LLM

Yes. When we were there (2003) they had a non-smoking junior suite which they pre-booked for us with points. It was a separate living room and bedroom with fireplace, both overlooking the Via Veneto and a foyer and bath. Room number I think I posted somewhere on this thread or SPG, 205? 250? Anyway, reservations would know. I am allergic and can assure they kept this room pristine.

chrisdeaner

The GF and I will be arriving at FCO Friday morning and heading into town to the Excelsior...what's the best way to get there? I'm sure a cab is going to cost quite a bit...not sure if the hotel has some sort of shuttle service that can be arranged? I know it's possible to take the train but no idea how long that will take. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

dingo

I think your best choices are a cab, or a train and then a cab.

If you take the train plan on 30 minutes once you get on board. You will arrive at Termini, get in queue, take a cab and pay around 10-12 euro. There is no shuttle service for the Excelsior. I would advise against taking the train and then the metro as you will have to go up and down several flights of stairs to get there...I've done it and it isn't fun.

If you want hassle free, take a cab and pay more. If you don't mind buying a ticket and waiting for the train then queuing up for the cab, take the train and spend some time figuring out your first step. That first step might well be a trip right up Via Veneto to Harry's. Touristy? Yes. But stop in for a Bellini and really plot out your next step.

sfozrhfco

If you don't travel with boat loads of luggage, you can also walk from Termini. It is a 15 minute walk.

chrisdeaner

Appreciate the tips! Most likely we'll only have a medium size (too big for carry-on but not the "full size" style) suitcase each and maybe a backpack so walking from Termini isn't too bad of an option. I think we'll see how we feel when we land and make the decision then. Appreciate the tip on Harry's as well...thanks!

Tak

I still prefer taking taxi from airport or at least from Termini.
If you stay at St. Regis, you can walk, but quite a distance to Excelsior if you have two luggage per person.

cartman13

We hopped a cab from Termini to the Excelsior about a month ago. Was definitely the easier way to go. If you are walking make sure you have a decent map . Also know that it's not a flat walk. Excelsior is sort of on top of a hill. We thought about walking due to a long cab line, but don't think our rollers would have done so well on the cobbles.

Beckles

I wouldn't suggest walking from Termini to the hotel on arrival with any sort of luggage, not only is some of it uphill as I recall, it's pretty easy to get lost, which isn't a big deal if you're not lugging luggage, but if you are ... not so great.

kokonutz

I did train to metro. But the closest metro is still at the bottom of a windy hill...no fun with luggage.

Take a taxi from Termini. ^

gooseman13

We did this last week a few times. First time we did not have a detailed map and got lost. Afterwards got the hang of it, it's not too bad of a walk. We had rolling carry-on bags, I wouldn't try it with true suitcases. I probably wouldn't bother with the metro...either walk all the way or just take a cab.
It's pleasant when the weather is nice.

dingo

I agree with the cab from Termini, but there is always the Spanish Steps metro stop with the underground walkway with just a few flight of stairs as opposed to the Barberini stop at the bottom of Via Veneto.

chrisdeaner

So just got back from staying 3 nights here and wow, what a place. Got a plat upgrade to a very, very nice suite (#316, will post pics once I get them uploaded) overlooking Via Boncompagni which included a view of the American Embassy (nothing special, just sort of interesting). The room itself was spectacular, very large living room with very nice furniture, Bang & Olufsen TV (which is so over-engineered it's ridiculous) and a terrace to hangout on and look out over the streets. The bedroom was also very large with a King (possibly CA King, it was huge) bed and numerous cabinets and desks to use. Bathroom was also very nice.

The hotel itself is very well appointed with a really nice bar to hang out in. The gym was your average Westin gym and we didn't get a chance to check out the pool/spa area but it does have one and looked very nice in the pictures. We ended up getting a bottle of local wine for the Plat gift but they also had a set of two leather bound notebooks, one for taking notes about trips/places visted and one for wine. I would have chosen these if they had been blank pages (I've been meaning to pick up something like this for day to day notes for sometime) but didn't need the "pre-filled" style ones (but they were very nice if you're interested).

As for getting to the hotel from Termini we were pretty well rested and decided to walk. The map off of google maps was very hard to follow as not all streets have signs but we managed to get there in less than 20min and got to see some of the area on the way. Next time we'd definitely cab it or at least take the Metro A line from Termini to either Barberini (uphill walk, less than 10 min on Via Veneto) or to the Spanish Steps as previously mentioned.

For eating in the area, we checked out the previously mentioned La Bruschetta which was up Via Veneto about 2 or 3 blocks and down a street (alley?) to the right (the name escapes me but there is a big sign that says "Pizza" with La Bruschetta below it visible from Veneto looking down the streets). It was very good, and the head waiter was hilarious and made the experience very fun. More reasonably priced than the "upscale" spots up and down Veneto appealing to tourists who don't know any better and don't look down side streets. If you're looking for a quick bite/coffee in the morning make sure you order it and drink/eat at the "bar" inside any of the restaurants. Ordering at a table means everything is at least 3 times as expensive. There is a price list near the bar in each place that you can see for yourself but a standard double espresso is around 1.2-1.5 Euros at the bar and at least 3-5 Euros at a table.

