For me, using Airbnb is not just about looking for a place to sleep in that is close to a town my family wants to visit. It's about being able to take a break from our overbooked work, school and sport activities to see each other at the breakfast table and maybe, plan our day's single activity. A successful day is coming back to the apartment with shared experiences and muscle aches from walking around.
Being hosted by Marco, allowed my family of 4, with 2 boys, 10 and 13, to have a wonderful time in Florence.
He was kind and patient as I planned our first trip to Europe. He was willing to hold the place for me and answer lots of questions when I was in the planning stage of our 14 day, 6 city trip. Florence was our last leg of the trip and there were so many things we could do that I got overwhelmed! Luckily, Marco was my sounding board as I loosely planned a week in Florence with a day trip to Pisa and Lucca.
Among the trip highlights which includes seeing Galileo's actual fingers, was our afternoon of making pasta with Marco's parents. My son had so much fun learning how to make pasta, while my husband and I hung out with Marco's Dad, using our google translators. Thank you Marco for coordinating!
If you are deciding between Marco's place and something that looks to be a bit closer to the museums or a bit cheaper, please consider that having Marco as your host and staying in a spacious well stocked modern apartment with 2 bathrooms that is within a 5-15 minute picturesque walk to museums, gelateria, bars, and restaurants, grocery store and the train station, will actually be a much better value for your vacation.