Ottantotto Firenze

Don’t get us wrong, the traditional city-center experience can be a great one — but if Florence has a hipster neighborhood, it’s Oltrarno, just across the river from all the most famous sights (and almost all of the tourists). This is where you’ll find Ottantotto Firenze, a seven-room boutique hotel that’s the latest evolution of a Renaissance palazzetto, previously an aristocratic home and lately owned by an architect who oversaw its remarkable transformation.

Rooms are spread out over four floors, and they’re all different — unified by the aesthetic taste of Ottantotto’s owner/designer, but each one reflecting the quirks of this well-preserved heritage building. There’s an interior garden, onto which some of the rooms look, and the suite has a mezzanine level, a kitchenette, and a rooftop terrace. The style is nothing if not memorable, and never too serious — there’s a real sense of whimsy about the decoration.

Breakfast is served in the living room, in the garden, or in your room, if you’re in a Superior or the suite. Beyond that you’re at the mercy of Florence, which is a great place to be — the Oltrarno district has no end of phenomenal restaurants, and the rest of the city is only a bridge away....