AmericanMontrealer

I just returned home after a five-night stay at Le Meridien Visconti Rome. After reading the earlier postings I had my doubts about the keeping the reservation, but the location was excellent for the location of the business complex where I would be attending meetings, and after business hours I would have easy access to the neighbourhoods in Rome that I like to visit.

From FCO:

I took a taxi. While the queue situation for taxis can be a bit of a scrum, queue jumpers were dealt with either by persons respecting the queue, or by the taxi coordinator wearing a yellow vest. The taxi rate is a flat 48 Euros. Note that taxi drivers are required to keep the meter on during the journey. My taxi's meter read 53 Euros at the end of the journey, but the driver charged the correct 48 Euros. In case your taxi driver doesn't speak English, to ask for a receipt say "una ricevuta, per favore." (You can hear the correct pronunciation at Google Translate.)

The hotel:

The exterior is pretty ghastly when compared to the usual architecture of the neighbourhood. The lobby is lovely in its design and includes a sitting area with well-designed mid-century modern furniture, a stand-up bar and small tables, and a small outdoor space. There are three elevators that are fast.

My room:

I was assigned a small but well-designed room on the fourth floor. Dark floors, grey walls, a tall desk and chair, a bench for luggage, two night stands, a comfortable chair to relax in, a closet with enough hangars for a five night stay (surprising!) and internal shelves, and a small bathroom with shower stall completed the room. Plenty of fluffy towels and excellent bath products by a company named Malin & Goetz (and I intend to stock up on some if I can find the brand in Montreal).

Whatever the cause of the earlier problems for guests with air conditioning seems to have been resolved. My room was fully air conditioned 24 hours a day.

Water was replenished daily, usually two to three bottles were provided.

Breakfast:

Breakfast is served on on the lowest level, -0. While the room has no windows, it is spacious, well-lit, has plenty of international and local newspapers available, and the staff are attentive. The selection of food seemed rather limited to me, but I'm used to staying at Starwood properties with extensive breakfast buffets. I would have liked to have seen lactose-free milk and a broader selection of breakfast cereals. Wifi reception in the breakfast area was non-existent.

Wifi:

This was a major disappointment. Even though my room was two doors down from a router, I couldn't get steady wifi reception long enough to write emails or download documents. The moment I stepped into the hallway or a public area, my emails would download. This was very frustrating. I hope the hotel addresses this problem so that business travelers (and let's not forget bored teenagers traveling with their parents) can have reliable wifi.

Would I stay here again?

Yes. All in all, if you take away the wifi issue, I had a lovely stay. I'd recommend the hotel to anyone who doesn't need reliable wifi access while traveling. If the wifi is fixed, then this will be my go-to hotel in Rome going forward. If the wifi is not fixed, I still would stay here on vacation as I avoid email as much as possible when I'm away from the office for personal travel.