Earlier this week I shared all about what to do in Florence, Italy, and wouldn’t you know… I have more to say! Really I could talk about Italy all day if you let me. But this time, I’m putting all the focus on where we stayed during our time in the city: The Oltrarno Splendid.
Where you stay on a trip can play a huge role when it comes to experiencing a city. And booking the right hotel can set you up for an even more enjoyable time. When it comes to location, decor, and hospitality, I don’t think we could have stayed in a more perfect hotel.
Now I know because this is such a positive review that you might think that we got our stay comped. But let me assure you we payed for everything ourselves. In fact, the hotel has no idea I’m even writing this post. We just had such a wonderful time that I feel like I need to tell everyone I can about it.
Here’s what it was like to stay at the Oltrarno Splendid in Florence, Italy:
For a full hotel video tour, be sure to check out my latest YouTube video!
About the Oltrarno Splendid
First things first, here’s a bit about the hotel. Well, when it comes to hotels, it’s actually a boutique bed and breakfast. The Oltrarno Splendid has such a personal feel to it and you won’t feel like just one person of hundreds staying in their rooms.
The space is in the upper floors of an 18th century palazzo. In total, there are 14 rooms that are spread over two floors. What drew me to the space when looking at places to stay is that the rooms are each individually designed. So no two rooms are alike! I would even go back just to be able to stay in their purple or blue king rooms.
The love and detail put into the design can really be felt throughout the entire space. I felt inspired just to be there and couldn’t stop looking at everything.
Location
When you decide to leave the hotel and explore Florence, you’ll be in perfect walking distance to just about everything. We walked the entire time and never once felt like we were too far from what we wanted to see. The Oltrarno Splendid is a few steps away from the Arno, an 11 minute walk to the Duomo, 14 minutes to the Bardini Gardens, and 14 to the train station. Every place I shared in my Florence vlog was all accessed on foot!
And if you’re heading to Florence for the second time, or you just want to stay in the area near the hotel, The Oltrarno neighborhood is so fun! You’ll find lots of fun shops and craftsmen, great restaurants, and more. It really felt a bit like home.
Breakfast is Included
Another selling point for staying at the Oltrarno Splendid is that breakfast is included with your stay. This really helps to save a bit of money on your trip, but also the dining area was my favorite space in the hotel! The colorful tables and chairs paired with marble and brass?! My actual dream. I talked about it every single day.
The food is laid out on the counter area in the room and you serve yourself. On the breakfast bar you’ll find warm croissants, cake, cold cuts, cheeses and fruit. We also loved the yogurt and granola combo. And yes they will in fact make you a cappuccino so you don’t even have to go out for a caffeine fix!
Seriously how great are these tables?! Which color is your favorite? I might have to go with the pale pink just for how it pairs with the green of the chairs!
Our Room at the Oltrarno Splendid
And of course, no review would be complete without a look into our room!
We stayed in room 15, which was one of their King rooms. The Toile de Jouy wallpaper is original (about 200 years old!) and an absolute showstopper. It really felt like such a special privilege to casually be staying in a space with such history and care. The Hilton or Marriott could never.
We booked all 5 nights of our stay with credit card points (using our Chase Sapphire card, then transferring to a travel partner). Since we used our card all throughout the wedding, it was a great way to get a bit of a return for the honeymoon.
I love how they used frames to highlight scenes from the wallpaper, instead of covering it up. Such a fun way to highlight the wallpaper!
To really get a feel for the size of the room, including the incredible ceilings, be sure to check out the video tour on my YouTube. It still won’t do it justice, but you can get a feel for how large the room was! The video is a quick tour, but I always find that video is helpful for filling in the gaps that photos might not be able to.
The front door for the hotel
So that’s if for the hotel tour of The Oltrarno Splendid! Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below. And do let me know if you ever decide to stay here– I’d love to hear about your trip!