Gianna's B&B

This isn't exactly a review of Gianna's B&B (GB&B) as I didn't get to stay there due to an interesting booking problem by the owner. TL;DR. If you ever book your stay at GB&B, do make absolutely sure that they also know that you've booked with them and the dates they have match with what you and Expedia (or whatever the travel site you use) have. Get clear instructions for how to get in the building too. And, unless you have no other choice and must stay around the same area in Florence, do not stay at the hotel called "Albergo Le Due Fontane," which I ended up staying—not by my own choice or direct knowledge of the place—it was arranged by GB&B's owner as an attempt to correct the problem they created. I found out later Le Due Fontane isn't even listed in Expedia. The location of the hotel is superb, even better than GB&B's I must say, but also exceptionally noisy. The building looks old but also seems renovated inside. The hotel room I was given was just terrible—old, rundown, and dirty (not the bedding thankfully). Since the booking fiasco with GB&B already put a dent to my Florence experience and I was going to stay only two nights at this place, which I would never book based on its reviews and ratings (Google), I just didn't want to make it worse by complaining to GB&B's owner (unless she asked) and wanting to be moved to an acceptable place. I decided instead to write about my experience, which is below, and move on. I hope your experience is much better than mine. Enjoy Florence regardless of any booking problems you may experience. Even though I couldn't stay at GB&B, I just can't recommend it based on what happened to me. Long Version: To give background to the story, I booked two-night stay at GB&B through Expedia a few months ago. The same day I made that reservation, I also made another at a B&B in Venezia, which was the first part of my quick seven-day Italy tour. Unlike the owners of the B&B in Venezia, who sent me several emails confirming the booking and providing me details for arrival, I didn't receive any emails from GB&B's owner regarding my booking. So, comparably it was odd, but historically it was normal as I wasn't always contacted by a B&B establishment I made arrangements with. This was through Expedia anyway. I trusted what I put in would pass through to the hotel or the owner. So, I arrive at Florence after an activity and fun packed two days and nights in Venezia. I am beautifully exhausted and ready to do more in Florence, but I must first go to Pisa to meet two friends of mine for a nice little late afternoon tour of Pisa and a hearty Italian dinner. My plan is to check in quickly and head back to the train station and then to Pisa. Ah, plans... Right. Thanks to the Google Maps, I find GB&B just fine. However, getting into the apartment building proves to be frustratingly difficult, because there aren't any instructions on the door bells indicating which floor or floors indeed constitute(s) GB&B. Based on my previous B&B experiences, I thought it was the whole building, but it wasn't, which is fine. There is a sign at the top of the bell plate that says GB&B (in full), but that's just it. I've checked the Expedia listing again on my phone to see if there was any special arrival instructions. Nothing. So, I end up knocking on the door like a crazy person and pressing buttons one by one at the risk of getting cursed at by other residents in Italian style. And, I think I did too because there was this person who responded over the speaker and got on this long tirade in Italian probably lecturing me (rightfully so) how he's tired of getting his bell rung like that everyday by clueless travelers such as myself. Anyway, someone finally answers the door and lets me in—it's the owner of GB&B, who is a nice lady. She's surprised to see a guest arriving on that day and time, which isn't a good sign. I explain to her when and how I made my booking, which I also pulled up from Expedia and showed her. She checks her computer and realizes that she made a mistake—she says she was expecting me in 2024 (she did in fact say 2022, but I thought it was just slip of the tongue and let it go). So, because of this mistake, she essentially ended up overbooking since there's already another guest staying at the place. In other words, I have no place to stay. Still, for her credit, she offers to find me another place to stay, which obviously I accept, but insist it to be for the same or similar price and quality. I couldn't stay with her to follow on with the booking because like I said I had to hop on a train to go to Pisa to meet my friends. We message back and forth while I was traveling to Pisa and she finds me a place. I obviously trusted her assurance that the place was going to be equally nice and offer similar quality. Upon my return at night, she offers to walk me to the hotel and help me check in, which was nice. We chatted a bit as we walked—I learned Venezia was 90% full that weekend, which explains the feeling of Armageddon at famous locales there. Our walk and talk takes about 10 minutes and we arrive at the hotel, Albergo Le Due Fontane. She helps me check in, wishes me good night and good luck, and leaves. I am exceptionally tired and just need the day to come to an end with a relief that this whole booking problem is just a tiny bump along the way and I'll wake up refreshed after a nice, long sleep and welcome with open arms what Firenze will offer the next day. Of course, my hopes come down crashing to meet the reality that the room I am given is old, run-down, and dirty (the condition of the bathroom is just sad—no need to get into details—it is just sad). You can perhaps say that this is not the fault of GB&B's owner as she would simply go by what the booking service she used to arrange my room would say, which could be misleading. However, what makes me upset and feel duped is the rating of this place (3.7/5 at Google—it isn't even listed at Expedia) vs hers (4.9/5), which is the main reason why I chose it in the first place: highly rated with great reviews. So, in a way I ended up paying way more for my lodging in Florence. In my world, the ratings 3.7 and 4.9 are neither "similar nor same," which I had insisted her to find. If I did the booking myself, I'd probably end up paying a bit more but absolutely stay at a much much better place. Experiences can be bought, but not time, more of which I didn't plan losing by making a bigger deal out of this as I wouldn't be staying long. If I were to stay longer than two nights, however, I would make a bigger fuss about it and definitely not stay there, and have GB&B's owner find a better place for me. She tried perhaps, but not harder. She lives in Florence and is an owner of a B&B—so, she must already have an idea on what hotel is good or not in the town. She messages me the next day to ask how things are and how the room is, which is nice of her to do. I tell her the brief version of what I just wrote here. And, she responds "there are nice rooms in that hotel, but problem is you don't know which one you're getting." :-) I see. So, instead of a "nice room," I get the dirtiest and the one with a moldy bathroom that has a bathtub but not a shower curtain? I must be naive to think hotels (must) maintain consistency and assurance when it comes to cleanliness of "every type of room." A nice room may have a nice view, be more spacious than others, and have a balcony, or whatever, but they ALL will have the same level of cleanliness. A "nicer" room cannot and should not be "cleaner" than the rest of the rooms in a hotel. So, be on top of your booking all the way through and try to make sure you know what you're paying for. Even though I couldn't stay at GB&B, I just can't recommend it based on what happened to me. Your experience may be different, and I hope it is (a 4.9/5 rating means people like the place! hence my originally wanting to stay there), but I won't risk it again because I want to come back to Florence, which I fell in love with. Next time, and there will be a next time, I'll just pay more and stay at a hotel with the highest rating. I'll of course make sure that they hold on to my reservation and don't overbook. ;-)

We loved staying at Gianna’s B&B. We were looked after very well by Giovanni and he couldn’t do enough for us. The place was very clean, had everything we needed and the breakfast was lovely. He was very helpful and provided us with assistance whenever needed. A little gem of a place for exploring Florence.

Very comfortable stay, with the B&B being close to the main sights. Wonderful service and attention, with the hosts going beyond to make our stay as comfortable as possible. Room was spotless, breakfast provided was good and accommodated our Vegan requirements. Highly recommended for couples and small families.