MY STAY
Florence & gardens
Four Seasons Firenze made it easy to forget I was in the middle of a city trip. A morning of museums could end with the hourly shuttle from Piazza della Repubblica and a walk into large, quiet gardens. The pool and greenery were reasons to leave a gap in the schedule rather than squeeze in another sight.
The historic rooms
The old buildings hold very different bedrooms. Color, proportions and window views change by suite, and I cared more about a room that felt good to return to than the category's grand title. Asking which building the room occupied would have saved a lot of guesswork.
Breakfast & dinner
At Il Palagio, breakfast meant choosing something from the buffet and still ordering from the menu. Dinner outdoors was tempting too, but not every plate justified missing Florence's other restaurants: fish at one meal smelled less fresh than it should have. I would raise that at the table rather than let a disappointing dish define the whole stay.
Would I return?
What makes this hotel special is being able to spend a day in Florence and come back to a garden world. I'd stay several nights again, long enough to enjoy the pool as well as the historic rooms. A rushed overnight stop would show off the old walls and little of the pleasure of living among them.