Calm, Charming City Oasis

Guest: Jane H. (Somers, New York)
Date of Stay: 11/01/07 Review Submitted: 12/19/07

My family loved this space, an oasis in the midst of the busy city. It sparkled, it's artistic, it's comfortable, and the location is absolutely central. The kitchen was equipped just enough, including sharp knife, good pots, tea kettle, and colander. There's also a big tub in the spacious main bathroom. We felt like this apartment was a real find! [Note: I already submitted this review, minus a few details to the owner, who has posted it on the site, but I didn't think I should be penalized for promptness!}

Owner response:thank you so much

Recommended for:Tourists without a car, families with young children, sightseeing.

Perfetto!

Guest: Michael B. (Cape Cod, MA)
Date of Stay: 04/28/12 Review Submitted: 05/10/12

We have been using HomeAway for many years and Casa Caterina is far and away the best apartment we have rented. The pictures do not do justice to the spaciousness, warmth, and hominess of the actual space. What a luxury to have 2 bathrooms (and one with a double sink), a separate storage and laundry room, and a location that is ideal for exploring Florence. The apartment was spotless on our arrival and fully equipped as advertised. Casa Caterina is within a 10 minute walk of Florence's top attractions including the Uffizi, Accademia (David, the real one!), San Lorenzo, San Croce, the Ponte Vecchio, etc. There are also nearby food markets, restaurants, and, most important, great gelato. But, what sets Casa Caterina apart from other places are Caterina, Marco, and Filippo, three of the nicest people you will ever meet. They have created a warm and welcoming environment that has the stamp of their personalities. Marco is an architect and designed the space, and Caterina, a painter, has adorned the walls with her art. One of the highlights of our stay was getting to spend some time with Caterina and Filippo during our last night in Florence. I highly recommend Casa Caterina. The only concern I have is that they will not have space the next time I visit Florence!

Owner response:HI Michael, It's a perfect review, thank you so much. It was a pleasure to meet you and talk with you, and time it's really fly away. We are happy that you had great time and you found us and our home welcoming. We miss you and we hope to see you again, you are the perfect guests! Ciao, Filippo, Caterina and Marco

Recommended for:

Surpassed our expectations in every way.

Guest: scribblescribe (Red Deer, Alberta, Canada)
Date of Stay: 03/26/12 Review Submitted: 04/16/12

Casa Caterina is a true gem. We were blown away when we arrived and realized just how big and beautiful this apartment is. We'd read the reviews and had reasonably high expectations but we were amazed at just how great this place was. The owners have thought of every last detail to make their guests stay comfortable, convenient and inspiring. The artwork and decor throughout the space is excellent, the location is perfect -- a few minutes walk to the Duomo and yet still far enough away to be out of the "tourist zone", fully equipped kitchen, super clean, comfortable bed, huge master bathroom, the internet connection worked flawlessly... it simply was a perfect stay and has made us firm believers in VRBO (although we don't expect all VRBO's to be as great as this one was). Caterina met us and was very lovely and helpful in getting us settled for our stay. After a long day touring the Uffizi and Galleria Academia we came back and enjoyed a couple beers, kebabs and baklava (from the kebab place just 2 minutes up the street) in "our" spacious & ultra relaxing living room. One of our favourite Florence experiences was our night out at the nearby Teatro del Sale where we were treated to the Italian gourmet feast of a lifetime (and live musical performance that followed the feast) by local celebrity chef Fabio Picchi all for a mere 30 euros each + 5 euro membership fee. Be forewarned, you'll likely be the only non-Italian tourists there, but if that excites more than intimidates you and if you've got an adventurous appetite and spirit, any experience here will be an unforgettable one. p.s. When you make your reservations the day before (and you'll need to in order to get in) and they warn you not to eat lunch that day... listen to them, or suffer the consequences. The quality and amount of food will astound you. We saw a great gypsy klezmer band perform the night we were there, but the entertainment is different every night, so could be a play, a band... I'm missing Florence and Casa Caterina already. We'll be back for sure.

