We've just got back from a great week at the Hotel Spinelli in Viareggio and thoroughly enjoyed it. The hotel is modern and fairly small with 3/4 floors, an annex, small reception and a fairly large restaurant/ bar/lounge. There is a pleasant modest garden at the front with outside furniture and a seating area/ patio at the back. The hotel is on the south side of town about 10 minutes walk from the sea and near the football stadium and in the boatyard/marina area which made for an interesting walk into the centre which was about 20 minutes stroll to the start of the promenade or about 30 minutes walk to the train station.
We were in room 304 in the annex in a reasonably sized room(for italy) with a balcony overlooking the stadium and nice on- suite shower room. The room was very clean and well decorated and furnished with a good bed, desk, chair , fridge, safe and flat panel TV with satellite decoder hung on the wall (over 300 stations only 2 in english but we were out most of the time). Good amount of wardrobe and cupboard space. The room was very quiet, there was a pop concert at the stadium opposite the room while we were there and we hardly heard it.
Breakfast was in the restaurant and was a nicely varied buffet (wouldnt ve minded some marmalade though). We didnt eat in the restaurant in the evening but they had a nice menue which varied each night.
The staff were exceptional, all very pleasant and helpful, certainly some of the best we have experienced and altogether it was a great week and good value.
We used the train to visit Pisa, Lucca and Pietre Sante and further a field to Monte Rosso in the Cinque Terre( a beautiful town) and Florence. Train travel worked well but we didnt manage to find a comprehensive train timetable (nor bus route planner) and therefore noted down individual times at the station and learnt not to underestimate the queuing time at the ticket office.
We ate on the promenade in the evening and particularly liked Restaurante Aldo down a seaward alley about 500 yards from the marina end.