Stay.

Unlike many hotels in the city of Michelangelo that opt for a faux-Renaissance look – all heavy brocade and dark antique furniture – the Continentale (hotel.qantas.com.au/continentaleflorence) is a stylish bolthole overlooking the Ponte Vecchio. Architect Michele Bönan has fitted out its 43 rooms and suites in a light, airy idiom that unites 1950s chic and Mediterranean minimalism. The cherry on the torta is La Terrazza, a rooftop bar that feels like a Chianti-shire villa balcony airlifted to Florence.

Another fine terrace – this one with a view of Giardino Torrigiani, Florence’s most extensive private garden – runs along two sides of AdAstra (adastrafirenze.it). Currently the city’s most desirable boutique hotel, it was opened in 2015 with creative input from the husband-and-wife team behind upscale B&B SoprArno. With 14 rooms (up from nine after five were added in September), AdAstra is a glorious meld of stately and bohemian.

San Niccolò is still waiting for an accommodation option that channels its new hipster status but until one comes along, traditional three-star Hotel Silla (hotel.qantas.com.au/hotelsillaflorence) is a good-value, comfortable base from which to explore.