Palace Hotel — Hotel in Como

This just missed on so many levels, especially for $567 from one night to open the curtains and stare at a drain pipe and listen to loud karaoke at the hotel next-door.

Number one- Location if you’re fine with paying a premium for the location then this is the place for you. It was easy to walk everywhere and we were in the heart of Como.

Number two- staff, we only met one nice person and that was Riley who we found out was here just for the summer. The restaurant recommendation she gave us was 10 out of 10. Her advice and feedback was awesome. We met her the one evening. We were there upon arrival it just did not go well. The beds were supposed to be split into. They were not. My card holder called ahead of time for an upgrade. We were told the hotel was booked and it was unavailable. I asked if there was any other room we were requesting a lake view and they said we have a city view. I also asked if they could call the Mandarin and their sister property Villa de Este For lunch or dinner reservations they said yes, and we never heard back. It took us coming back to the front desk To ask, and they said they didn’t get any answer. I was able to call the properties myself and get answers.

Room- The city view was a view of a drain pipe and a wall. Also when we got into the room, we heard karaoke for hours from the hotel next-door For the price of the room. It was ridiculous for what we got. The towels were super stiff You can only run the AC if you leave a room key in so we had to leave one of our room keys in the room to cool it down. It was one of the worst hotel rooms I’ve ever been in for the price I payed.

Food- We went to the garden bar after dinner. We ordered one glass of wine and then wanted to order some dessert. We had to get the waiters attention since he had not been to the table in a while, and we were told that they already did last call and we asked why we were not notified since we had many on the table and there was not really a response given. The breakfast was OK. Our omelettes that were ordered were burned. The selection was all right.

Decor - Again, I know it is a historic hotel with a lot of history, but for the price you’re paying there should just be a little bit more added to it. Also, there was no ramp to bring up luggage. We had to carry up the luggage of the two parts of steps to get to reception which was not clearly labeled because we parked in the back of the building at first and had to figure out how to get to the front. My brother helped people this morning carry up their luggage. There was no one there to help them again for the level of the hotel there should be more attention to this.

I would only recommend this for the location...

We stayed in the Palace Hotel for 3 nights as part of our honeymoon. The hotel itself was very grand and well located. It was right across from the lake so a short walk down to the ferry and also close to all the shops, restaurants and sights in town. The staff were friendly and helpful. We had an issue where we didn't realise we needed a different travel adaptor in Italy and although they didn't have any we could borrow, they drew us a map to shops they recommended where we could buy one.

The room itself was comfortable but a bit dated. We had a classic room and I have seen online that some of their other rooms have been refurbished. Hopefully that is the plan with the other rooms too. It was spacious enough though, although the bathroom was small. We had a nice view out of the room, a partial view of the lake. The TV showed a mixture of channels, some with English films and shows which was nice for us. The rooms could be better soundproofed. There was a large group of people staying for a wedding and they were very loud when they got back to their room one night at 2am. Obviously the hotel cant help what their guests do but if the rooms were better soundproofed it would help.

We didn't eat in the main restaurant but we did have breakfast each morning. The breakfast room was beautifully decorated, and there was so much choice. This was definitely the best breakfast we had on our trip, with various hot and cold options including smoked salmon which was a nice treat, and the option to have a glass of bubbly with breakfast which was perfect for our honeymoon. The plum tart was amazing, do try it.

We also had drinks and ice cream in the little garden bar at the front of the hotel. This had lovely views but again felt like in need of refurbishing. The ice cream was fine but not like proper Italian gelato. Staff were not as good in the bar as in the rest of the hotel and we waited a while for drinks and ice cream.

Overall we might stay again but possibly not unless it was refurbished as we personally prefer a more modern hotel over a classically...

My husband and I stayed at the Palace Hotel to celebrate our 20th Wedding Anniversary in Como.|I was a little skeptical booking this hotel having read the reviews and especially since we were paying 800euros per night for just a B&B (we normally stay in 5* Hotels but they were over 1000euros per night!), however I must say our overall experience staying here was great! It is not a modern hotel and is slightly dated with its furniture but that gave it character. Depends on what you prefer.|We paid for the Junior Suite room which had fabulous views of the Lake, was very clean and in great condition. The location of the hotel was perfect! Shops, Bars & Restaurants were all in walking distance which is what we wanted.||My only constructive feedback would be the hotel could have provided a more personalised service. |I had made the hotel aware prior to our arrival that we were celebrating our 20th Wedding Anniversary but this was not acknowledged at the time of check in (the actual day of our anniversary) and there was nothing special set up in the room. Having stayed at other hotels where they provide this 'special touch' on key events I can say from experience that small gestures go a long way in the overall experience.||The staff were very helpful and a couple of them went out of their way to accommodate our needs. |A special thank you to Greta at Front Desk who was super helpful with places to visit on a short trip and was always very welcoming and smiling as well as Alberto who rustled up some fruit & pastries from breakfast for us on our 1st morning despite missing the breakfast...