VIU Hotel Milan — Hotel in Milan

We arrived as a party of two weary travelers in Milan after having toured Florence and Rome in the days prior. We’d been very unlucky the night before as the properties we’d stayed in while visiting Florence were super noisy. We didn’t get a wink of sleep until we boarded a private car on the high-speed rail to come to Milan. I had an expectation or ideal of what Milan would be hoping it would be all that I dreamed up: a juxtapose of old country meets new country, artistic expression would include historic preservation with a handoff to modern day contemporaries, amazing gastro experiences and without further ado…be the PINNACLE of luxury shopping; primarily Italian but imports also.

To give you an idea, we had a height of luxury stay at the St. Regis Rome where they actually have a breathtaking Romeo and Juliet balcony replica and restored romantic chandelier and elevator that are were over a hundred years old. Transition to Hotel Viu, where modernity, fashion (the rooftop has pillows in Bottega green) and sleek design are showcased for travelers like myself that have New York like visions of what Milan will be!

Hotel Viu:

Noise transfer: At check-in, I was crystal clear that my romantized idea of Italy was almost depleted based on my lack of quality sleep. I needed a peaceful, tranquil room so I could get out of sleep deficit. A room was hand-picked for me and while yes, the other reviewers are correct there is a tram in very close proximity, I actually slept like a baby. It was the recharge I needed to continue on our tour of Italy.

In addition to a climate control console, there’s an on-wall touch screen console that controls the lighting ambience in your room and the privacy setting rather than a Do Not Disturb door hang. – Very sleek, very much giving bachelor / bachelorette penthouse. There were also in wall speakers but I couldn’t seem to figure out how to control them, next time I will!

I feel as if I might have been Italian in a former life because I love elaborate bathrooms and the bathrooms @Viu are an entire mood in and of themselves! Hotel Viu definitely delivered earning their higher category rating! There’s a separate, beautiful showerbox and a HUGE massage bathtub! I would have only rated it higher if it was designed freestanding. Bidet is customary.

Bathroom toiletries set was well stocked and from Grown Alchemist a line I’d be wanting to try based on their beauty philosophy so when I entered the bathroom and saw the dark brown bottles, I was pleased, yes, very pleased! Pamper mode initiated!

The lobby and other common spaces of the hotel and their furnishings are an expression a famous Italian interior designer and are very aesthetically pleasing!

CONS:

The bathroom shower did in fact have a disinfectant smell. I’m not sure if those were the outcome of COVID prevention measures.

We did have to ask for water but once we did, it was more than generously provided. I’ve noticed that Europe has a zero to little waste culture. Perhaps water is requested in order to avoid waste. Not certain.

The location is in ChinaTown. Although only a very short distance from all of the best touring and shopping spaces in Milan, if you go by Uber, it can add up to a lot very quickly because Uber is not as viral in Italy as It is in the US. Milan Uber rides are super comfy, but they will cost you dearly.

HIGHLIGHTS:

The Spa was the standout for me (remember we were very weary travelers LOL): There a Finnish Sauna Room, two very innovative cool down stations and a blissful Eucalyptus Steam Room. PLEASE TAKE ME BACK!!!

The Gym had all brand-new Technogym equipment creating even more of an Italian wellness vibe. I certainly put it to use!

Note: All amenities were accessible with a COVID Green Pass.

Rooftop breakfast…ahh, there’s so much more but you’ll honestly need to take it in for yourself.

GRATITUDE:

Major thanks for your wonderful hospitality are in order for the staff who graciously treated us like extended family. See you...

