The 15 best luxury and boutique hotels in Florence, ranked

Tucked into the Florentine hillside, Collegio alla Querce combines Renaissance grandeur with modern elegance. Its 16th-century buildings, once a historic centre of learning, now house 83 meticulously designed guest rooms and suites, crafted by Esteva i Esteva and ArchFlorence. Guests explore tiered gardens, restored by Francesca Watson, leading to a serene poolside retreat. Dining highlights include La Gamella’s seasonal Tuscan fare, Bar Bertelli’s rule-breaking cocktails and Café Focolare’s alfresco delights. Aelia Spa offers bespoke treatments in private, nature-framed suites. Spaces like the restored chapel, theatre and garden terraces set the scene for unforgettable events.

Steeped in elegant allure, The Place Firenze – formerly known as JK Place – offers a coveted pied-à-terre in the heart of Florence. Housed in a grand townhouse, this boutique gem, reimagined by architect Luigi Fragola, pairs bespoke mid-century pieces with modern art, evoking the charm of a Florentine friend’s home. A hop from the iconic Duomo, and a sashay from the chic Via Tornabuoni, its vibrant terrace bar buzzes on sultry evenings. From sipping a Smoky Negroni to savouring Chef Asso Migliore’s signature ’Lo Spaghetto’, The Place Firenze embodies Florentine luxury.

Read the article on The Place Firenze.

Florence looks better from a distance, particularly from Il Salviatino’s hillside location in Fiesole, where Brunelleschi’s dome appears beyond formal gardens and cypress trees. Owner Alessandra Rovati Vitali has treated the 15th-century villa less like a hotel than an eccentric private house, layering frescoes, antiques, velvet and contemporary pieces with confident disregard for minimalism. The greenhouse suites are especially seductive, all glass, pink terracotta and theatrical furniture. Giacomo, the Milanese restaurant import, keeps dinner pleasingly unfussy, with Tuscan ingredients and produce from the estate garden. There is also a spa and outdoor pools, but the real luxury is space: Florence below, birdsong around you, and absolutely no urge to rush.

Nestled within Florence’s historic heart, Numeroventi crafts a dreamy home-from-home experience. Envisaged by Andrew Trotter, this design residence marries Renaissance charm with contemporary style. Six captivating lofts, resplendent with frescoes, bathe in natural light. Creatives find solace in this ever-evolving gallery, as artist residencies breathe fresh inspiration into the palazzo. With no room service, Numeroventi encourages Tuscan gastronomic exploration and communal co-creation in their kitchen. Expect a tranquil escape, more akin to a private apartment than a bustling hotel, amidst Florence’s artistic pulse.

Florence does not lack grand hotels, but Palazzo Portinari Salviati plays the Renaissance card with uncommon conviction. Spagnulo & Partners restored this 15th-century palazzo with a curator’s restraint: Allori frescoes, coffered ceilings and marble floors remain the stars, while contemporary additions know when to disappear. Rooms feel less decorated than inherited, particularly on the frescoed piano nobile. Downstairs, chef Vito Mollica gives the building a pulse: Michelin-starred ATTO is polished and theatrical, while Salotto Portinari is looser, better for an aperitivo beneath soaring arches and palms. Add a discreet spa and indoor pool, and the whole place feels gloriously Florentine without tipping into costume drama. Crucially, it still feels alive.

With an April 2023 debut, Hotel La Gemma arose as Florence’s latest 5-star gem, fusing timeless sophistication with Florentine elegance. Nestled within the historic Palazzo Paoletti, along stylish Via Calimala, this concept hotel sits moments from iconic landmarks, inviting guests into a luxurious home adorned with 5-star amenities. Rooms bask in hues mirroring the famous Cathedral, with many boasting city-view terraces. At its heart lies Luca’s restaurant, led by Tuscan culinary whizz, Lorenzo De Vivo Martini, who spins modern takes on traditional dishes. Beyond dining, the subterranean Allure Spa invites total escapism, completing the opulent offering.

Located in rose-filled gardens, Villa Cora in Florence is a luxurious hotel built in the 1860s. It offers a retreat from the city’s hustle while remaining conveniently close to the city centre. With extravagant eclectic style décor, excellent amenities, and an outdoor heated pool, Villa Cora offers a unique and opulent stay. The in-house Le Bistrot restaurant offers gourmet, seasonal dishes, and the hotel is known for its attentive service and variety of activities. The combination of exquisite rooms and suites, magnificent views, and personalised experiences makes Villa Cora a standout choice for travellers.

