Hotel recommendations needed for Florence, Orvieto and Amalfi Coast for bad backs....

I wish I could remember the little place we stayed in Florence so I could recommend it for you, but it was 5 years ago and I don't think its in Rick's latest book. I'm sorry.

Here's the advice I do have though:

1. You are correct, Italian beds do tend to be firm (at least compared to the "sleeping on a pillow" kind I experienced in the Alps/Germany!) But its worth noting that sometimes a firm bed can be helpful for a sore back, provided you and your muscles are relaxed enough when you fall asleep. (See #7 below).

2. I highly recommend selecting a hotel from Rick's Italy book, but choose ones in the higher to mid price range (whatever your budget allows)...they'll afford you more comfort. Rick does a great job indicating which ones are located on a quiet street and which ones have beautiful antique furnishings and the old world charm you're looking for. I've also found "cozy" in his descriptions is often synonymous with "comfy."

3. Lots of the hotels in Florence have rooms overlooking little gardens or terraces and some even have views of the duomo - I recommend booking by calling the hotels and letting them know you'd like a room with a view. As long as you are booking well in advance you'll be able to get the rooms with views. Online booking sites rarely give you an option to select a specific room and often have higher pricing than you'll get when calling a hotel directly.

4. Every single hotel I stayed in during my visit to Italy had ensuite bathrooms. (And this was 5 years ago so I'm sure your chances are even better now). I think the "bathroom down the hall" issue is not really an issue anymore like it used to be. (Hooray!) Especially in the 100-150 USD per night price range I doubt you'll encounter any "bathrooms down the hall". We averaged 100-120 USD per night for our visit and overall the hotels were very comfortable.

5. Look for opportunities to reduce walking. I look at it this way: by spending a bit more for a centrally located hotel I'm saving both money (no need for a bus or taxi ride) and I'm saving precious time (which is priceless). The times when I tried to be thrifty and pick "out of the way" hotels I inevitably got lost along the way... and that usually ended up being stressful/painful/exhausting.

6 Know that it may be impossible to find a location that meets all 8 criteria you're looking for - so look for opportunities to be flexible, and decide which 4 of those criteria are the most important. I usually opted for a hotel on a quiet street over one with a view and I opted for one that was centrally located over one that was under budget...your choice of compromises might be different than mine but there's always opportunities to be flexible and still have a great night at a hotel.

7 When all else fails, and I'm faced with a harder-than-I-like-it bed... its just an ideal opportunity to have an extra glass of wine with dinner and I usually sleep just fine.

Comfort of harder or softer beds is probably too subjective for any review site to tally. I'd agree that Italian beds tend toward the firm, as was common in the selection of hotels on my recent tour. Rick's book will occasionally mention any beds that are out of the ordinary. I've always found his listings to be honest about various trade-offs. View, quiet, and under $150 sound like a difficult trifecta to achieve in any popular spot. Street noise comes from a variety of sources, not necessarily from cars can be people out late and talking (or banging drums in the case of Siena), or garbage trucks or emergency vehicles working.

Angela, you will see lots of people with alpine-type trekking poles, I am trying one out for a trip this summer. That might give you a little more support if you need to climb some stairs or an incline.

We stayed at the B and B Ripa Medici in Orvieto (this October) and loved it, which is also reflected in all the reviews seen on the internet. We paid $80 per night with a lovely breakfast in the host's dining room The bed was comfortable, private bath with some room for toiletries, adjoining shared kitchen with one other room, spectacular view from our window of the valley (it is right on the city wall, quiet, free internet. There is one flight of stairs. Photos on trip advisor and booking.com.

In Florence, we stayed at Casa di Annusca which is in Oltrarno, just across the Arno from all the tourist areas and rented through Cross-Pollinate.com. $80 Euros per night with great breakfast. Nice room with a view of the garden (may not be blooming in March), good bed, roomy bathroom, common area shared by another room but there is a flight of stairs.

We would definitely stay again at these places. We are in our 60's, husband has had a knee replacement, I have a bad back and did fine.

We loved Hotel Antiche Mura in Sorrento. Not all rooms have a "view" but you can ask. We overlooked a gorge with ancient stairs and walls. It was very quiet. Cannot beat the location, has an elevator, is charming and an abundant breakfast. As to the bed, well I don't remember anything except sleeping well! In March it might even fit your budget. The current exchange rate will help!

Firm!?! Just say it, mattresses in Italy are as hard as rocks!

Thank you all for your responses. We appreciate all of the guidance, and a couple of laughs! This is a bucket list trip - so despite physical limitations - we know we will have a wonderful time!