Duccio's apartment was really central and perfect for our family of five. You could look out of our bedroom and see the Duomo at the end of the street. My teenage daughter enjoyed the privacy of the second double bedroom and our two younger boys loved their little nest in the mezzanine.

The rest of the apartment was great too. A nice spacious kitchen/dining area for eating in and plenty of hot water. We were also very grateful for the efficient air conditioning having chosen to come to Florence in the August heat.

Via Dei Servi is a lovely street with the Duomo at one end and a spacious piazza at the other end where it is a short walk to access the local bus services. The street is well served with a local convenience store that stocks just about anything you might need, several bars and gelaterias, and a few nice shops. We were pleasantly surprised to find one of our favourite gift shops Tiger Tiger just across the street.

You can also find the Leonardo Da Vinci Museum a few minutes walk down the street. I took my son there and we enjoyed seeing recreations of some of his most famous inventions.

Although we never met, Duccio was the perfect host before and during our trip. He answered all our questions in advance and helped us when our inbound flight was delayed by arranging to leave a key with the owners of the bar on the ground floor. He was also very flexible about our leaving time, allowing us to spend one final morning in Florence before catching our flight home.