Soprarno Suites

The eclectic, bohemian, vintage-inspired style that’s currently all the rage in the United States is also, you’ll find, all the rage in Europe — and in Italy, where the word “vintage” covers several hundred more years of history, the resulting style is rich indeed. For an illustration, you could hardly do better than Soprarno Suites, a small, quiet, intimate little ten-suite hotel right in the heart of Florence, a few minutes’ walk from the (not at all quiet) Ponte Vecchio.

The building dates back to the sixteenth century, and inside you’ll find ornate period architectural details exist comfortably alongside contemporary Italian designer furniture, era-spanning vintage finds, and all manner of artworks and objets. The suites are more than spacious enough, and also more than comfortable enough — add to them the convenience of a library, a record collection, and a shared kitchen space, and what you’ve got is a very stylish, very civilized residential-style hotel. There’s no restaurant, it’s true, but if you can’t find something worth eating in the middle of Florence then we don’t want to know you, frankly. (Anyway, your hosts are happy to help, if you’re in need of a recommendation; they’re nicer than we are, if we’re being honest.)