Glance Hotel In Florence

Safe to say it’s like nothing else in Florence. Glance Hotel makes its home not in some Renassance villa but in a Fifties building by the modernist architect Italo Gamberini, one that’s been thoroughly updated by contemporary architects AMDB Studio and decked out exclusively with pieces by Lema, one of Italy’s leading manufacturers of design furniture.

The location, in San Lorenzo, is nothing if not convenient, and the modernist simplicity of the décor creates a sharp contrast with the ornateness of the city outside. The rooms are extraordinarily calming, verging on the minimalist but without lapsing all the way into blankness — and luxe little touches like espresso machines and relatively lavish bathrooms give Glance an extra edge in comfort over an ordinary design-focused boutique hotel.

And while it’s something of a stylistic outlier, Glance isn’t divorced from its context. Large-scale photographic reproductions of the city’s most famous artworks decorate the public spaces, and a rooftop pool deck takes advantage of the building’s height to offer a view of the Basilica and the rooftops. And while the hotel’s breakfast service is more than adequate, there’s no restaurant beyond that — this city being what it is, of course, you’ll hardly mind being forced to find something suitable in the streets outside your door.