Villa San Michele, A Belmond Hotel, Florence

We're considering Villa San Michele in Fiesole as one of our Florence options alongside St Regis and Four Seasons for our Italy trip.

For our October Italy trip covering Rome-Tuscany-Florence, we're looking at three or four nights in Florence and Villa San Michele is on our shortlist. We're food and wine people in our 30s without kids, and the Fiesole location appeals to us for the setting and views, though we're still weighing it against the city center convenience of other options.

Our stay was simply excellent with everything perfect — views, service, and food — plus the ideal blend of resort quiet with city access.

I love how the hotel organizes shuttles to and from Florence's city center, allowing us to visit landmarks during the day then return to the beauty and quiet of the hotel each evening. It's immersed in greenery yet just steps away from the center when you want it, creating the perfect balance between resort relaxation and urban exploration.

We were taken aback by unprofessional and unwelcoming reception — one staff member questioned our presence with an obtuse attitude.

Despite explaining we were local guests exploring the possibility of dining or staying, we felt unwelcome and the situation resembled a scene from Pretty Woman. After being begrudgingly shown to the garden terrace, the staff's lingering stares and shocking initial greeting prompted us to leave early. For true five-star treatment, I'd recommend Villa Fiesole instead.

We visited for dinner and were blown away with the Secret Garden views of Florence — the perfect venue for a proposal where I said yes!

I booked the Secret Garden for what turned out to be an unforgettable evening in 2020. The service was amazing, the food outstanding, and the views of Florence created the most romantic atmosphere imaginable. We hope to visit this idyllic spot again someday, as it holds such special memories for us now.

Beautiful hotel with spectacular setting, but the restaurant was hugely disappointing with rude staff and forgotten birthday arrangements.

Our reservation went wrong from the start, and despite multiple calls with Sofia Medina about my mother's birthday cake preparation, no staff congratulated her and no cake appeared. The restaurant staff was very rude — clearing plates before everyone finished eating and asking 'can I keep the rest?' when taking our cash payment, which was extremely disrespectful for a restaurant of this caliber.

This is the best hotel in Florence — you could go to Four Seasons for frescoes, but Villa San Michele has everything in one luxurious hilltop location.

I found the position perfect and the gardens like heaven, with a heated, clean pool and six-star level services throughout. The food and atmosphere in the restaurants and bars are just perfect, and the value for money represents Florence and Tuscany at their absolute best. It's a compact luxury experience that delivers everything you could want.

We wondered if Four Seasons Florence was really worth it at €2,350 per night, especially compared to our experience at Four Seasons Taormina last year.

While it has beautiful pool areas, the pool wasn't heated so it wasn't useful in mid-October. We found the 10-minute walk to the Duomo more of a nuisance since we were constantly going back and forth, and would have preferred a closer city location. Perhaps if we'd gone in summer when we could enjoy the pool and grounds more, our perspective would have been different, but we preferred Taormina at a similar price point.

Villa San Michele is truly remarkable, set on hills above Florence with spectacular views, though I prefer more modern design to the classic Italian style.

I found the peaceful setting away from city crowds to be a major advantage, and the complimentary shuttle service made getting into Florence quite convenient with proper planning. The breakfast was outstanding in both quality and presentation, with incredibly friendly staff providing detailed food explanations. The real highlight is the hotel itself — the historical architecture combined with beautifully maintained gardens creates an unforgettable atmosphere where I could easily spend entire days exploring.

We were enchanted by the spectacular views, terrace drinks, pool lounging, and dinners under stars on the loggia.

I was particularly impressed by how the wonderful staff were always available when needed but respectfully maintained our privacy when we didn't require assistance. The jazz concert on the terrace was a lovely touch, and the variety of spaces — from the terrace for cocktails to the intimate pool area to the romantic loggia dining — created multiple magical moments throughout our stay.

We've stayed at Five hotels in Florence and after two visits to Villa San Michele, it's become our number one despite the prices doubling in five years.

I've compared Four Seasons, Il Salvatino, Lungarno, and Villa Cora to this property. The location with views is spectacular, the restaurant excels at every meal, and our apartments near the pool with small gardens struck the perfect balance of space and intimacy. The pool area maintains wonderful privacy, and staying here creates a particular 'feeling' that's hard to replicate elsewhere.

My family's stay was exceptional in every way — the property, dining, breakfast, service, accommodations, and transportation all exceeded expectations.

I want to thank the entire staff for their dedication to outstanding service. Every aspect was top tier and beyond what we expected. The facility itself is stunning, the pool area perfect, and the breakfast service particularly impressive. We'll definitely be recommending this resort to all our friends and family after such an unforgettable experience.

This is by far one of the nicest hotels I've ever stayed in — everything was perfect and meticulously maintained.

We found the perfect blend of quiet exclusivity with easy access to Florence's attractions. The hotel grounds are like heaven, with every detail meticulously cared for. The pool is heated and pristine, and the service feels like six-star quality. Special thanks to Mateo from the pool bar and Elenda from the pool grill who took exceptional care of us throughout our stay.

Our 10th anniversary stay delivered breathtaking views, outstanding food, and truly exceptional service that made it unforgettable.

I can't recommend this hotel highly enough for anyone seeking excellence in Italy. From arrival to departure, every staff member we encountered was attentive and knowledgeable, with what I'm sure is an equally capable supporting team behind the scenes. Sofia and her team gave us a truly memorable anniversary celebration that exceeded our expectations in every way.

As a loyal Belmond traveler with high expectations, this hotel exceeded them in every way with outstanding service and authentic Italian cuisine.

I had exceptionally high expectations as someone who travels frequently with Belmond properties, and Villa San Michele surpassed them all. The staff was attentive and warm from arrival to departure, going above and beyond with personalized care. The authentic Italian food with simple, quality ingredients was excellent — the pizza is absolutely a must-try. The energy and atmosphere were perfect throughout our stay.