With 'stunning views' over Florence and the surrounding hills, this family friendly hotel 'couldn't be faulted' by a visitor.

Until the 1940s a holiday home of the Italian royal family, this rectangular pink 19th-century villa retains a 'charming air of gently fading elegance', says its nominator.

Set in a 15th-century stone manor house on a hillside ten minutes' drive above Lake Garda and offering 'spectacular views of the lake', this hotel prizes tranquillity above all else – even eschewing the hum of air-conditoning for antique fans and minibars for a civilized self-service bar.

'Wholeheartedly recommended' by Guide readers, this elegant four-star B&B hotel is on six floors, with lovely terraces and splendid views ('even from the bathrooms'), and located high above the sea (there are 300 steps down to lovely Incanto beach).

Overlooking the Arno, between the Ponte Vecchio and the Uffizi, this 'very peaceful' B&B hotel has 'marvellous views of the duomo'.

In the city centre, this Renaissance palace is now a 'beautiful and gracious' hotel with 'stunning' lounges filled with antiques and art treasures, and neo-classical drawings and sculpture by Giovanni Duprè, an ancestor of the present owners.

'Our favourite small hotel in the world,' said one GHG reader after his fourth visit. 'Its position, above the town, gives it the feel of a private hideaway.

Built in 1808 by the King of Naples (who was married to Napoleon's sister) as a summer residence, this townhouse hotel is located in the centre of Positano.

This small Tuscan hilltop hotel, much loved by Guide readers over many years, has been owned by the famous Della Robbia family since the 16th century.

The Sersale family's summer home was turned into this spectacular hotel in 1951, and is still run by descendants of the original brothers.

The highlight of this 11th-century restored palace is the infinity pool – heated to a warm temperature year-round, and located at the highest point in Ravello, it has incredible views of the Amalfi coast.

Set in the quiet Cannaregio district, this 16th-century Baroque palace, formerly an aristocratic family home, boasts gorgeous, individually-decorated rooms and suites with frescoed ceilings, 18th-century antique furniture, handmade silk wallpaper and Murano chandeliers.

'Well located', at the foot of Via Veneto, this historic building is within easy walking distance of the sights of ancient Rome, 'and the classy shopping streets'.

A former haunt of English noblemen, this B&B is a conversion of two pink colonial-style villas once owned by Sir Daniel Hanbury.

Run for many years as a hotel by the Barbaro family, this former medieval convent, founded by St Francis of Assisi in 1222, has long been popular with Guide readers.

Hotel Casci isn't fancy, but considering the location (150m from Florence Cathedral) the rates are very reasonable and the owners, the Lombardi family, pride themselves on being some of the friendliest hoteliers in town.

Much loved by Guide readers, Rodolfo Gattai's B&B is in 'one of Florence's loveliest squares', 'easily reached from all directions.'

'Excellently located', this 'beautifully kept' B&B hotel has been run for many years by its owners, the Bechi family.

In a quietish street near the Piazza del Popolo, this Art Deco hotel opened in 1925 and later increased its size by extending into an adjacent building.

This small town (famous for its marble sculptures), with wooded hills behind and sea stretching out in front, is a 30-minute train ride north of Lucca.

The location of this stylish new hotel (it opened in 2015) couldn't be bettered – it's 100m from Florence Cathedral and in easy walking distance of the city's major sights.

This hotel, set in an art deco villa on Amalfi drive, offers a genteel, old-fashioned charm, and has been in the same family since it opened as a hotel with six rooms in 1904.

John Ruskin stayed in this pensione on the Dorsoduro in 1877. Now owned by Marc Sibuet and Regina Segre Amar, who promise 'discreet service and peace', it faces the Giudecca canal.

A stone-clad 19th-century nobleman's residence, modelled on a 14th century fortress, Villa Carlotta, perches high on a cliff above the Ionian Sea, with stunning panoramic views…

High on a cliff, the pink 12th-century palace of the Sasso family, now a 'very fine hotel', has 'spellbinding views' from its terrace over the Amalfi coast.

Located in the centre of Capri but surrounded by beautiful landscaped gardens, nearly all of the rooms at this peaceful family-owned and run boutique hotel have sea views and terraces or balconies.

On the north side of the Borghese Gardens, this luxury hotel is decorated in Art Deco style, with jewel tones, period details and floor-length curtains.

Suite Dellavite is not a hotel, but instead a centrally-located collection of seven different studio apartments, most of which are spacious and feature kitchenettes with fridges.

You can see the remains of Pompey's theatre (55BC) in the breakfast room/bar of this small hotel run by the Cavarocchi-Mignoni family.