| | Facilities within the Property |
 Gianna's has no formal facilities - no restaurant, bar, concierge service etc. A generous, freshly-prepared Continental breakfast is served in your room at the time of your choice. We make every effort to satify our guests' requirements but we do not prepare cooked English-style breakfasts. |
 Please let us know in advance if you have special dietary requirements or prefer something a little bit different for breakfast. We are happy to make informed suggestions on what to see and do in Florence and where to eat; we can book your visits to the Accademia and Uffizi art galleries. |
 Please note that both galleries are closed on Mondays and that it is advisable to book at least a month in advance for visits in April-June and September-October; we make the booking for free. If you require a booking please specify the number of tickets and your preferred day and entry time! |
| Property Facilities Summary: |  Luggage Storage | Private City Tours | | Ticket Reservation Service | | | |
1. Restaurants
- "il vegetariano" round the corner in Via delle Ruote; cheap & cheerful self-service.
- Trattoria da Mario in Via della Rosina just off the Piazza del Mercato; great steaks, good selection of Chianti wines, go early or late to avoid long queues.
- Cafaggi in Via Guelfa; family-run restaurant, typical Tuscan food, quieter atmosphere. Delicious and good value.
- Taverna del Bronzino in Via delle Ruote; wonderful food, interesting wine-list & excellent service.
2. Shopping facilities
Gianna's is in a part of the historic centre not entirely dominated by tourism so the shops are utilitarian rather than high fashion.
On the other side of Via S. Reparata there is a little shop selling pottery beautifully hand-painted on the premises. There are book shops in the next street up, Via San Gallo. Round the corner in Via delle Ruote is a supermarket, "Il Centro" and a fruit and vegetable shop; behind us in Via S. Zanobi there is a bicycle hire shop and a good bread shop. In Via XXVII Aprile there is a hairdressing salon where some English is spoken, a well-stocked, organic food shop and a chemist. The high-fashion shops in Via Tornabuoni and Via della Vigna Nuova are a twenty-minute walk away.
3. Museums within a five-minute walking range
- Cenacolo of S. Apollonia - on the corner of Via S. Reparata & Via XXVII Aprile there is a beautiful affresco of the Last Supper by Andrea del Castagno in the ex-convent of S. Apollonia.
- Museum of St. Mark in Piazza S. Marco - in the Dominican monastery built by Michelozzo in the 15th century there are altar paintings and affrescos by Fra' Angelico and others. Peaceful, beautifully maintained museum & rarely over-crowded.
- Accademia in Via Ricasoli, just off Piazza S. Marco: home to the statues of David, St Matthew and the prisoners by Michelangelo so usually very full!
Most of the paintings are altarpieces: especially beautiful are those by Lorenzo Monaco upstairs.
Just up the road from the Accademia (going towards the Cathedral) is an ice-cream shop (gelateria) which sells wonderful granita - crushed flavoured ice.
- Cloister of the Scalzi in Via Cavour (next to the post-office) with affrescos by Andrea del Sarto.
4. Museums within a ten-minute walking range
- Church of SS. Annunziata in Piazza della SS. Annunziata ; in the same square Brunelleschi's Foundling Hospital, an early Renaissance masterpiece with the beautiful terracotta roundels depicting babies. The Hospital has an interesting collection of paintings, open to the public.
In the same square the only Renaissance palace in Florence with a brick façade. Just up the road in Via dei Servi is Robiglio, a cake and coffee shop; a pleasant choice for a quick lunch too.
- Archeological museum - a couple of minutes beyond Piazza SS. Annunziata.
- Church of S. Lorenzo, the Laurentian Library and the Medici Chapels. The "Old Sacristry" by Brunelleschi, another very important example of early Renaissance architecture, is well worth a visit; other highlights include an exquisite marble tabernacle by Desiderio da Settignano and the bas-reliefs decorating the metal ambones.The Laurentian Library with its vestibule designed by Michelangelo is another jewel of Renaissance architecture.
5. Theatres
- La Pergola in Via della Pergola - fifteen-minute walk or take a taxi.
- Comunale in Via Solferino - thirty-minute walk or bus to the station and then fifteen-minute walk or taxi.
- Teatro Verdi in Via Ghibellina - twenty-minute walk or take a taxi
There are often concerts in the church of S. Stefano al Ponte (near Ponte Vecchio). |
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