The St. Regis Florence — Restaurant in Florence

The St. Regis Florence is a Disneyland-style experience where you can pretend to be an aristocrat at a luxury hotel in some foregone golden era before the invention of climate control.

It is indeed a beautiful building with a rich history (it was once an actual palace, I'm told), but everything about it screams "archaic." This might be what you enjoy, but it certainly wasn't my cup of tea.

We got upgraded to a suite, and the room itself was certainly palatial and "gramworthy." Unfortunately, the room looked out over a rather unappealing alley full of trash bins and pigeons. Worse still, the building's pipes could be be heard clanging throughout the night, the water in our room had an awful rusty and sulfuric odor, and there was unsightly calcification on the faucets and the shower head. A final gripe on the room was the air conditioning, which kept the room either freezing cold or unbearably hot, but never anywhere in the comfortable middle. I will say, however, that the bed was extremely comfortable, and despite the problems with the AC I still slept great every night.

The attitude here is very much "we must force our guests to have an interaction with a member of our staff to accomplish any task, no matter how trivial."

Rather than simply issue you a key card like any other hotel, for example, you must drop off your one singular room key at the reception desk every single time you leave, and then ask for it again when you return. This provides numerous opportunities for their staff to interrogate you, and interrogate you they will.

Mind you, the key is just an electronic fob. But for whatever reason, they've attached this fob to the most impractical old-school key dangle thing to play make believe that it's still 1920, and perhaps more importantly, to prevent you from being able to stick the key in your pocket.

At check-in they insist upon leaving your bags with a bellman. "I'd rather carry it myself, thank you," I told the gent, but he took my bag from me anyway over my -- rather direct and explicit -- objections. He then insisted upon giving me a full tour of the property that I did not ask for and did not want.

They're very proud of their "Signature Butler Service." For the life of me, I can't figure out what I would actually use this for. At other St. Regis properties, you can call the butler to bring up complimentary tea, which is one useful thing, I guess.

I called down for tea at the St. Regis Florence, and I expected my "butler" to arrive with a nice pot of brewed tea with some cookies on the side. Instead, some guy from room service showed up with a carafe of hot water, a cup, and a few assorted tea bags. Oh, and he also brought me a bill -- 8 euros!

The restaurant / bar (the "Winter Garden") is absolutely beautiful, and an impressive setting in which to dine. Unfortunately, the breakfast there is mediocre at best -- a self-service buffet of unremarkable cold cuts and some fruit that didn't taste particularly fresh. They had an omelette station too, but no menu because again, they just really want you to have to talk to their staff. A lot. The bar is ridiculously overpriced, but otherwise ... fine.

Oh, and the toiletries they provide were absolutely horrendous with the most noxious, terrible smell! They made my skin itch (I don't have sensitive skin), so I wound up buying some off-brand one-dollar shampoo and soap from a pharmacy nearby, which were far better than the awful toiletries they provided.

On the brighter side, Ombretta and her husband were a delight to see every morning in the restaurant and certainly my favorite members of the staff. Extremely friendly and welcoming, and likely the highlight of our stay.

In summary: If you just really hate money, then this could be a good opportunity to throw some of it away. We stayed here for half-price, got upgraded, and still felt that it was a terrible value. Your...

My husband and I stayed at the St Regis in Florence based on the multiplicity of excellent reviews only to find that while the room was luxuriously appointed. In direct contrast to most of the reviews stating that the service was amazing, the key people in charge of the experience we had were abysmal.

Good: Welcome at check-in: very friendly. Rooms were lovely and had good amenities.

Bad: Everything thereafter, it was not at all friendly. WiFi was not usable. This was a working vacation but the connection was non-existent. I would have called for help when I realized this except the service was so bad (below) before this, it didn't seem worth it to be sneered at.

The butler service couldn't be bothered to offer help when I called; the general manager had to be contacted.

