden partition, the 30 m² junior suite and two connecting rooms of 27 m² in total. The suite, also for four, has a private terrace above the rooftops.

All have air conditioning and heating, a desk, telephone, a television of at least 32 inches, minibar, safe and wifi.

Breakfast, aperitif and services

Breakfast is a buffet, sweet and savoury, every day from 7:30 to 10:30 in the ground-floor lounge. Every afternoon at 18:30 they serve in the same room an aperitif with prosecco or wine, crisps and peanuts. Reception is staffed 24 hours and helps you book restaurants, museums and the theatre. They arrange transfers to the airport and the stations, and excursions to Chianti or the Cinque Terre with a family company.

Getting there and parking

If you arrive by train at Santa Maria Novella, the hotel is a walk of about fifteen minutes through the centre, or a short taxi ride. Note that to reach the lift you have to climb 26 steps from the door: ring the bell at the foot of the stairs and they help you with your cases. By car, the hotel has no parking. Use the affiliated garage with valet parking: €40 for the first 24 hours and €3 for each additional hour. The centre is a limited traffic zone.