Rome Kings Relais — Hotel in Rome

We used this hotel for a family 4 day/3 night stay in Rome.|I have to admit, having seen previous reviews, this was the part of the trip I was most hesitant about. ||However, I was pleasantly surprised. So here we go:-||Location – This hotel is essentially several floors of one of the central Rome buildings. Each floor is ultimately a different named hotel group but it suggests they all fall under the same management (that’s my assumption, not confirmed). Getting into the building is very straight forward although pre-warning: the entrance is up a short flight of stairs so be prepared with luggage. Didn’t see any form of ramp or elevator to get around this part.||The Reception is on the left of the top of the stairs and we were warmly greeted and welcomed to the hotel. The individual hosting the Reception desk was very approachable and spoke English (much to my relief as I had Google translate on standby). The check in process was straight forward and easy enough and the Receptionist offered us advice about our stay in Rome. My wife and I had been to Rome a few times before so knew what to expect but it was nice to still have that information offered. As part of your stay, you are given three sets of keys:-|1 – For your hotel room |2- For the floor your room is on (you essentially let yourself into the floor which is then a set number of rooms)|3 – For the front door of the hotel – this is locked shut every night when the Reception staff finish for the day (around 6-7pm), remember your key when you go out in the evening to avoid embarrassment later in the night.||Hotel - The building is original and with that, there is an internal elevator, but we are talking old school elevator (the type you would see in Agatha Christie Poirot shows). It’s maintained though and fine to use, if not a little small. For the four of us, it was better to have two go in the elevator and the other two climb the stairs. |Now we did book an apartment for seven people but due to an error with our booking agency (LoveHolidays), we were not informed that the apartment was no longer available and instead we were provided a connecting two bedroom option instead. This was not the hotel’s error! This is something we are resolving with the agency.|The bedroom (room 304) was very clean and smart. A huge relief considering previous reviews on here. Modern and fresh, we had bathroom facilities for both rooms which were also up to the same standard as the room. Each bathroom had a shower and a bidet in addition to the normal features expected. Using the showers, there were no issues and provided enough power to ensure a good water output.|The room had air con for both bedroom areas and was controlled with the same remote. Very welcomed after a full day out in the May/June heat. The windows were large and looked out onto the street below. As we found out after the first night, there are also pull down shutters that you can raise/close using a pulley system to the right of the window. Note, these were fine but be prepared when closing them – the shutters are heavy and could catch individuals off guard if they are not ready for it.|In the rooms, there was some storage which was fine for our short stay but longer stays may struggle with the limited storage. TV’s in both rooms with local channels and there were also mini fridges that were available to use. While one of the fridges was working fine, the fridge in the second half of the bedrooms was not staying cold so we didn’t use it. There is cleaning service for each morning but you can opt to not have them tidy your room using a sign placed on the door.|As you would expect for a hotel right in the heart of central Rome, the noise outside does come through into the room so can be a little disturbing at night but that should be expected for such a great location. I expect rooms looking towards the back of the building will be quieter.||Beds – Very comfortable. I’m taller than most so was prepared for the double bed arrangement but generally the beds were firm but not hard. Pillows were clean and you had options for more if you needed them. They are not big puffy pillows but for someone like myself who can be quite critical of pillows, I slept very well with no issues around them. For all four of us, there were no complaints about the beds so a success there! ||Breakfast – The hotel offers the option of breakfast. Now this was a confusing element. It looks like each floor or each separate named part of the building/hotel complex has its own breakfast room.|We were fortunate that our room was on the same floor as our designated breakfast room and just down the corridor. However there were a few couples/families who came to our breakfast area and were turned away. Our breakfast area was small (only capable of hosting four tables of four at any time) but was bright and fresh. Now I won’t lie, the offers were very simple. No cooked food options and a few varied options of pastries/cakes alongside some cold meats and cheeses. Toast was also an option and cereal although we were unsure if you had to ask for milk so didn’t proceed with that option. It was fine for a start of the day option but don’t go in there expecting large buffet style options. There was one staff member managing our area and seemed a little short fused over the four days we were there – spoke broken English but was more often that not talking to the cleaning team in Italian. It was fine although it did feel a little awkward at times.||Location – Absolutely perfect! You are literally 2-3 mins from the Trevi Fountain, 4-5 mins from the Spanish steps and many other options around you. The area is vibrant and active. A perfect hotel to use if you are essentially using it for sleeping and refreshing. If you are planning to stay for long lengths of time in the hotel, it may not be the best option but to each their own I guess.||Final Thoughts – The hotel is much better than I thought it would be. For the price we paid (aside from the room allocation error), it seemed in line with what you pay being what you get. It has everything you need for your time in Rome and is perfectly placed to get to the big sites. The staff were great and approachable. The room was modern and clean with no immediate worries or concerns. Overall, a great experience for our time in Rome with the kids. Would recommend for similar stays...

This hotel is very central. Trevi is so close by and everything is walkable. ||The staff were always lovely, the rooms were clean and tidy and toiletries were provided. There is a kettle and fridge in each room. ||Breakfast is continental, not manned by staff so you just help yourself. It was fine and on the same floor as our rooms. ||If I booked Rome again I would prefer the hotel to have a roof terrace or somewhere you could sit with family and chat - the rooms were full of beds, you tripped over getting to the wardrobe. There was one chair for 3 people in each room. ||I actually was going to leave a better review for the hotel until the end. My daughter left a custom made leather jacket in the wardrobe on the last day, after we had put our belongings in the storage room. We realised and went back to ask. The man at the desk confirmed that it had been found but the staff member had left for the day therefore they would send it on to our address in England. ||On arriving home and chasing, we had an email saying it was thrown away! They apologised and asked how they could reimburse me, when I replied with the price I did not hear back. All I can assume is that someone in Italy now has a lovely custom jacket paid for by my uni student daughter! ||Just be careful if booking here. We plan to come back and would have recommended it here to others for short stays, but unfortunately now we would...

Do NOT stay here. Worst hotel ever. We've had no hot water since we arrived 3 days ago, so can't shower at all. Today we returned to our room and there is no air conditioning - it is far too hot for comfort but the water is too cold to even be refreshing. They claim that the rooms are "sound proofed" but we can hear our neighbors brushing their teeth and coughing. It's a good thing they don't snore! If you want a "romantic" getaway with your significant other, this is not the place. Absolutely ZERO privacy. The hotel advertised digital tv, which only just started working today, and a "24 hr" front desk which closes at 9pm so there is no way to get any issues resolved. The door handle to our room falls off when we open or close the door. This hotel is ruining our Rome experience and I strongly urge you to stay away. I have traveled extensively and this is by FAR the worst hotel I have ever had the misfortune to be stuck in. If I could give less than 0 stars I would. The only good thing about this hotel is it's location. The "blackout" blinds don't work either. The noise is unbearable, you can hear people doing their business in the bathroom next door, and any voices in the hall sound like they're in the same room. Beds are not comfortable, pillows are flat and hard. Staff is friendly but not much help. I would not come back to this hotel again...