My feet were terribly swollen from walking back to the hotel in the heat and because I'm pregnant. When I explained this and asked for help in obtaining Epsom salts he directed me to the nearest farmacia, the directions to which he'd give me when I came downstairs. He couldn't even offer to check with the spa to see if they had something so simple.

If this was an average hotel, I certainly wouldn't have expected more than that, but this is the St. Regis and "no request is too big or small" is plastered everywhere.

The Concierge on the desk for both days of our stay was judgemental and rude.

I could see the staff fawning over other guests who clearly expected personalized service and attention but our basic requests warranted him turning his nose up, sniffing, muttering imprecations under his breath at me. All I had done was ask for a couple bottles of water since I was having trouble staying well-hydrated between the hotel and our next stops.

I allowed for the possibility he was having a bad day but he did this twice in two days, being almost pleasant until he was asked for something, then visibly reacting negatively. I can't think of any other hotel that allows their Concierge to insult their guests right to their faces for any reason, much less something as insignificant as water on an excessively hot day.

Housekeeping and turndown service do not wait for an answer to their knock. They just walked right into the room on three separate occasions, intruding on my husband and me during our grieving the news of a death in the family, which management had been made aware of. I found this terribly rude and intrusive.

Poor response: I contacted the hotel by email after check out. Two days later I have only received an automated reply.

This particular booking was an award stay as I often use that as a trial for whether to return as a paying guest. And perhaps that was the crux of the problem, perhaps this staff felt that award stay guests aren't worth their time and effort. Whatever the reason, I'm disappointed to say that I don't expect there to be a next time with the St. Regis Florence.

Chances are very likely that given how little the hotel cared about our experience, we wouldn't ever recommend choosing the St Regis Florence, nor, quite likely, any St. Regis; it's simply not worth it when we are treated as welcome guests at all our...

The St. Regis Florence has recently been renovated. The status of this hotel has been elevated to the level of world class hotels. We found only comfort, hospitality, and high quality at the St. Regis during our stay. Here are some of the highlights: Location- The hotel is next to the Arno River and within walking distance of all the major attractions, including the train station. Renovation- The hotel has just undergone a complete renovation. It's beautiful! The lobby, restaurant, and rooms are stunning. We were given a suite on the second floor with butler service. Our room was picture perfect with frescos throughout. We had two bathrooms and a view of the Arno. The bed was one of the most comfortable. Service- Checking in was a well timed event. After providing passports and credit card, we were taken to our room where we were greeted by our personal butler. Concierge and maid service was outstanding. Attention to Details- Everything in the hotel was picture perfect and way above standard. The bedding, Bose System, two large TV's, furniture, closets, and bathrooms were top notch. The overall service provided was some of the best we have ever received. We love the butler "anytime" coffee and tea service. The following are some helpful hints while in Florence: Walk to the hotel from the Train Station if you're able. It's about a 10 minute walk. Head right as you exit the station and toward the Arno. Take a few day trips from Florence if you're there for more than three days. Try WalkaboutFloremce.com for a trip to Cinque Terre or Tuscany. Some high points you should not miss include David at the Galleria de'Accedemia, Duomo, Pitti Palace, Biboli Gardens, Ponte Vecchio, Ferragamo museum, & Uffizi. If you love shopping and a bargain, take a shuttle to the Outlet Mall. The shuttle will pick you up/take you back from/to your hotel and allow you three hours of the best bargain high-end shopping in Florence for a 25 Euro driving fee. You leave at 9:30am and are back by 2:30pm. Enjoy the beautiful quaint hotel lobby and delicious restaurant. Make sure to have a signature Bloody Mary. Sit outside in the small hotel front terrace if the sun is shining for good people watching. If I had to provide one constructive comment to the hotel it would be that the hotel has lost some of it's old world charm in the renovation. The use of stark white throughout the hotel from the charm of old world architecture. Softer and richer tones would add to the ambiance that Firenze exudes. Overall, this is one of the finest Starwood...