B & B's in Italy or....

Sometimes I want a 24/7 staffed front desk, especially in larger cities or at the beginning of a trip.

That said, some of my happiest stays have been at B&Bs, some of which I return to every year.

A hotel I like very much in Roma is Hotel Fori Imperiali Cavalieri. Close to bus stops and to the Colosseo, and very reasonably priced.

B&B or small hotel, at either you will find someone to give you advice for at least part of the day, which is nice. We like B&Bs on occasion because you meet other travelers and share stories. B&B hosts tend to be very chatty, too, although in Italy they will not always speak much English. At a hotel, you are more likely to encounter English speakers on staff, if you care. It's always nice to have breakfast prepared for you.

If we are somewhere for 4 or more nights, we get an apartment so we have some space and also so we can prepare a few meals. Usually apartment hosts also offer themselves available for advice, although clearly they are not present daily so it's not like you can have a chat every morning.

Well, for 5 destinations (or are Florence/Tuscany considered just one?), either way please consider a minimum of 14-17 nights. If you're experienced, you probably know this. Fly into Milan or Venice, out of Rome. No need for a car.

As stated above, B&B's are a mixed bag. Do your research online, especially with TripAdvisor, where you'll get the gamut of reviews from gregarious and also shy travelers. If the consensus from those reviews say the host was great, then it's pretty much a do. And I suppose part of that decision-making process is whether you want to meet other travelers or not. No right answer. At a 3-room B&B in Salerno, the first couple we met were forgettable, they left and the elderly couple that replaced them--from Chicago like us--we became fast friends with and actually met up with them in Rome this past February. So it goes both ways.

Or...you can get an apartment. Another quasi-crapshoot. We've done it twice and have been happy both times. In Florence--gotten through VRBO--we got the keys from the matriarch who spoke almost no English, and that was the last we saw of her. At our apartment at Campo de' Fiori in Rome, it's owned by a nearby hotel, so we had them at our disposal--though we didn't need it--and had daily maid service as well, which was great. Even though our little 2nd floor flat was small, it was still tons better than a hotel room, and had a little fridge that we could stash our fruit, cheese and prosciutto bought at the markets, for the next morning's breakfast. Made the trip a real adventure!

Enjoy your planning!

I prefer B&B's or small family-run hotels. I research accommodations by reading posts/looking at traveler's photos on trip advisor as well as finding the location on Google maps/streets. I find that contacting the B&B/hotel directly by email helps build a connection with the owner right away, although I am careful not to overwhelm them with too many questions. Note, that sometimes B&Bs accept cash only and since they are a small, independent business the cancellation policy my not be as flexible.

Mimi, I use apartments exclusively now, I could not go back to hotels or a B&B unless for maybe a night. Here are the places I've stayed in the past, one of them a B&B, a small hotel in Rome run by a lovely family (the room we had was tiny but there may be larger rooms available?), plus an unadvertised 'zimmer frei' in Sterzing/Vipiteno (charming town but may be out of your way).

Rome: http://www.hotelgiuliana.com/location.php Saint Angel apartment at http://www.silviosholidayhomes.com/

Fiesole (Florence): B&B Le Cannelle https://www.bed-and-breakfast.it/en/tuscany/le-cannelle-bb-in-fiesole/13755 Large room.
Highly recommend Fiesole for your stay in Florence.

Miasino, just up the road from Orta San Giulio on Lake Orta: http://www.villaallegra.it/ Friendly old couple. A beauty of a building with eclectic furnishing. We stayed in Casa Clo, with its own raised patio. We usually base on the edge of a village or small town, with amenities close by on foot, but this place was a bit more remote. One fantastic little restaurant about 100 yards down the road. Small menu, just the way I like it, cheapish wine.

Mezzegra, Lake Como: http://www.casadelportico.it/ Again, a nice couple. We stayed in the apartment (small but better than just a room) and they have rooms as well. Mezzegra is not much to write home about but is close enough to everything on the lake by bus and boat, as well as close to Lugano and Bellinzona if you have a car. Lenno, just down the road, has a couple of nice restaurants. Driving is not very pleasant around the lake

Montepulciano: http://www.fontecastello.it/ Again, lovely owners. We rented the converted barn with its separate patio. A fifteen minute walk up hill into town, a breeze walking back. We once rented another property in Montepulciano which is no longer on the market. A great town.

We are probably of similar ages to you; I planned our first trip to Italy which was last October. I found small hotels in Venice and Florence which provided breakfast which was worth it for us. We want more than a roll and coffee for breakfast. We stayed four nights in each city.

In Venice I picked Ca' San Trovaso in Dorsoduro. A quiet location on a charming small canal. They brought your breakfast on a tray in the morning. In Florence we stayed at Hotel Casci, a friendly hotel (with elevator) that served a full buffet breakfast. Just down the street from one of the Medici palazzos where Michelangelo and Leonardo hung out; we found that exciting.

We finished with eight days in Rome, so I rented an apartment there in the Campo di Fiori neighborhood which I thought was a great location.

For me four nights is the minimum in a city to get a feel for it. (We started out with one night in Pontresina Switzerland and one night in Varenna which took care of our adjustment days.)

We've stayed in both full service hotels and b&b's and enjoyed both experiences. It seems this is a six of one and a half dozen of another decision.

We have good friends that live in Ariccia, which is an hour south and east of Roma. We always stay at a beautiful b&b called B&B Il Melograno. We've become good friends with the owners and we do things together when we are there. I called my friend Nello and he found this place in 2007 when I ran away from the USA to escape from the hassle of a divorce. I first spent two weeks there and now we return regularly.

If you use Tripadvisor and the booking.com to cross reference a place you should feel confident of your choice.

Go and have fun.

BUon viaggio,

Thank you so much everyone! The links to hotels and B&B's especially helpful. I love the planning almost as much as the actual vacation. I do a spreadsheet with where we are staying, costs, contact info etc. Based on the information, we will defintly take our time; it's what we have at our age. Grazie!

If you stay in rural Tuscany with a car, then an Agriturismo or working farm accommodation is a popular choice, several search engines online. Convent and monastery stays are also an option in Italy, usually on the simple side.

I really enjoy staying in convents while I'm in Italy! They can be a great bargain. I love that they are personal, are often in beautiful old buildings, and meals are often communal. I'm sending my 19 year old son to Italy in September for two weeks and have him staying in convents in both Siena and Florence that I have stayed in before...I don't think I'm paying more than $40 a night with breakfast included (single occupancy of course). In Siena the convent/hotel we like is Alma Domus and the one in Florence is the Case per Ferie Suore Oblate dell Assunzione. Both are centrally located, clean, and great little places to stay!

Anita - glad to hear the Florence convent is nice - wife and I will be there next year !

There's a Free APP for that BED•AND•BREAKFAST.IT link appearing above. Go to the APP Store and search for B&B, it's the green icon with Studio Scivoletto in small letters. It lets you search by regions, cities and towns, and points of interest. And it has a location service if enabled in settings.