Casa Howard Concept

A new standard in the accommodation industry

We can proudly say that we have established a new standard in accommodation. We believe that Guests deserve a better service and hospitality at a good price. By better hospitality we mean treating You according to Your needs & wants. By better service we mean a personal touch in everything we do.

"Casa Howard is not a hotel and is not in the hotel category (e.g.: we do not have a doorman, nor do we provide porters). Each Casa Howard is a beautiful private house (whether an apartment, palazzo or farmhouse) which gives personal service, and where some typically "hotel" ideas, methods and services have been borrowed". We may not provide for a concierge service but we have created these exclusive guides to help you plan your Rome and Florence trips.

"It's like staying in a friend's house" - as guests you get the keys of the house, in case you come in late. In Florence you will also be able to use the TV room-library, the Turkish bath and the patio when the owners are away (not the kitchen because there are excellent restaurants of every type everywhere around).

"Clients are always people the owners know or introduced by previous guests. Word of mouth is our policy". Member Guests (guests that have previously stayed at Casa Howard) have a priority booking channel.

"Why are you one-of-a-kind?" Well, our guesthouses are private homes and our guests are only introduced by other guests - yes, we aim to accommodate special people in special places.

A little history of Casa Howard

Casa Howard was established in the year 2000 by Jenifer Howard Forneris, a name already well known in the world of High Fashion since her father is the famous textile designer Luciano Forneris.

Five rooms were opened in the year 2000 in Via Capo le Case, close to the Spanish Steps. In January 2003 five new rooms were opened in an historic palazzo, also close to the Spanish Steps, in Via Sistina 149. These last five have been redecorated by the same architect - Tommaso Ziffer - who also did the interior decoration of Rome's most cool grand hotel, the Hotel de Russie.

In 2005, a new Casa Howard was opened in Florence with the help of turinese Architect Fabrizio Cuniberto. This new Guesthouse is right by the Piazza of Santa Maria Novella. The guest house has 10 rooms, 1 small apartment and 2 suites. This extremely comfortable guest house has, according to the classic Casa Howard formula: an excellent personal service, a fantastic location, competitive prices and a homely atmosphere.

Not So Frequently Asked Questions

Quality vs Price? No! In our case we offer quality lodging and a fair price.

Loyalty? We have a unique offer for our registered Members: ‘pay 1 Euro less every time you come back!’ This formula aims to reward and preserve the standard of our wonderful clientele, which in 94% of the cases finds us through word of mouth!

Boutique hotels? There are now plenty of 'boutique hotels', or fake private homes in which everything is created for commercial purposes - In our houses we only feature authentic furniture, objects and memorabilia.

Small is better? Yes, but did you know that small websites like ours are being penalised in the search engines? Therefore you simply cannot easily find small quality lodging on the internet. We hope one day the big Internet players will address the matter of quality versus size.

Fake reviews? Many people may post fake reviews on review-sites like Trip Advisor - sites that aim to mass gather comments with no truth verification whatsoever. Note how negative comments are always anonymous and so guesthouse owners like us cannot deal with the complaint effectively. In our experience, in 99% of the cases, negative reviews are posted by people who were denied discounts.

Exclusivity? A word that is very abused these days! The Casa Howard membership means priority booking and also access to the "secret city tips" section in our website (only people who have stayed at Casa Howard can become members); At Casa Howard we offer our guests really exclusive presents that cannot be bought - for example our home-made olive oil from Tuscany and our custom made ecological shopping bags; We also have low season price treats - and they are really appealing we should say!; Our rates do not vary according to markets whims, therefore you can be sure you'll never be cheated at Casa Howard!