Il Dolce Sospiro

We had a couple of nights here this week - found it in the end after a lot of faffing about thanks to some rather bad navigational tips from Google Earth! It's about a good 25 minutes stroll from the station - when we did arrive, there was no sign to say that this was it - but a quick phone call solved this. Our welcome was friendly, despite language differences, but it was fine. Quick note here: Booking.com say they take 'plastic' - no they don't, so make sure you have enough Euros on you. If not, they are prepared to wait until you have been into the centre and found a cash machine. The room is accessed via an outside stairway (slippery when wet) but watch out for the handrail as it's still under construction! The room itself is very nice, quite big and clean, as is the bathroom. The bed was quite good but pillows were a bit odd. Shower is good, too once you work out how to drive it! There is also a mini fridge and kettle - if you want coffee take some with you. There is also a small balcony to sit out on which is nice. Now a couple of things to think about: firstly, the long walk to the centre - it's not awful and you will get a taste of 'real' Italy on the way which is rather nice. Next up is that you are about 20 yards from the railway line and lastly (but good if you like planes) the end of the runway at Pisa is not that much further on! Yep, from around 7am until 10pm planes mostly take off overhead and are still quite low at this point. Not terrible but a bit loud... Breakfast is by means of complimentary cards for the local bakery - Nandos - with coffee and croissant: very nice people there and it's fun to be a local as it's a popular place. The owner is very nice and helpful plus she let us leave our bags there (in the shed) on the last day, which was handy. All in all, a nice place to stay - would recommend.