Sienna Advice

Hi,

I see that you mentioned two hotels, but I would also like to share an inexpensive option. We stayed at Hotel Chiusarelli, Viale Curtatone 15, Siena, SI 53100 Italy during a Rick Steves Northern Europe trip. We're going back to Italy this Fall and wanted to return to Siena. That hotel is available through Expedia for under $100, including breakfast.

By the way, that area prefers their bathtub/shower combo with no shower curtain or door, but a regular stand-up shower has a shower door.

You will love Siena!

Thank you, I e-mailed this Hotel and I did not receive a response from anyone.

We had an unpleasant experience at the Hotel Duomo in Siena. It may just have been a bad night but teenagers roamed the halls until 3 AM. No one from the front desk did anything. I do not know anything about the other hotels in Siena.

I had a very nice stay at Albergo Bernini this past October. The accommodations were very comfortable, and it felt like being an independent guest in a family home. The terrace overlooking the principal sites in Siena was a special treat. I enjoyed sitting out there by myself in the late evening, when the public buildings were illuminated, and had breakfast there in the morning. The location was quite central in terms of being central to Il Campo, the Duomo, the market, and the bus and train stations, easily able to walk to all of those.

I should add that I was scheduled to stay two nights at Albergo Bernini, but on the way to Siena, my train and other transportation from the south was blocked by a downpour and flooding, and I could not arrive the first day. I communicated my problem by e-mail, and Daniela was very kind to hold my room and not charge me for the night I could not arrive, even though the room went empty and she certainly could have charged me for my reservation. She was very friendly and helpful in guiding me on how to spend my reduced time in Siena.

If you are driving, Hotel Minerva is at one of the city gates, has on-premises garage parking. Some rooms have views of Siena's skyline, it's about ten minutes to walk into the city. Breakfast is included, parking is extra.

Thank you, we will be traveling by train from Venice to Florence for a day trip then off to Sienna for three nights by bus.
Does anyone have advice for us regarding the quick stop in Florence? We have been to Florence before, but wanted to revisit a few sites.
Is it easy to travel by bus to Sienna? I am having a difficult time getting the bus schedule to convert to English.

I guess I don't understand why you would sleep in Siena and day-trip to Florence. I've spent weeks in Florence and there's so much to do, so many sites. I took a day trip to Siena, and felt a day was enough. I intended to return again and spend days in Siena, but after being there for a day, felt I'd seen it. This is just MY opinion. (also to her surprise, my best friend had the same opinion) To me, it was a lovely small town, with one pretty piazza, but I just didn't "get it."

Florence, on the other hand, is a transportation hub, and there are many day-trips you can do from there, including Siena by bus. You can also do wine tours, etc., from there, and pretty much see all of Tuscany without a car. If you have a car, you may enjoy staying in the countryside and day-tripping into Siena and Florence, but Florence by itself deserves three whole days, IMHO.

Siena is pretty, but to me it was on the same level with the Spanish Steps in Rome, that I'd longed to see for years and years, and sang the song, "that's all there is?"

Just me.

You make a very good point. As I am researching and reading Rick Steve's book and trip advisor many people suggested Staying in Sienna, but I think i'll research some nice places to stay in Florence and then decide.

It gets a little over whelming trying to divide our time up and not waste so much time with transportation.

The first time we went to Florence (for 7 days) we rented an apartment. We were there visiting one of our kids studying at the University there. We went to Accademia, Ufuzzi, Santa Croce Church/leather shop. Did some 'student things' and took a day trip to Siena. Roamed the piazzas at night, listening to the acapela opera singers, enjoyed the beautiful fountains all lit. Took the kids for a nice big Florentine Steak! Emjoyed the Pitti Palace and Ponte Veccio. We were busy all week!

