Okto

I'll be staying at this property in the next few days for the first time, and I have a question for those who might've had this experience: I booked a standard room with points, and then applied some SNA's to the reservation. Five days out the hotel confirmed an upgrade to the Junior Suite, so I'm excited about that.
However, while reviewing the description for the junior suite, I noticed that it's classified as a "Smoking" room. I poked around on spg.com and it looks like there is no non-smoking suite option at this property. Is that correct?

Are the standard sized rooms the only non-smoking option at this property? I wouldn't want to give up the upgrade and lose out on the SNA's but if the smell is too strong I may not have a choice. Thanks.

Forstbetrieb

If I remember correctly all the suites are smoking. There was never strong smell in one of mine over the last years. But I don't know the junior suites.

portishead

Hello, for previous guests of this hotel...does the A/C (air conditioning) work well here?

If not, any recommendations for good A/C, and non-stuffy hotels in Rome? Our only previous EU trip in August was unbearable. High temps and weak A/C in Stockholm.

Flews

I've had suites on three separate occasions, and if they were smoking rooms, I never knew it. Plus, the windows opened, so lots fresh air.

Cheers,

niteowl94

I've stayed here a few times in regular rooms and suites and the A/C was never an issue.

bocastephen

Is this hotel located in the EU45 flat rate taxi zone from FCO? Is there a less expensive airport bus option that is door-to-door to/from FCO?

bgriff

When I was at FCO last week I think the flat taxi fare signs said €48, but yes I believe the hotel is in that zone. I don't know of any direct-to-hotel buses. There are lots of buses that run from the airport to Termini station for around €5 each, cheaper than the €14 train (though also slower and less comfortable), but it is a walk from Termini to the hotel. It's doable--I did it with a large suitcase on a hot day--but it's a hilly 20 minute walk and I was very sweaty by the end.

Of course you could also bus or train to Termini and take a taxi from there; not sure how much that taxi costs.

bocastephen

Thank you. The taxi would be about US32 per person for two of us, and would probably save us an hour or two getting to the hotel and we want to maximize the rest of the day we have in Rome (arriving about 1230P). On the way back we will probably take a taxi or hotel shuttle to the station and the train to the airport.

Okto

Yes, the hotel is within the "Aurelian walls" of Rome, which, as far as taxis are concerned, is a requirement to qualify for the flat fee.
Make sure, however, that you board a white "Comune di Roma" taxi at the airport, otherwise the fare can be higher. Luggage fees are also included in the flat rate.
Taxi ride from the airport to the hotel is 45-60 minutes depending on traffic.

bocastephen

Thank you!

floridagal23

We had a very nice stay at the hotel in mid may. I booked the st regis on spg points (2 rooms) but switched over to the westin based in some reviews here and the slightly better location. We checked in, almost had to wait for both rooms to be ready, but the front desk must have seen the cranky on my face and we were upgraded into an enormous two bedroom suite so no need to wait for each single room to upgrade. Much appreciated after a long day of work followed by a transatlantic flight to rome. Hotel was nice, rooms spacious and sitting room enormous. Hotel staff was pleasant and my only complaint (not at all) was that my parents' room never unlocked into the open sitting room and we never bothered to correct it.

bocastephen

Just back from a somewhat disappointing stay at this hotel. While the location can't be beat (easy walk to Barberini Metro) and the staff really do appear to try their best, I found the following issues:

1. Assigned to a Junior Suite - check-in delayed considerably due to late departing Plat guest (OK, it happens - I want my late checkout too sometimes), and we just asked for a regular room but the desk agent insisted our Jr Suite was beautiful, huge and worth waiting for....so we did...expecting something fabulous.

The room was very old. Now I know the hotel is older and uses traditional, local furnishings and design, but I mean the room was old. Cracked walls, peeling wall paper, overworn carpet, etc etc. Very disappointing - what's worse, we walked by an open non-suite room one morning and the room appeared in much, much better condition than our suite, so we should have just taken the regular room.

2. Incorrect Billing - the confirmation stated a rate of US180+10k pts for C+P however the account at checkout showed a very different rate, so a case was opened and we departed without settling the final charge.

3. Maintenance - the jacuzzi tub included with the suite would not hold water, but repeated calls for maintenance did not result in anyone coming to the room so we gave up

I wouldn't call it a bad stay, but there were some significant issues that diminished the quality expectations. I do know that we were happy that we switched to the Westin from the too-far-away Sheraton Roma Hotel, but I expected more for 180+10k pts per night - this isn't the Four Seasons I know, but still....

jibi

We are here now and I must say that this is the most disappointing hotel in our four-city trip in Europe. We were upgraded from a Deluxe Room to a Gran Deluxe Room (not suite). There was a Gran Deluxe Suite and Jr. Suite available as we walked into check-in. We were told no suites were available. When I looked again, the Gran Deluxe Suite had been removed on the web (although it was available for the following 3 nights). I didn't push the issue.

This puts us in our room.

This has the old Westin Heavenly dual shower heads (YAY!), but they appear to be too powerful for the drain. By the time I finished taking a short 4-minute shower, I was essentially standing in a half-full tub of water. I called down to have a technician sent up to take a look. That took about 45 minutes. He came in, removed the adjustable stopper (which was up the entire time), and "fixed" the issue. This was not a problem, as we definitely would NOT take a bath in the tub. The only other issues in the bathroom were one of the hand towels has a giant hole in it (as if a dog took a giant bite out of the middle) and one of the branches on the cosmetic decor is missing.

The hard product in the room is certainly aging. The ceiling in one of the corners of the room entrance is broken/rotting. The curtains smell moldy. The bed, which is two twins as a king, has one mattress taller than the other and no connector. As others have mentioned before, the TV cannot be watched from the bed without moving the minibar cabinet a few inches off the wall and turning the TV sideways.

Room service for a bucket of ice has taken 30 minutes on average. I have had to call down multiple times on each occasion.

On the positive side, they gave us a bottle of champagne while we were out for the night on our first night. The location is within 1.5 miles of most major tourist attractions, but that 1.5 miles can be quite tough - a couple hills, a lot of crowds, a variety of surfaces (cobblestone, large rocks, smooth surface, Rome road crossings, etc.).

This is NOT a 4-star hotel based on the quality of product or service. It may be a 4-star hotel based on historic reputation and common areas, but that's all I've seen. It is certainly not the 5-star rating I've seen on various sites. It should likely be a Category 4 hotel... certainly not a Category 6 hotel.

bgriff

Categories do not equal stars -- categories are driven by cash price. And since this hotel commands high cash prices, it is a Category 6.

Flews

No offence, but it's hard to take your complaints too seriously when your criticisms include things like this. Too each their own I guess. We've walked for hundreds of hours through the streets of Rome and loved every minute of it.

Cheers,