Simply the worst customer service experienc we've ever had. The staff was a nightmare. ||||Upon our arrival we asked the concierge for help with sending a box to the US. It would have been nice if he had offered to actually help with the shipment process but he literally told us we would have to do everything ourselves and that the only help he could offer would be to provide an old box. ||||One of the shipping services he suggested using was FedEx. It took us over an hour on the phone with FedEx to arrange the shipping ourselves. Since we had no way of weighing our items that complicated the process even more. We finally managed to get the label prepared and FedEx told us we would need to arrange a pickup for the box locally. ||||When we called the front desk for help with this and how to do it I was abruptly and rudely told once again that I would have to do it myself. ||||So the next day we carried our stuff to ship and walked .5km to where we thought there was a FedEx but it turned out it was not actually a FedEx, but a store where people leave FedEx packages. We didn't have any of the shipping material so we lugged the packages back to the hotel.||||At that point, we came back exhausted and still in need of help with our shipment. Finally, we talked to a woman who was definitely by far much more helpful than anyone else at this hotel had been up to this point. She immediately called FedEx to arrange a pickup for us and we had to wonder why someone didn't offer to do this before. Indeed, two prior employees lied to us by telling us all the hotel could do is get us an "old box." This was obviously because they just didn't want to help. But now Monica showed the hotel could, in fact, help us send off a box. So we gave Monica the box and she sent it off. ||||This ended up being a nightmare but first, another nightmare!||||As soon as we gave Monica the box, the hotel staff noticed that we had our luggage and asked if we needed a ride to the airport. We did, and they told us a cab outside would take us to the airport. So we put our luggage in the cab and the diver asked us which terminal, we said "Lufthansa," and he said "Terminal 2" and off we went. It was only when the cab ride lasted much longer than our drive from the airport to the hotel a couple days before that we learned that he was taking us to the WRONG AIRPORT. || || We had never to Milan before and didn't know there was more than one airport. No one from the hotel asked us which airport or told us there was more than one. Had they done so, we would have gone to the RIGHT airport since it was the only airport name we knew.||||Anyway, long story short, we went way out of our way and missed our flight and it cost us almose 500 bucks. When I asked the hotel and Marriott to do something, ANYTHING to make us feel better about it, they said it was totally our fault. But worse, they lied!! They said that we "must have" booked the taxi on line and put in the wrong information. ||||No. The hotel staff ran over to the cab that was already there and told him to "take us to the airport." THEY knew there was more than one airport but never pointed this out or asked us which airport we wanted to go to. We had no chance to avoid this disaster. But, they refused to do ANYTHING and we incredibly rude about it. And, as I mentioined above, they lied.||||THEN, when we got back to the US, FedEx held up the package for MONTHS becaue the paperwork that Monica was taking care of had been filled out wrong. When we tried to get informatoin about this from the hotel, they first omitted the shipping documents, THEN they sent us the WRONG documents, and finally sent us the right document that had been filled out wrong. It took months to untangle this. And, once again, neither the hotel nor Marriott would do ANYTHING to show they were sorry.||||No one should EVER stay at this hotel. The staff, especially the management, cannot be trusted to (i) do things competently or (ii) tell the truth when things go...

Where do I begin? We got to the hotel at 14.30 and they said it will take about 30 min to finsh cleaning up the suite, as the previous guests left late.We went for lunch at their Morelli restaurant, the food was great, we had croque, and chicken tacos but the waiter brought salad instead of tacos.The waiter was extremely bored and had a very superior attitude like we were bothering him.At 15.00 we went at the reception and they told us again that it's not ready, so we went for a walk even though we were extremely tired, driving all the way from Switzerland and making a few stops on the way to visit different areas.We got back to the hotel around 16.15 and still wasn't ready so we went to their sky bar and had a drink for 20-30 mins.We got back and they kept us another 15 min at the reception concerning the card that I ALREADY PAID with, stating the problem was the the card was DEBIT, not CREDIT! I thaught i misheard so i asked again and they said the same! How can it be a problem that I pay with a debit card attached to an account with money in it??? At that point i asked my husband to leave because i honestly thaught they were mocking us.A "five" star hotel! In the end, we finally got to the suite, 2 hrs later! All they had for toiletries was shampoo, body lotion and 2 hygienic kits...a five star hotel for 800 Eur/night! Outside the bathroom they had a window panel tied with cords that made noise permanently.The next morning it was a storm and rained heavily and water was coming into the bedroom from the balcony, under the door. In the living room, there are no shades at the windows.Please mind that that was the most expensive suite they have.Indeed, to make a mends with us for what they put us through, they sent us some champagne, some fruits and a small body mist from Victoria's Secret.I asked for a free late checkout, concerning that we were checked in at 17.00 and had to leave by 12.00 and they said they couldn't because they had some, I QUOTE : very important guests coming tommorrow. Ok, so i guess we weren't that important when the guests before us left late.Us...we could wait.A word of advice for the hotel if they get to read this : just because some people don't show off, doesn't mean they are not important.You should treat all your guests the same.The reception staff is extremely stiff, not friendly, they have a forced politeness and they check you out from head to toes to know how they treat you! The only friendly and kind person that really tried to do something for us was the manager Luca, who gave us a standard room for the next day for a few hrs until we left ti the airport.And to end this review, while waiting for our airport shuttle we went for a drink at Morelli's, my husband asked for a gin tonic, they didn't have tonic water, they didn't have sprite, they didn't have schweppes lemon so he surrendered and settled for an aperol, and I asked for a small , room temperature still water and got a BIG, ICE COLD one :)))) never in my life will i return to this hotel, nore would i...