Ciao a Tutti,
Some of you have asked how I choose a place to stay when I travel to Italy. Hotel? Airbnb? Bed & Breakfast? With friends?
Generally, in comparing long stays in hotels, bed & breakfast spots and Airbnb, there is no contest pricewise. A fairly decent hotel can cost somewhere in the area of $150 a night. That in itself can add up pretty quickly, but you're also eating all of your meals out. Bed & Breakfasts are often a little cheaper and include breakfast, but are still up there in price. Staying with friends - I say if it works for you, go for it. For me, it's just not my jam. I enjoy being free to do my own thing and not have to check in with anyone. Conversely, I also don't like people staying with me, for much of the same reason. Plus, I have a thing about sacred space and I just like having it all to myself....unless of course my guest is tall, dark and handsome....then the 'subject to change' option kicks in. LOL.
My stays in Italy generally average a few weeks. Therefore the winner for me is....Airbnb. Pricewise it is the best. You can negotiate the price depending on length of stay & time of year, sometimes down to $55/$60 a night! For me, it also provides a home base where I can leave the bulk of my stuff and travel to other cities with a small bag. More importantly though, it allows me to LIVE in Firenze instead of just visit. I can cook, have dinner parties & friends over, make my espresso in the morning, and do all of the daily things that make me a part of the community. Patrizia Fiorentina!
A few helpful hints when looking at apartments in Italy:
- Look at a map of the city to see where you'd like to stay. Do some google searches on the neighborhoods that catch your eye. For me, I love the Oltrarno in Firenze. It is away from the craziness of the city center, but close enough to get to when I crave the cray cray. Plus it's where many locals & artisans live, and that enchances my experience.
- Always add a floor to what's listed. So if it says you're on the 2nd floor, it's actually the 3rd floor. Remember most of the time these are very old palazzos and they do not have elevators, and the stairs are deep stone steps. I have 28 of them in this next trip. The way I see it, more P's & G's for me: Pizza, Pasta, Prosciutto, Prosecco, Gorgonzola, Gelato - you see where I'm going with this right!
- Wifi for me is key as I blog each week and I have a heavy presence on social media with my photographs. So be sure to ask how the wifi is because it can get very tricky.
- Always look at the photos of the bathrooms! I can't stress this enough. I'm always suspicious when they don't show a photo. Years ago I had an apartment that had a dedicated broom with a rag tied to it in order to push the water out of the hallway, back into the bathroom, and into a tiny hole in the floor. Not kidding.
- You may get offers to do the deal outside of Airbnb for a larger discount. I would not recommend it.
- Also look at the map to see where your apartment is. I see listings sometimes saying "steps away from Ponte Vecchio" when I know it's not near the old bridge at all. And maybe you don't want to stay steps away as it can be very noisy at night.
- Which brings me to - download a sound machine app onto your phone, just in case. It can be a little noisy regardless of where you're staying. To help me sleep I use the (free) app White Noise Ambience Lite.
- Last one: it never hurts to ask for a discount. In all of my apartments that I've rented, I've always gotten a reduced price.
Ok peeps, I hope this helps. Click here if you're interested in checking out Airbnb. And if you have any questions, feel free to write me. Also, I invite you to take the journey with me by following me on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter - links above. The journey begins in September! Buon Weekend & Big Love, PatriciaG
Morning coffee & girasoli.....Via San Niccolo, Firenze, May 2014
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