Second time, also a whole week, did day trips to Siena, SanGimigano (sp) Fiesole. By bus. Saw sites we'd missed the first time, like Midici Palace (awesome) and of course re-visited the famous David at the Accademia. They'd added many more antique musical instruments to the half of the museum that was formerly very small. Revisited
Santa Croce Church, which I LOVE that contains the graves of DaVinci and Michelangelo and others. The first time it was under construction, and this time it was finished. We also went up the hill to the Piazza Michelangelo as recommended in RS book for a sunset drink with the fabulous view of Tuscany. (That was the only day we had good weather, so no roaming around romantic piazzas this trip)

We did not do a wine tour due to rain, and I've always regretted it. Fortunately when we went to Sicily, we had a fabulous wine tour there.

So, what I'm saying is Florence can keep you busy all by herself, but it's just so easy to get to other Tuscan towns from there, including a wine tour (look on TA) eliminating the need for a car.

We stayed in Siena for a week and loved it. We had a rental apartment and two small children with us and loved the pace of the town, the restaurant options and the variety of sites. We day tripped to Florence, Pisa and San Gimigiano. Florence was nice, but felt like most biggish cities with lots of art. We enjoyed just being in Siena but most of its charm came in the slow moments. We like Europe for its way of life, and less for its art. I suspect many of its charms are missed on a six hour trip in to see the duomo and il campo.

Check out the Hotel Alma Domus. It's run by nuns and has some of the most amazing views in the city. Very reasonable prices, clean and central.
http://www.hotelalmadomus.it/

Well, we LOVED Siena... and LOVED staying at Palazzo Bruchi -- http://www.palazzobruchi.it/
Camilla Masignani is a lovely hostess. The breakfast room is stunning and the hot croissants plus ham/cheese/yogurt/fruit every morning were fantastic! It is quite easy to get a bus from there to Florence for day trips. It takes 1 hr. 15 min. and trips are frequent. We stayed there four nights out of 12 spent in Italy and had no regrets. While in Siena, we also took a day trip into the Tuscan countryside with Rick Steve's friend Roberto which was wonderful too. See: https://sites.google.com/site/toursbyroberto/home/about-us.

Heidi, we never got to Siena, however I was so impressed by the credentials and reviews of Siena Walking Tours that I bookmarked it for the next trip to Italy. Her name is Costanza Riccardi, you may like to see her site- http://www.sienawalkingtours.com
I am a firm believer in guides, if even for a short time.

Best, Dave

We stayed four nights at the Albergo Bernini last year and loved it. My Mom and Daniela bonded over cross stitch. It's true that you can do all of Siena is a day but we considered those four days as the vacation from our vacation. We were in Italy for three weeks and Siena was in the middle. We side tripped to Voltera one of the days we were there.

Here is another vote for Albergo Bernini. As Larry mentioned I also enjoyed the view from the Patio Terrace for breakfast and with some wine at night. I stayed there 5 nights this past year and am booked again to stay there in August. We felt like part of the family as they helped us to get places on our daytrips and make dinner reservations for us.

The bus is the best way to get to Sienna, because it drops you in the old city, and you can walk to your hotel. We loved the Albergo Bernini. You cannot beat the views from the Terrace, where we had breakfast each morning and wine each night. When we went, we stayed two nights in Florence and two nights in Sienna, then took another bus to Rome. I'd recommend at least one night in Sienna. The Duomo is magnificent, and the city is beautifully lighted at night. It is all walkable, and the after dark ambiance is wonderful. The passagiata is fun, and the gelato is the best we found anywhere in Italy!

By the way, Albergo Bernini has shared bathrooms, but there are 5 baths for 8 guest rooms, so there was never a wait, and all were clean.

Jan B

We stayed at a vrbo rental while there, but we ate just around the corner from Albergo Bernini at Osteria La Chiacchera and enjoyed it so much we went back a second night.

I always stay at the Albergo Bernini. Can't beat the terrace view, close to bus stations, good restaurants on street behind the hotel. I love it.

You can request a room at the Bernini with a private bath. I have done that and always gotten a room with a private bath.

heidi,

I'd also recommend Albergo Bernini, as it's in a great location, the rooms are very comfortable, the breakfast terrace is awesome and the owners are great. Whether the breakfast is an extra charge, you can be sure you'll be paying for it anyway even if it's "included". I'm never concerned about that sort of thing.

Happy travels!