Florence

Jane, to get you started I'll link some previous forum suggestions but whether one would be a favorite for you is going to depend on your budget and desired amenities:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/any-suggestions-for-hotels-in-florence

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/where-to-stay-in-florence-and-lucca-too

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy-reviews/hotel-recomendations-for-florence

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy-reviews/recommend-hotels-by-train-station-in-florence

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/budget-hotels-near-the-santa-maria-novella-train-station-in-florence

I'll also suggest doing a search on www.booking.com for accommodations that fit your specifications; be sure to browse the reviews on that site for those you are interested in.

We enjoyed our stay at this one some years back, and some folks who'd stayed there on our recommendation reported back that they'd had a great stay there too. I'm pleased to see that it's still getting high marks from most of their guests!
https://www.booking.com/hotel/it/hotelgiglioflorence.html

Thank you Kathy. I have been on booking.com - use it often. I am hoping to hear others personal favorites. I'm looking for 3 or 4 star hotels. We have been to Florence a few times and absolutely love the city. We will be spending a week in the countryside of Tuscany then back to Florence for a few nights before heading home. Just wanting that perfect last stay!

I loved Florence too, and am so jealous that you'll be seeing her again before I do! :O)

This review is from 1986 (!), and the hotel has been completely renovated and is now an NH brand. But the Porta Rossa was for decades a lovely if elderly superior-tourist-class hotel. Every room was different, and back then, the bathrooms had flip-down water-covers for the toilet paper because the whole bathroom was the shower. There were no window screens, but lots of windows. Street noise was not bad at all. I suspect that the rooms are still very different from each other, but I would strongly consider it after doing current research.

We go in a couple weeks, but I am very excited for our balcony room at Antica Torre di Via Tornabuoni 1. I hope it lives up to the photos and reviews!

We just stayed at Hotel Pendini in June and enjoyed it. Great Air conditioning (upwards of 100 degrees outside), wonderful breakfast included and excellent location.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions!