My boyfriend bought me a four day trip to Rome staying at the Hotel Gladiatori. He had booked this through Expedia, when we arrived at the airport we decided to get public transport to the hotel, it was really simple, from Fiumicino airport you can get the Leonardo Express Train direct to Termini Station, takes 30mins and costs only 11euros. From Termini station we got a metro ticket for a euro which lasts for any single trip up to 75mins. We took the blue line two stops to Colisseum station. When you come out of the station you turn right and walk 5mins around the Colisseum to the hotel, really simple!
Upon check in the lady there was really friendly and spent some time explaining to us using a map the best places to go, best routes to walk etc. Although my boyfriend had paid for a Queen Deluxe Room with views out to the Colisseum they upgraded us free of charge to a King Deluxe Room which meant we had views out onto the colisseum from the bedroom and bathroom as well as a bigger bed. She took us up to the room and showed us all the facilities we had in the room, soon after the bell boy came up to the room with our suitcases, also very friendly.
Room - the room was beautiful, really luxurious and had everything you could need. Huge comfortable bed with nice linen, there were slippers and bath robes provided, a nespresso coffee machine, huge flat screen TV with access to Sky, lots of complimentary Bvlgari toiletries, hairdryer etc. After a long day of walking coming back to such an amazing hotel room was the icing on the cake, like a safe haven. There is nothing like running a hot bath whilst watching the Colisseum at night.
Breakfast - as the hotel only has i think 13rooms the buffet is not huge like at other bigger hotels but there is more than enough to choose from. A variety of cereals, pastries, cakes, fruit, fruit juices etc. Apart from the continental breakfast you can order bacon, eggs, sausages etc from the waiter, i thought this was a great touch as its all made on the spot, unlike other hotels where the hot food has been sitting there for hours. Also, the waiter makes the coffees for you, anything you want. And once again you can eat your breakfast on the terrace whilst admiring the colisseum! breathtaking!
Food- the hotel offers a light lunch and dinner menu, we didnt eat in the hotel but if the breakfast is anything to go by i can imagine it is of a high standard. There are quite alot of trattorias around the vicinity of the hotel which is where we ate on the first night but the name of the place escapes me. However, one recommendation i would make is Il Palazzetto which is on the spanish steps and has a terrace where you can eat. The other place i would recommend is Gusto, there are four different places you can choose from, we ate at the pizzeria for one night which was good value for money but we also ate at the restaurant which has a more elaborate expensive menu but well worth the money!!!
Overall my trip to Rome was a memorable experience and if i was to come again i would def come back to Hotel Gladiatori as in my opinion it has the best views!
