My stay was “Ok” in the end but there were many small things that accumulated over my long stay that made the flat itself uncomfortable.
Pros:
-location (the Duomo is in your face it’s so close- you can see it from the grand hallway). Practical for tourists short on time.
-Huge! Too big actually…
-there is far worse in Florence (and italy) considering the standards are not the best in terms of newness, cleanliness, furnishings, etc.
Cons:
- definitely not recommend for long stays. Maybe one week tops.
-LOUD: there is a shot bar on the side with the kitchen window. On Fridays and Saturdays it’s the worst. The noise carries into the bed area (no door, it’s basically just a big, long studio so nothing to block the noise). In the summer the drunken idiots all stand on the street yelling and screaming like they are being attacked until 2am, sometimes 3am. I could hear them even with earplugs. Monday to Thursday the bar is less crazy, so the drunken fools only last till around 1am and it’s less intense. Apparently this shot bar is a nuisance for the whole street that the neighbors have called the police on many occasions. But not during my stay because the party never ended so abruptly.
-wasn’t as clean as I expected. Apparently the cleaner was a different guy. Hairs all over the duvets (I took one to the dry cleaners), floor was a bit dirty. Some dishes looked unwashed. This said, I am super severe when it comes to cleanliness, so for those who are not, it’s probably fine.
-it’s not warm in the winter because there’s no actually heating, just air conditioner “heat” blowing in your face. Plus there is only one that works well for the whole flat.
It was obvious the owner equipped the flat cutting costs in every way possible. Sometimes it was actually shocking and funny. One, air conditioner/heating. There are 2 in the flat which normally must, by regulation, each be connected to a fan mounted on the exterior or connected to a big enough fan with some kind of adaptor for 2 (I was told by my Fiorentina friend). But in this flat, the 2 are connected from the outside to ONE fan = the two are useless at the same time. If you use one for a long time (for heat especially), they both putter out to a stop. Not to mention, it’s cheap.
-same goes for the Induction stovetop. There are 4 but only 2 are set up to work, I assume to cut costs. Plus if you use one at max. 9, and you use the 2nd one too, they both can only be used at 6. Plus they constantly blink and then you can’t use either.
-the washing machine door is blocked by the bidet and it only opens 1/3 of the way making it silly to wash your clothes. I had to roll everything in a small ball just to push it in the door. Forget about washing large items, unless you figure out a clever way to put them in and take them out.
-the communal corridor is so long and convoluted that it’s a bit silly. Stairs/elevator, one corridor, 2nd stairs/elevator, 2nd corridor, and final stairs lead to the flat.
-WiFi is not great sometimes, but this is in all of Florence.
-the owner was not like some owners who to make the great effort to meet your needs in every way (sometimes there are owners who are just always so helpful). I asked for an extra chair (only 2 flimsy chairs and 2 stools- not great if you have back problems) and he was unwilling to lend me an extra. It’s not that big of a favour…
-water pressure is very pathetic. Maybe it’s actually the quantity but in any case, it just flows out too gently. It’s probably just right for a baby’s head… Hot water tank is so tiny so someone who needs a lot might run out.
-the owner’s father showed me the flat. He didn’t tell me about things I would have thought useful like where are the extra duvet covers (well, there are none…), how to use the washing machine (figured it out), how the stove top was tricky etc. What stuck in my mind was how he repeated 3x where the 2 fuse boxes are, in case the power blows (and it did. My fault, I used the hair dryer, washer and air con at the same time). But I’m guessing the electrical is not great and this happens a lot if he mentioned it repeatedly…
Here ends my long, detailed review.