Which hotel location in Florence?

Check out the Heart of Florence B&B. Good location not far from the train station and all the major sites. I don't have the web address but stayed there this past fall for 5 nights. Just google the name.

You can clearly make either work for you. The Tasso is only 1.5 km from the train station and they give excellent directions on how to take the bus. I'm not a fan of shared bathrooms, but obviously you can make it work if you need to. Cabs are easy and cheap, too. We often take a cab on arrival in a new city if only to avoid problems finding our lodgings the first time.

Remy,

Be prepared to walk in chilly rain. You may need a rainsuit, umbrella, hat, and waterproof shoes/boots.

If you do any walking at all at home, you will find Florence to be a very compact city. And every bit of travel is going to be full of wondrous sights and delightful moments. Either choice of lodging should work well. I'd opt for the Oltarno.

The Uffizzi is highly recommended. Buy tickets in advance if you're planning to go. Most other places are probably not going to have much of a line.

There are two very good market areas in Florence and you can save a ton of money by buying food there or in a grocery story, as opposed to dining out.

Have a great time.

I don't know the specific hotels/hostel you have mentioned, however being from Florence, simply based on location, between the two I would choose the one on Via della Scala hands down. The portion of via della Scala where that hotel is located is next to the Carabinieri school and is within the ZTL, therefore very little traffic. I don't know what makes you think that area is not pretty, you are just steps away from Santa Maria Novella, arguably one of the most beautiful basilicas in Florence.

The hostel is not conveniently located and is not even inside the city center, and it's quite a walk from everywhere, except for Piazza del Carmine. Via Villani is quiet, but viale Petrarca is very busy.

Having said that, you can search plenty of places on Booking.com or Venere.com where you can find cheap accommodations this time of the year. Just click the boxes on the low price ranges, if you are budget conscious.

For five nights in Florence, if you want to get a little adventurous--not really--you could investigate renting an apartment.

It was our second trip to Florence, in March of this year, and we had never done VRBO or AirBnB or anything like that, domestic or abroad. But we figured to take a shot, hoping to get a little immersion as well as saving a few bucks at the same time.

What an experience--we had a second-floor apartment through VRBO overlooking the Piazza Santa Maria Novella (the 15th-Century basilica was out our window), 1 block from the Florence SMN train station. Met the owner on schedule late afternoon at the apartment after our train arrived from Switzerland, got the keys, paid for the five nights upfront, etc., and we were on our own. Paid about 40% less than a comparable hotel, around 100 Euro/night. And for a solo traveler, you probably could do better than that for a studio apartment.

Freedom in a foreign country is exhilarating. We found a nearby grocery, laundromat, place to deposit garbage on the square, enjoying ourselves immensely. Daily trips to the Mercato Centrale for prosciutto, cheese, wine, honey and fruit were wonderful indeed. If we had wanted to, the train station was mere steps away for daytrips but we just wandered for five days, kind of deluding ourselves that we were Florentine.

Consider this option if you dare! :)

Traveling alone, I would pick Hotel Montreal. This area is busy with lots of conveniences. I've stayed in the area before and enjoyed it. And it is an easy walk from the train. Your other hotel is not only across the river, but quite a distance away from the river so I wouldn't bother. I don't mind sharing a bathroom when it is a private/single bathroom. I'm kind of over shared, multiperson bathrooms which are in many hostels. Either one would work fine, however. But option two would be a longer, colder walk. Wray