All in all it was very much worth the 20k *points/night I used for it. However, I believe it is included in the latest free weekend night promo which would be a steal if you use that for this hotel.

Life_Platinum

My wife and I returned from a three night stay at this property using points. Initually, we had considered the LM Eden or the Westin Excelsior, the two Starwood properties we had not used in Rome, and favored the Excelsior because it required less points than the Eden and the reviews on this board were exceptional. We were very pleased, but next time we are in Rome, we would probably chose the Eden as we had not stayed there yet.

On arrival, the room that I had been assigned was available and we were led quickly to the room on the 5th floor facing the inner courtyard. Room 555 was a large room (not a suite) with a recently updated marble bathroom which in Westinspeak was a Deluxe Room according to the desk clerk. My wife who is a stickler on cleanliness checked out the bathroom and did not find any mold, and then checked out the carpet and was not able to find large dirty spots. However upon laying in bed, my wife pointed out that the ceiling paint was cracking in a few places and was about to start peeling, as if there was a recent flood from the room above. She also noted some fingerprints on the wall paper on her side of the bed. Neither these two problems were major for me, though, and I probably would not have noticed if she did not point out these small defects to me.

The concierge (especially Paolo) worked magic, returning our missing piece of luggage from our Air Malta flight to our room when we were out to dinner, making reservations at Piperno for dinner at the exact time we wanted after they did not respond to our emails from home, and suggesting how my camera battery might easily be replaced by sending me to a neighborhood battery store. He and others provided exceptional service to us during our entire stay. They did mislead us by sending us to a museum that was not yet opened.

Unfortunately for us, the G8 economic meeting was being held at the hotel during our stay, so that the hotel was swarming with police and the army was nearby in the side streets. Upon getting up and looking out in the hall on the first day of the meeting, I saw a couple of police dogs patrolling, and the elevator near our room could not be used to access the lobby. With all the police and meeting attendees in front of the hotel, I had to go to the curb to hail a cab, and when my wife and I started piling in, one of the Italian police came over and hurried the cab away. Needless to say, because the meeting rooms for the G8 were in the lobby and on the 1st flloor, much of these public areas had metal detectors installed and were off limits.

Other cautioned us on the price of breakfast, so we relied upon previous experiences and ate breakfast two short blocks up the street, and a half block to the right off Via Veneto at a neighborhood expresso bar. We first found this place when we had previously stayed at the Marriott Flora, as it is across the side street from the Marriott, and we quickly remade friends with the staff. Early one morning while I was having an expresso, the concierge from the Excelsior came in along with a front desk person, and on the morning of departure, the limo driver who later was assigned to us by the Excelsior staff also was enjoying an expresso and a pastry here. Their 4 EU breakfast sure beats the 44 EU breakfast at the hotel, and nothing beats eating like the locals!

Since we joined the Starwood program and have begun to use our points for upscale properties, we have had drinks at the hotel during the evenings, and at least on one evening every stay have toasted William Sanders for his help in maximizing our comfort at these properties and with the program. Well, we were unable to do so at this hotel with all the G8 attendees, so we moved this regular ceremony to our dinner at Al Ceppo on the last night of our stay. William, I know you will understand, as we did use our Starwood credit card to pay for dinner!!!!

Overall we were pleased by our stay at this property and would highly recommend it. We did not score as well with a suite as some of Platinums have reported, as the hotel was full with those attending the G8 meeting. We suspected that many of the suites were reserved for the representatives presenting at or attending this conference. Being an older hotel, and that my wife hurt her bad knee about a week before we went on vacation, it was painful for my wife to walk up the few steps from the street level to the lobby and the few steps from the lobby to the elevator.

Overall, a very fine hotel in a good location that treats Platinums very well, and serves very expensive breakfasts. Yes, this is a keeper, and we hope to return in the near future. The major negative is that it does not have a Concierge lounge compared to say, the Westin River North in Chicago, or the Westin Shanghai.

Flews

Have a very nice stay here recently. Wonderful upgrade to a second floor suite. Loved the antique furniture, marble fireplace in the living room, large size of all the rooms...

The only downside was front desk.

The positive was a smiling, helpful, welcoming young lady at check in - who escorted me to my room to help get settled, answered all kinds of questions and actually seemed surprised when I offered a tip.

By contrast was the surely, rude and stand-offish gentlemen I approached later in the evening for information about breakfast and wake-up calls.

Takes all kinds I guess. Morning check-out guy had some attitude too. Must have been a guy thing.

Cheers,

changejobs

i am going to be staying at the hotel for 5 days. does someone know a laundry nearby where i can do or drop off my clothes to have washed?

thanks