Owner response:HI Jason this is the most amazing review we had, i don't know what to say, but i think thank you so much ti's the only think i can say. have a nice days ciao Filippo and Caterina

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, sightseeing, families with teenagers.

Beautiful apartment!

Guest: CB (South Florida, USA)
Date of Stay: 03/23/12 Review Submitted: 04/11/12

Casa Caterina was absolutely beautiful and huge! The pictures just don't do it justice - it was better in person...furnishings were comfortable, art beautiful, and very clean. We stayed with our 2 kids (10 & 13) and they loved having their own room. Excellent location (can see Duomo from the street) & we walked everywhere. Went to grocery store downstairs for breakfast items and Zio Gigi one night for dinner (waiter sang!). Washer and dryer was wonderful, but can't run them at the same time (we were warned, but forgot & blew the circuit, which was an easy thing to reset). No elevator/lift was not a problem, as we only had one bag apiece. The only downside was that at night it was extremely noisy...I had a hard time sleeping, but the kids didn't notice a thing and slept right through the night. We were there on a Fri/Sat, so I don't know if that made a difference. We would definitely stay there again!

Owner response:Hi Charlyn, thank you so much for the great review, we are happy that you felt good in our place; we are just sorry for the noise, there is no usually this kind of problem. anyway we hope to see you again in florence. thank you Filippo and Caterina

Recommended for:

Truly a gem

Guest: Tiel (Sydney)
Date of Stay: 12/22/11 Review Submitted: 01/14/12

This apartment looked great on the Internet but it is even better in reality. Caterina and Filippo were very helpful beforehand in answering my questions and Caterina was equally helpful when she welcomed us at the apartment. We were there over Christmas and appreciated that Caterina had decorated the apartment for us. It was very welcoming. I was there with my husband and two older teenagers. The apartment was spacious, light, and beautifully decorated with artwork. We ate some meals out but also enjoyed being able to use the well equipped kitchen. I loved shopping at the central markets for ingredients. Fantastic selection of food. The location was brilliant and we could walk to anywhere we wanted to go. We loved the museums and the climb to the top of the Duomo was definitely worth it. Florence is an amazing city and Casa Caterina was the perfect base to explore it. We will be keen to return to Casa Caterina.

Owner response:Dear Myra thank you so much for this great review, we are glad that you spend great time in our city and place. you also spend here christmas time that it's so great moment! thank you Filippo and Caterina

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, sightseeing, families with teenagers.

Lovely Apartment

Guest: yeliab (Parksville, BC, Canada)
Date of Stay: 10/06/11 Review Submitted: 11/10/11

We very much enjoyed our stay in Florence. The apartment is a lovely one, the only problem being the noise from the street below. I'd recommend that you take earplugs to wear at night! Otherwise the facility is great. The location is excellent and we were able to walk wherever we needed to go. Groceries are readily available at several nearby stores. We had a problem with loss of power a couple of times but since we'd been told how to turn it back on, it was easy to fix.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, sightseeing, families with teenagers.

Out of this world!!!

Guest: Pamela & Roy (Sydney, Australia)
Date of Stay: 09/15/11 Review Submitted: 10/23/11

When we found this apartment on the internet we were totally knocked out by the size, stylish design and layout. However it was nothing compared to the reality! As soon as we walked in we wanted to swap it for our lovely home in Sydney! Not only spacious and immaculate, it is full of treasures and wonderful art, much of it contributed to the lovely, creative Catarina. We could not fault this glorious home, from the spacious kitchen & batrooms, complete with everything you'd ever need and more, to the huge, comfortable bedroom with its large walk-in dressing room and en-suite bathroom. We also loved the stylish dining and living rooms. Catarina and Filippo were wonderful, helping us to find a doctor close by, and how could we have managed without Marco (Catarina's husband) who helped us with our luggage on our arrival and departure? The location was perfect - a minutes walk to The Duomo and right in the middle of everything. We had a supermarket next door with friendly, helpful staff, another across the street, and we were surrounded by restaurants. We would love to recommend a very special restaurant 3 minutes walk from the apartment, owned and run by the Hapsburg Lorena Princes, called "La Giostra". This was a real experience! Thank you Catarina, Filippo & Marco, we could not have had a better experience for our 2 weeks in Florence than staying in your outstanding apartment. We have already recommended it to everyone we know.

