Arriving by train at Termini Station in Rome city centre (costs 11 euros from the Airport, so don't take an expensive transfer if you don't want to, the train ride only takes 30mins!!), we found out the hotel was just around the corner!! Excellent location not only for arriving, tired travellers, but also as a starting point for the many sight seeing trips one will have while staying in Rome!!
The first night we spent in a room described in other reviews, very small and not clean, showerhead and hairdryer broken, view on the inside balconies/shaft including the garbage of other people/hotels , etc.. As we were to stay 5 nights, the next day we asked the reception if there was an other room available, which -luckily- there was!!! Totally different scenery!! Nice, big(ger) room, bigger and OK beds, clean, everything working, including TV and mini-bar, nice and clean bathroom, view on the main street, we were very happy to have made the swap!!
The internet site of the hotel states the hotel has been completely renewed in the 2001, but this is, obviously, not true. A lot of rooms are apparently still in old state. The reception desk has also not been remodelled as the pictures on the web site lead to believe. Hopefully they will not restyle it, because the counter of the reception desk is beautifully decorated with (fake?) marble, totally in line with the spirit of the city.
To Dutch standards the breakfast was poor(ish), but we think it was OK for Italian style. A lot of sweet croissants, jams, Nutella, etc.. But no fresh juice, eggs, or ham (but there was Mortadella!) or common cheese (they had a kind of sweet and a cream cheese), no fresh toast, the fruit presented was so-so. Coffee and tea were OK! The breakfast room is also kind of small, especially for big people from Holland, who like their space J !
The service we met was EXCELLENT! Very kind people, especially the brothers at the reception desk (Lorenzo and Diego) and their colleague from the night shift (we didn’t get his name). They really made time for us, to make our stay as pleasant as could be!
Also, we found out that Italian people tend to be a bit of surly/have a closed character at first sight, but if you take an effort into making conversation, they open up like beautiful flowers. So a tip from us, if you want something done from Italian people, try asking it nicely first! And say hello (bon giorno), goodbye (ciao or arrivederci) and please/thank you (prego/grazie) all the time! They really appreciate that!!
We had a wonderful stay in Rome and our stay in Marco Polo Hotel really made a contribution to some good memories!! If the Trevi fountain does it’s work properly: we will be back!
Erwin & Agnes Stoof-Schreurs
The Netherlands
