It should be noted that Hotel Adler is part of the second floor of a downtown building containing several hotels and businesses/offices. (The top rated Residence Cellini is on the third floor, but we have no way to evaluate that hotel.) Because of the Trip Advisor reviews and ratings, we booked a suite at BelleSuite on the third floor for four days in February, 2006, but when we arrived they had no record of our reservation!
So, the kind lady behind the desk (who spoke excellent English) arranged for us instead to stay in a single room on the part of the second floor which is called Hotel Adler, just a floor below Belle Suite. The reception area for both is now on the second floor; the third floor former reception desk of BelleSuite is now the free high speed internet access for both. We were glad there was a room available at the Adler on such short notice, so no great harm done. However, surprise! Both these hotels are now operated with single management!
So, we got a single room instead of a suite and paid 1/3 less! However, we also discovered that the breakfast room for both was now the same and on the second floor. In brief, the breakfast was really not very good. The food was not very fresh and we were not offered second servings of hot drinks. (we didn't ask, either) The juice was not tasty and there was no cheese, or cold cuts, or eggs, etc. Just some croissants, granola, rolls and jam, milk, and such. (oranges were near spoiled and the yogurt was actually moldy.)
The room was quiet and very clean but the shower stall (no bathtub) was too small for a tall person and the floor obviously was just a veneer of wood appearing material over a subfloor which seemed as old as the building. It seemed safe, but not very pleasant. The view from our window was so poor that we kept the steel shutter pulled down all the time. The bed was comfortable and maid service was great, but it was more like a Motel 6 than a Holiday Inn, and if you brought a motor vehicle you can forget about trying to park. (The main rail station and Metro are nearby.)
The lights in the room were good and there were enough outlets to recharge camera, laptop, etc. The free high speed internet upstairs was nice and there were magazines and tourist information readily available.
Let me acknowledge that the staff went out of their way to assist us in many, many ways. They corrected the yogurt problem the following day. For this reason I rate the hotel neutral instead of just okay with some problems.The staff allowed me to make several long calls back to the US to cancel stolen credit cards, and they charged us nothing for this! The reception attendant also called and reserved for us a time to see the Galleria Borghesi, just like a great concierge would. I hesitate to say anything bad about the place because the people were so nice.
The hotel building is poorly marked and central to Rome, but next time we stay at Villa San Pio for charm sake.
