We decided to stay at this hotel for one night because of the reviews on trip advisor and the photos on the hotel's internet site,

So, We learnt a lesson. Never to get carried away by reviews and never to believe what you see on websites.

It was our upteenth time to Rome but this hotel ranked as one of the worst I have ever been to in my life (supposedly 3 star).

The room was miniscule and run down. I therefore immediately went downstairs to complain we were given another room which was slightly better but still terrible.

My wife and I therefore decided to leave. The person at the desk told us we were free to go (I started to believe I was in prison) but had to pay!! We argued and finally left.

Do yourselves a favour stay away.

Just returned from a fantastic 8-day trip to Rome/Florence with our 15 yr. old son. We stayed at Il Piccolo di Piazza di Spagna from Monday through Friday. Having never been to Rome, we took the advice of some friends who told us that Spanish Steps was a good, central location at which to stay. They had stayed at Il Piccolo so we followed suit. The hotel is VERY small -- no lobby, no game room -- since this was a sightseeing vacation though, those amenities weren't missed. It would be nice to have a lobby to go to, however, on that 2nd morning when you wake up all out of whack due to jet lag. Thankfully, our room had a balcony so I could sneak out there so as not to wake my husband or son. Anyway, the hotel is OLD -- an antique-looking elevator lift takes you up to the 4th floor, the only floor on which all 11 rooms of the hotel are located. There is a TINY breakfast area which serves an adequate continental breakfast from 7:00-10:00. The room we had was really quite small to house 3 people -- there was about an inch and a half between our bed and my son's twin bed -- made for tight squeezes. The bathroom was adequate however there was no shower -- you have to sit in the tub and hold a hand-held device to shampoo your hair. Ladies, beware -- BRING YOUR OWN HAIRDRYER and ADAPTOR!! The hairdryers in Italy require you to hold down a button constantly while blowdrying -- makes for very interesting hairdo's! All in all, the hotel is in a very good location but the rooms are very small and the hotel staff, except for the woman who works during the day, really don't know English and can't help with any questions you may have. We paid roughly $300 USD per night and it just wasn't what you'd get in the states for $300. The city of Rome is just magnificent though so go and enjoy it -- you'll be out all day enjoying the breathtaking statues and buildings and won't be in the room much at all.

Our experience with this place tainted what was otherwise a great trip around Italy. We booked the hotel on the hotel web site, and selected the hotel because of the amenities listed on that web site. On the train in to Rome from Naples, we made a call in for directions, only to be told they had unilaterally moved us to another hotel a quarter of a mile away (the Spagna Inn). Our protests fell on deaf ears. Given the lateness in the day and our inability to find other lodgings on such short notice, we had no choice but to take the other room. The room and other facilities at Spagna Inn were not at all acceptable, and not on a level with what we had agreed to. To begin, the facilities at the Spagna Inn lacked nearly all the amenities represented to be available at the Piccolo. Unlike the Piccolo, the Spagna Inn has no elevator, TV room, game room, garden/terrace, jacuzzi, or room service, as advertised on the Piccolo's web site. On our arrival at the Spagna Inn, the individual at the front desk refused to assist carrying our luggage to our fourth floor room up the hotel's small, winding staircase. Essentially, my female traveling companion and I were told that we were on our own getting our luggage (consisting of three large suitcases) to our room. When we arrived in our room, we found the room's safe did not work, and when we informed the front desk of that fact, he informed us that his colleague would try to come by "around 8:00 p.m." to look at it. It took multiple calls to the Piccolo before someone came to open the safe. As a result, we were delayed for nearly an hour in beginning any sightseeing during our one afternoon in Rome. Later, when we got ready to leave for dinner and asked the front desk to call us a cab, we were informed that "there are no taxis in this region." This is unbelievable, given the fact that the hotel is less than three blocks from the Spanish Steps. As a final insult, we discovered the morning of our departure for the Rome airport that the Piccolo's promised "shuttle to airport" would cost us $45 - exactly the price of a taxi cab ride. Again, the Piccolo and Spagna Inn failed to provide the services promised, or at the very least deliberately misled us as to the services provided. Bottom line - don't trust these guys at Piccolo.

Hotel was in a very central location and easy to see all the sights in Rome. One issue - walls are very thin and we could hear people coming into the hotel in the early hours of the morning after a long night of drinking. The hotel staff was friendly and spoke english. Would recommend this hotel to those looking for a centrally-located hotel and are on a budget.