L’Orologio

This hotel is in an excellent location, has helpful staff, strong wifi, and large rooms and bathrooms!
It also has a small fitness facility for those of you who want to build up more of an appetite for all the pasta and gelato you are going to eat!
This hotel is beautiful and so charming — I would definitely stay again!

Great location! Helpful staff… Shower and room are big and clean… Fantastic breakfast :)

Couldn’t possibly say enough great things about this place. Awesome location and professional staff.

We are just now finishing our first stay at Hotel L’Orologio and will be returning after three days in Siena. This hotel, our experience here, the staff, and the entire experience has been in a word… well, two words…- simply superb. If you are reading this review you are doing your due diligence, having moved beyond Trip Advisor (I don’t post there) to learn more about where to stay while vacationing in Florence.
This hotel is not the most inexpensive, but if you are traveling to Florence don’t nickle and dime yourself into a cheaper hotel or travel experience. We stayed in Room 501, with our own (private) patio view — and view from every room — of Il Duomo, just a few short blocks away. Want the Steak Florentine experience at Buca Lapi? It’s less than two blocks away. Great Gelato from Grom? About 6 blocks from the hotel, which is right in Piazza Santa Maria Novella. Want to buy yourself or your wife a magnificent purse from the Scuola del Cuoio at the Monastery of Santa Croce (another ‘must visit’ destination)? A very pleasant walk of about a mile down along the Arno river. Visit Ponte Vecchio? Hotel L’Orologio is just a few short blocks away.
More about the room and the hotel: Room 501 may seem at first to be narrow and long, but it is — it boasts a living room with patio off to the side, and to the left as you enter is the bedroom and beyond that the bathroom. Well worth the daily rate. The service has been almost invisible: re-​enter the room in the afternoon for a nap to compensate for a bit of jet lag, walk out and when we return the bed was once again made and crisply refinished. There’s a wonderful breakfast buffet in the morning on the 4^th floor with the usual fare (I’m a coffee, OJ and cereal guy so it was perfect but it offered eggs, bacon and meats/​cheeses). My only nit (and this is like saying you’re complaining about having to wait in line for a meeting with the Pope) is that you often have to keep re-​signing up for the room wi-​fi, which does seem to have a mind of its own. But who cares!
If you are looking for a memorable stay at one of the most elegant places in Florence you won’t go wrong with a stay at this hotel.

The room was spacious and clean. The view of Santa Maria Novella is beautiful. The décor and building is really cool. It’s not a cookie cutter hotel. It has a little character. The staff is friendly and speak English. The bed is firm and seems to be a real king vs. 2 twins put together — best sleep in all Italy so far. Breakfast is included with beautiful view of piazza. The food is delicious. I haven’t missed one yet! The front desk was very accommodating. They helped book us a tour outside Florence and we chose the chianti wine tasting and dinner. The tour group was great and the meeting point was only 5 minutes from hotel.
Now for the downside… The bathroom is quite small. Plus no conditioner included! I had to run out to local pharmacy to buy a bottle. The maid did not stock up our frig. The Internet access only works for 1hr. However that may be a good thing to keep you away from the rest of the world while in this beautiful city! And the walls are paper thin so you can hear people in bathroom, hallway, etc. Ohh. The water pressure in the pipes make a high pitch noise.
I give the hotel an overall 4 because it is beautiful, easy to communicate, excellent accommodations, and 5 – 10 minutes from all sites. I’d stay here again.

If you’re looking for a hotel in this price range, I don’t think there is a better choice! Excellent personalized service from the staff, beautiful interior design in both public areas and guest rooms that bridges between contemporary and traditional, incredibly good quality breakfast buffet with a beautiful presentation. Boutique hotel atmosphere in a mid-​sized property.