We were quite excited about our visit to Florence, and staying in David's "Riccardo" apartment. 3 days prior to arriving we received an email stating that he wanted to move us to his "Iris" apartment with no reason why. When we declined and asked for a reason, we were informed that "Riccardo" had pipe issues, but that came from AirBNB, not David. Because we were so near our arrival date, we didn't want the extra stress of trying to find another place to stay, so we accepted his change request.

When we arrived at the apartment (Iris), we were met by David's uncle Giovanni, who was very friendly and helpful. One of the reasons why we chose this apartment, was that it offered parking. We had rented a car in anticipation of travelling to Southern Tuscany during our stay. However, upon our arrival, we came to find out that all of the parking was rented out and not available to us during our stay. This put a huge kink in our plans to explore Tuscany and surrounding cities, as we would have no place to park our rental car each night.

The apartment's location is fantastic. It is smack in the center of town, but is in the LTZ (Low Traffic Zone) and you must get a permit to drive within that zone. That means that if you simply want to drive your car up to the apartment to load your luggage, you will need a permit. A taxi is your only option if you have no where to park a car.

The apartment (Iris) was cute, quaint and clean, however the stairs to get to it, were extremely narrow and steep. It took us 3 flights of steps to get to the apartment, and one down to get to the main floor. Not a big deal until you are carrying your luggage. Be prepared for a workout. My wife and I are in our mid 40's and physically active, so we could deal with it. If you have mobility issues, this may not be the best choice for you. Giovanni did help us with our bags arriving and leaving. He was awesome.

Bottom line is, the only way we would stay there again is if we travelled with only carry-on luggage and planned on staying in Florence the entire time. One last thing. They do allow smoking in these apartments, but we really didn't notice ashes or a bad smell. We are non-smokers, but were concerned before we arrived.

Florence was amazing. My wife wants to move there!! The apartment's location could not have been better for walking around the town. More than one roll of TP would have been nice too!!