We stayed 4 days here in December 2025. I have included some pictures for you to review. One think I really enjoyed was the breakfast buffet every morning. The food choices were extensive and abundant. The staff was helpful and friendly. We also ate a dinner in Cibreo that I will review in another post. The lobby seems to go on and on through a variety of rooms, cafe, bar, lounge and restaurant are all on the first floor. The room was spacious and the bathroom had many high end amenities. I would go back there again when I am in Florence. read more

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This 5-star hotel is located across the street from Louis Vuitton in the heart of Firenze (Florence). It's centered within all of the sights you want to see, making walking a breeze. The rooms are exquisite and the staff goes above and beyond to satisfy its guests. There is a high-class spa in the basement which sits above ancient Roman ruins. Massages are available, as well as a steam room, a sauna, a cold room, a salt room, and a pool with private loungers. read more

When planning my trip to Italy I decided to spend 4 nights in Florence and 3 nights in Rome. I'm not really an AirBnB person, and since I'm a member of several loyalty programs I decided to search them to see what hotels I could find. Helvetia & Bristol stood out to me the most for several reasons, and ultimately I decided to book it for my stay in Firenze. As with all my hotel reviews, I'll separate this into pros and cons - so here we go! There are a lot of good things about H&B - firstly the hotel itself is gorgeous. It's housed in a historic building, and the entire vibe his almost a little old school but in a good way. All of the decor screams high end - think warm colors, antique-ish furniture, upholstered walls, and marble. Even the smell - I don't know what they were pumping into the hallways but it was quite pleasant. The location is another plus - the hotel is steps away from the Piazza della Repubblica, and I don't think we had to walk more than 10 to 15 minutes to reach any hot spot in the city. Onsite amenities were another plus - the hotel has two onsite restaurants, room service, and offers a daily breakfast buffet. While I did not try either restaurant nor room service, I was a frequent flyer at breakfast which was quite good. Additionally, they have an onsite spa if you're into that. My room was great - it has everything one would expect from a high-end hotel, including a heated towel rack which I never knew I needed - cut to me looking up how to install one in my own apartment. As far as cons, I don't have many at all - if I had to nitpick though I would say that I didn't find the bed to be very comfortable, but that could be a personal thing. That's it really, it's hard for me to find negatives about this place. To close out, I need to give a shout out to the staff at H&B; from the moment we arrived to the moment we checked out, they were nothing but friendly, professional, and super accommodating. They are truly what made this a 5-star experience for me. Overall, my stay at Helvetia & Bristol was one of the best hotel stays I have had in a long time; location, amenities, aesthetics, and service - they were all top drawer. I would definitely consider staying here again the next time I visit Firenze. read more

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I had a pleasant stay with my sister last week. The service of the hotel people was exceptional. Biggest shout out to Ornella and the breakfast crew. I was extremely happy with the breakfast buffet. Totally worth it. Just 40 euros and you get an entire spread ranging from scrambled eggs, sautéed vegetables and breakfast meat to a large array of breakfast pastries and a variety of fresh fruit. Oatmeal and yogurt. And even unlimited mimosas or champagne. What a deal!! I also was very happy with the bell crew and door people. No matter what time of day or night they there to greet me Buona sera or show me the way. Front desk team was very accommodating 24/7. Thank you for your hospitality. I promise to learn better Italian when I return! read more

This hotel is incredible due to its location and proximity to central Florence, breakfast buffet, as well as the attention to detail and service. I would highly recommend staying here, I truly enjoyed the experience. read more

Truly, a lovely place right in the center of Florence, where all the action is and their customer service is exquisite.. we weren't happy with the room but the day manager, Gabriel was delightful, and catered to our every need.. he upgraded us at no charge, and a complementary day at the spa, which obviously Maid is very happy.. a great place to visit!! read more

This hotel is so amazing! We absolutely enjoyed our stay in Firenze thanks to their helpful, kind and caring staff. The room we had was big, had a great view and well furnished. Breakfast was also fantastic; their staff attended to your every need and the food selection was also ample. The location is just perfect. It is so close to everything, all within walking distance. We were right across from Louis Vuitton and the Cartier store. Super convenient. There are many shops and restaurants located nearby so you don't really have to go very far. Paul, the doorman is the kindest, sweetest man I have ever met. He is really helpful and so genuine. I have nothing but compliments for the hotel and the people who helped us. Thank you. We will definitely be staying here again on our next trip to Firenze. read more

