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Air bnb in Florence or Tuscan Hill Towns?

We're looking at going sometime in mid-October to November and for the first time interested in an Air BnB. We know there are issues renting these in Paris, but are the decent resources in Florence, or any of the smaller Tuscan towns? Any other suggestions of where to rent from? We will be three to four adults on this trip and we would like a minimum of a two bedroom place. Thanks!

Posted by
321 posts

i use air bnb exclusively for my trip to italy. confused by your question. if you want to avail of air bnb's service you can do so only on their website. on the other hand, if you are looking for bnb's in general then yes you would have to look elsewhere. on my recent trip i stayed in pistoia, arezzo, perugia, and ravenna while in central italy. all were rooms in people's homes. i am a solo traveler so even a single bed is perfect for me. sometimes i had a private bathroom and at other times shared. air bnb is very detailed, easy to navigate, and has many features like maps and a chat function for hosts and guests. google air bnb and see if it works for your needs. good luck and happy travels.

Posted by
1880 posts

Keep in mind if you decide to stay in a smaller town, make sure there is bus or train service, unless you will have a rental car. Based in Florence, obviously you have access to lots of train and bus service to explore further. If you just want to vacation in one spot, plan on a taxi or transfer service to get you there and back.

Posted by
1369 posts

Where we stayed in Florence for 5 weeks and loved it --- you can read all the great reviews, including mine from October 2017. Silvia, the host, lives in the building and has another very similar apartment on a lower floor.

Silvia's Le Rose Siberine apartment: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/10826925?source_impression_id=p3_1659364717_b9ja9Slx6R%2FAL34L

I don't know what issues you mean. We also use Booking.com sometimes, but prefer Airbnb even though it is slightly more expensive. Never had a problem with Airbnb in almost 50 apartments. Very, very carefully chosen apartments --- so, do your homework.

Posted by
1156 posts

Issues in Paris meaning apartments have to register with the city in order to be allowed to rent, and then only so many days out of the year. Big fines for unregistered apartments, and lots of last-minute cancellations at times. Didn't know if Italy was cracking down on this like Paris is. Without the registration # issued form the city, the are then considered illegal rentals and they city goes after the owners.

Posted by
827 posts

I make it a point to only rent via SuperHosts on AirBnB. The filter selections as far a # of guests, bathrooms, etc. on AirBnB work very well.

Posted by
2097 posts

Ellen makes a good point about transportation.

We considered an Air BnB outside of Siena when we went to Tuscany, but ended up at an agriturismo. I suggest you look at that as another option. We had a great time and our countryside agriturismo worked out great as a home base.

It boils down to the kind of experience you want. You can stay in a city like Florence with jaunts out to the countryside and small towns or do like we did, enjoying the relative calm of the countryside and making trips to the big cities. We've done both, with staying at an agriturismo in Tuscany and staying in an Air BnB near the heart of Loches in France. Both were wonderful experiences, but fundamentally different.

If you do choose to stay in Florence, don't rent a car. Driving in Florence isn't fun and parking can be an issue.

Posted by
3938 posts

We stayed at this Airbnb in 2019 and loved its location. https://abnb.me/dznGhS1oasb We debated about a countryside location with a pool but in the end chose city center and I’m glad we did. People could come and go more easily any time of day for walks, museums, shopping, refreshment and the train and buses were nearby if we wanted to take an excursion somewhere else.

Posted by
5 posts

Also check Agriturismos as well. We stayed in one outside of Florence, breakfast included, worth the look.

Posted by
258 posts

I use AirBnB, Booking.com, VRBO, and also rental agencies like Summer In Italy. You can also google "vacation rental agency Italy" and get other ideas. Sometimes you will see the same apartment for rent across multiple sites, with varying fees. I don't insist on "Super host" but multiple (more than 10) reviews is a VERY good idea. I break that rule occasionally but triple check the details before committing. VRBO is the riskiest for fraud IMO, so no reviews there = no rent for me. Have fun planning!