We booked the hotel at the last minute and got an expensive (420 Euro) room that was VERY large and plush, but with no view--it was on a small courtyard or large frescoed lightshaft, depending on your point of view. While I would have preferred a room on the Arno River, which is next to the hotel, this was very comfortable and blissfully quiet.

Florence is relatively small, so it is easy to walk places, and the train station is an easy 10 minute walk away. The ground floor hotel restaurant is quite good. We had a delicious prix fixe lunch there for a reasonable price. The breakfast is rediculously expensive, but it IS a luxury hotel. It was 50 Euros for two people for the continental breakfast. It would have been 39 Euros each for the hot breakfast, including omlettes and french toast made to order.

The concierge and front desk were helpful and solicitous, as you would expect at this level of hotel. They were also able to book us (for a surcharge) for a visit to the Academia (which had long lines when we arrived). Tickets to the Pitti Palace (which we had no trouble getting by simply walking up) and the Uffizi (much more difficult to get) were also available. I'd suggest booking the Academia and Uffizi before arriving at the hotel, particularly in busy months.

We stayed at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Florence for 3 nights in March 2007 using Starwood points; otherwise, we would not have been able to afford the room. I am not sure what I reserved but our room was at a top floor with two balconies overlooking the Arno and the areas behind it. We couldn't have stayed in a more beautiful setting.

Everything about the hotel was gorgeous. Our room was spacious with ornate details and materials. The marble bathroom was awesome. I could sit on the toilet in the morning and watch the sun bathe the hills in light through the balcony; it made the experience surreal until my girlfriend knocked on the door and tells me to hurry my [-] up. Hahaha!!!

We woke up each morning relaxed and ready to go. The bed was Starwood comfy (they always have nice beds), and we were able to close the curtains and shut out any lights from the outside.

The only drawback was the ridiculous buffet breakfast -- 35 euros per person. Ouch! We ended up doing as the Florentines do and grabbed our cappucinos (1.50 euros each and we each needed two cups every morning), croissants and pastry from around the corner for a fraction of the cost.

We certainly got what we paid for. The location was great. There is a Westin across the piazza, but in my opinion, this hotel and especially if you can get a room on the Arno side is a better choice.

Stayed here three nights as part of a tour of Italy and found it to be a fairly nice, elaborate haven in the hectic city of Florence. After walking the city's narrow streets, it was relaxing to return to this hotel percehd along the Arno and facing a square. My main squeeze and I were fortunate to be assigned a massive suite that overlooked the Arno and was blessed with nice paneling, canopy bed, and ornate furnishings. Bathrooms were small, but functional. I'm not a big fan of stately old European hotels which often are raggedy and lack amenities. They assume that the traveler will spend his time in the piazzas and streets of the cities and not hang out in their rooms. Which is valid, but at night you have to come inside and I like to read before I go to sleep, but the lighting in the rooms is dim. Bathrooms are small and eccentric. But all in all, this is probably one of the best places to stay in Florence, so I don't want to overdo my criticisms. By the way, the food was great as were the dining rooms.

I stayed here in the hot summer of 2006. It was a very nice hotel and close to a majority of everything. The rooms were among the biggest I've stayed in through my stay in Italy. I spent 3 nights here. The rooms were very opulent with huge canopy beds. The staff was very friendly, especially the Conceirge. They reccomended a few night clubs which were a lot of fun such as Mecano and Central Park. They also reccomended a place for dinner called Pandemonio which was so incredible we went back every night. Typical environment with a "mama" and the best food! It had a very pretty view of the river. It was also close to my favorite, Harry's Bar so it was nice to grab an afternoon snack right there. It is located in a tiny square with the westin across the square. I would definetly reccomend this hotel to travelers through Florence.