Owner response:Hi Pamela, Hi Roy, it's so nice from you to leave so great review and it was a pleasure to have you in our apartment. you spent with us 2weeks and it was great to help you to move in florence and to speak with you! un abbraccio, ciao, Filippo, Caterina and Marco

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, age 55+, sightseeing, families with teenagers.

Our wonderful home in Florence

Guest: D&J (Springfield, IL USA)
Date of Stay: 10/09/11 Review Submitted: 10/17/11

We cannot say enough good things about the apartment and the owners. We did email the owner with questions before we arrived in Florence and they were always answered promptly. Caterina was just finishing cleaning the apartment when we arrived. The apartment was spotless. Although Caterina speaks little English, she gave us a thorough tour of the apartment and any further questions were answered by her son, Filippo, by telephone. Filippo also was extremely helpful in arranging a taxi for us to the airport at the end of our stay. The location is wonderful and within walking distance of all major sites. The only downside is the street noise but you'll probably have that anywhere in the old part of Florence. We would highly recommend this apartment and we hope to return someday.

Owner response:HI Jordan thank so much for you great review; we are happy that you had great time in our place and that you enjoy your stay in casacaterina. thank you so much, and we'll wait for you when you'll come back :)! ciao Filippo, Caterina and Marco

Recommended for:Tourists without a car, adventure seekers, age 55+, sightseeing, families with teenagers.

Location, Location, Location!

Guest: Ilovetotravel (Woodcliff Lake, NJ U.S.A.)
Date of Stay: 08/27/11 Review Submitted: 09/14/11

Nicely decorated, immaculate, bright, sunny apartment with all the comforts of home (including Wifi, and for we Americans, air-conditioning!!) conveniently located one short block from the beautiful Duomo and walking distance to ALL of the sites, shopping and gelato in Florence. The owner, Caterina is a real sweetheart and is eager to answer your questions. She recommended the casual restaurant Zio Gigi, which is just around the corner. We had two wonderful dinners there and thoroughly enjoyed listening to the boisterous owner break into song, cheer his football team, and give everyone who walked in to his restaurant a very hardy welcome! Visit the two small grocery stores (we liked the one on the same side of the street as the apartment) and butcher shop on the block if you want to stock the refrigerator and cook meals in the cute, well-equipped kitchen. We spent two weeks in Italy and this was our favorite rental. We would definitely rent it again. So, what are you waiting for? Reserve it now before someone else beats you to it. It's a GREAT value!

Owner response:HI Madeline! thank you so much for your review, we always appreciate it, also when it's so wonderful! Caterina spend a lot of time to make our apartment like a home, and we are happy that people feel it! thank you so much for your time ciao from Firenze Caterina e Filippo

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, girls getaway, age 55+, sightseeing, families with teenagers.

Amazing Apartment!

Guest: Tourists From USA (Thornton, Colorado)
Date of Stay: 04/06/11 Review Submitted: 04/20/11

Thank you Filippo and Caterina for letting us stay in your beautiful apartment. We spent 2 weeks in Italy, and travelled all over, but decided Florence and your home was our favorite. The location is perfect, close to everything! We asked around and found an amazing Gelatoria (Vestri) within a 5 min walk from your place heading the opposite direction from the Duomo. It was so nice to spend the day exploring Florence and come home to a comforting apartment. Thanks Again!

Owner response:Hi thank you so much for this great review and you chose a really good geletaria :), one of the best in Florence! A big Ciao from Filippo and Caterina!!!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.