Helvetia & Bristol - Hotels Near Me - Florence, FI

This is our second time staying at this hotel in just six months. We had a rather pleasant experience last time, but this time, we booked a panoramic suite to enjoy the New Year's Eve, but upon check in, the management tried to convince us that the executive suite with a peekaboo view of the bell tower is also a panoramic suite. The suite they gave us is probably one of the worst in the hotel with nearly half of the sitting area taken by the elevator. It turned out that the management had sold our panoramic suite to another traveler who apparently booked one more night than our four night stay. We made the reservation nearly four (!!) months ago to celebrate this special occasion. The hotel had ample time to prepare for our arrival. If there is unforeseen issue with the panoramic suite, I would expect a heads up prior to check in so we can make alternative plans. The whole trip was planned around the panoramic view to enjoy on the New Year's Eve. Suffice it to say that no amount of monetary compensation would be enough to make up for our lost time. This practice is unacceptable. The hotel management has completely ruined our Florence vacation. To make matters worse, I happen to have the highest tier Aurelian membership of Leading Hotels of the world, and I never expected to be treated with such disrepect. I would normally expect an upgrade to our room, but never in a million years would expect to be downgraded. Not wanting to give such dishonest hotel more money, I had scrambled to make a last minute booking for a night at hotel Lungarno on the 31st and move to Portrait Firenze on 1/1. This management greed has caused us a great deal of inconvenience for we have to move three time in a four night stay. The rooms are all rather dated with very poor bathroom facilities. There is no shower curtain to prevent spillage so care must be taken to avoid making a mess. It is also very difficult to get in and out of the tub as there are no handle bars and anti slip mat. I would very very very very (can't emphasize enough) strongly advice against booking this hotel for any length of stay. The low price is simply not worth the risk associated with this company. Unless free downgrade is your cup of tea. Needless to say, the management has successfully lost a frequent Florence traveler due to their greed and failure to honor our reservation contract. It's a shame really as most of the staff are professional and friendly. A special shoutout to the executive assistant manager Viviana Colonna for trying her best to salvage an unsalvageable situation. read more

Stayed for for 4 nights on our Florence vacation. Beautiful hotel. Excellent location. We had 2 adjoining room for our family of four. Plenty of space with lovely balcony. Delicious breakfast and delightful wait staff. Friendly and front desk Arranged tours for us, excellent guide, Simona. Doorman very kind. Highly recommend! read more

Overall good service. However don't order fish there unless you want food poisoning. Their pasta is excellent and very fresh.

This is an incredibly charming hotel in the center of Florence and we couldn't be any happier about the accommodations. The staff is always friendly and very helpful. The lobbies are comfortable for relaxing and having a drink. The rooms are spacious enough with elegant, marble bathrooms. they are not huge rooms but they are very cozy and have plenty of space for comfort. The shades are black-out, so if you want to sleep late, it's great. Basically the rooms are very well appointed and there are no hassles whatsoever. A hidden gem is the hotel restaurant where we have enjoyed our lunch twice, even though there are many hundreds of choices. We highly recommend this hotel and restaurant. Definitely the best gazpacho I've ever had and the same for the prosciutto and melon. So darn good!!! read more

Some context: I am from San Francisco California. I travel frequently and have been to Italy several times. While I am outwardly easy going about travel experiences- I internally am pretty particular. The hotel has several really excellent things going for it. First- the location. You are a short walk away from the major tourist spots. Second, the hotel is bursting with old world romantic charm that is well maintained. Third, the staff are wonderfully friendly and helpful. The concierge offers to make reservations for restaurants and getting into the museums without waiting in line. This is extremely helpful as my Italian is sub-par and figuring out the whole American Cell Phone usage in Europe can be a pain. Fourth, above average hotel restaurant (hint the room service is great!) If you want modern - this is not the place. If you want traditional - I definitely recommend giving this place a try. We booked on Orbitz and got a decent rate. I would say that overall this is a well appointed hotel at a good price. You will find cheaper, but I doubt they will be more classically luxurious. You can pay more and I doubt you will have an exponentially better experience. Not sure about the other reviewer's issue with the internet. It was fine for us. We came as tourists vs. on business so only needed the wifi for facebook and wifi calling. We face timed with no issue. Did I mention how friendly the staff are?? read more

Great staff and amazing room. Location perfect. Ac was cold and staff makes a point to know your name. Breakfast was top notch! WiFi was terrible. read more

Great location, good hotel, good staff but terrible internet service. If you would like to do any work or even post something on Facebook you should look somewhere else to stay. read more

A truly beautiful hotel in a fantastic location! Yes, old world charm, lovely rooms! Concierge really exceptional. For all of that I I would give it 5 stars. We had a situation arise; however, that was slightly (well, anyone else might have said extremely, and for the staff member, likely mortifying, but self inflicted) unnerved. It was a strange time of day on our first afternoon there. We had just come off a tour, had headed back to our room -- couples trip, no kids. The staff member did not knock, call out, nothing, just turned the key and walked in. Surprise! Hmmm, not what one would expect from this caliber hotel. So this review comes with a warning -- enjoy your stay here as it really is a lovely hotel, but keep your robe on when in the room - you never know who might be walking in . . . lol! read more

Delightful stay in the heart of Florence. Old world charm that has been beautifully maintained. The service was fantastic. Everyone was welcoming and helpful, from the restaurant and room service waiters to the concierge, who was incredibly helpful and gracious. The room was beautiful, the bed was comfortable, and the bathroom was marble-walled elegance. Definitely recommended. read more

We stayed three nights and loved the location and the service. The staff were so considerate in helping with transport and reservations. The breakfast buffet was exceptional... read more

Over priced tired hotel. Worn out stained carpets. Half the staff were really lovely, door man, cleaners, concierge, others seem over working in a busy city hotel. Room service was awful, €20 for leftovers from breakfast. Guy rocked up with 1 wine glass (2 adults staying in the room) and advised us to use the glass from the bathroom. Convenient for the city, shopping etc. read more