The James feels less like checking into a hotel than being handed the keys to an architect’s rather fabulous Florentine home. That is almost literally the case. James Cavagnari transformed his family’s 1564 palazzo into just 14 rooms and suites, preserving frescoes and vaulted ceilings while inserting bespoke furniture, rare fabrics and occasionally audacious contemporary pieces. The result is cultured rather than reverential, with rooms that reward looking twice. Downstairs, breakfast is intimate and unhurried, while the lounge bar turns unexpectedly seductive after dark – cocktails are serious business here. Best of all, its Sant’Ambrogio setting keeps the Duomo close while Florence’s tourist machinery feels reassuringly several streets away from you.

Four Seasons Hotel Firenze is gloriously excessive, and Florence is entirely the right city for it. Spread between the 1473 Palazzo della Gherardesca and a former convent, the hotel gives Pierre-Yves Rochon’s interiors an extraordinary canvas: frescoes, antiques, vaulted ceilings and polished modern luxury without sanding away the history. Outside, an 11-acre private garden makes the city feel improbably distant. Paolo Lavezzini’s Michelin-starred Il Palagio is the gastronomic anchor, while Atrium Bar, under Edoardo Sandri’s creative hand, is where the hotel loosens its tie over serious cocktails. The spa and pool are excellent, but the real indulgence is scale. The Four Seasons Hotel Fireze feels like a a private Florentine estate rather than a regular hospitality experience.

Torre di Bellosguardo is Florence for people who find polished luxury faintly exhausting. Poet Guido Cavalcanti built the medieval tower, while later owners brought in Bernardino Poccetti for frescoes and sculptor Pietro Francavilla for the magnificent Charity above the entrance. In the 1920s, Baroness Marion von Hornstein-Franchetti turned the villa into an intellectual salon. It cultivated eccentricity that still lingers. Sixteen individually furnished rooms favour four-posters, antiques and patina over decorator perfection. There is no formal restaurant, just breakfast, light lunches and drinks using produce from the owners’ organic garden. The pool, suspended above Florence’s rooftops and Brunelleschi’s dome, delivers something grander hotels struggle to manufacture.

Portrait Firenze wears its Ferragamo pedigree lightly. Leonardo Ferragamo’s Lungarno Collection handed architect Michele Bönan a near-perfect address beside the Ponte Vecchio, and he answered with polished 1950s glamour. Dark timber, pale upholstery, Carrara marble and black-and-white photographs recalling Florence’s brief reign as Italy’s fashion capital. The suites are unusually residential, many with hidden kitchenettes and floor-to-ceiling Arno views, while the absence of a conventional reception makes arrival feel almost private. Downstairs, Caffè dell’Oro is the hotel’s social engine, equally convincing for breakfast, aperitivo or a late plate of pasta. It is immaculate, yes, but never stiff. This is an elegant townhouse rather than a grand hotel.

Occupying a building first documented in 1386, Porta Rossa Hotel Firenze carries more genuine history than most Florentine stays can claim. A comprehensive renovation completed in May 2026 retained frescoed walls, vaulted ceilings and the medieval Torre Monalda while giving its 69 rooms and suites a richer layer of leather, embroidered wallcoverings and draped textiles. Six signature suites draw directly on the building’s past, led by the tower suite with 360-degree views across Florence. Downstairs, the lobby is conceived as a contemporary piazza, joined by a bistro bar and a restaurant concept from Michelin-starred chef Paulo Airaudo focused on Tuscan ingredients and Italian cooking.

Ottantotto is the sort of Florence address you half want to keep secret. Architect Fabrizia Scassellati transformed this former Renaissance baker’s house in Oltrarno into just seven individual rooms, keeping pietra serena fireplaces, cotto floors and timber ceilings while adding floral wallpapers, modern furniture and an appealing streak of eccentricity. Nothing feels over-designed. Breakfast spills into the stone courtyard and shaded garden, where palms, flowers and an old medlar tree make the city seem briefly rural. There is no restaurant or scene to speak of, which is precisely the point. The Beaton Suite, with its mezzanine, kitchenette and private terrace, feels less like hotel accommodation than a stylish Florentine pied-à-terre.

The Hoxton Florence is set in a 19th-century villa in the San Frediano district and this hotel is all about soul – here history balances with artistic edge. The design, by Ennismore’s Aime Studios, keeps the building’s Renaissance bones intact – arched windows, high ceilings and frescoed walls – while layering in mid-century furniture, terrazzo floors and warm Tuscan tones. Each room balances old and new, with locally sourced artwork, vintage rugs and custom-made headboards giving each space its own personality. Then there’s Cugino, the hotel’s café-bar hybrid, where mornings start with espressos and cornetti and evenings stretch into negronis and small plates. We also love the lush courtyard – perfect for aperitivo hour!