We stayed at the Palazzo Hotel in MonteCasino for 1 night to acutally go and see the Lion King. The hotel was perfectly situated as it was within walking distance from the Teatro. Although I'm personally not very fond of the fake tuscan style in SA, I must admit that this whole complex is very well designed. The hotel itself is everything you would expect from a international 5 star hotel. The rooms were small, but had everything in that was necessary. The bathrooms were well designed with every amenity you can think of. We might have encountered problems with our payments, because 1 voucher was missing from the booking agent, but after producing the necessary copies of paperwork, the reception staff were extremely helpful and told us that they will sort it out. All the staff are very well trained and very friendly. Everyone greets you as you walk past. The Madena dining area is spectacular with the waterfall and double volume windows opening up onto the verandah. All the food is very well presented and extremely tasteful. The gardens are spectacular and very well kept. The only problems I do have with the hotel is that with the breakfast, there was actually a queue to wait for tables. A hotel this size should actually have sufficient space to accommodate at least 2/3 of the people in the hotel for breakfast.
All in all a very good hotel and we'll definitely stay there should be we back in JHB.

This hotel is absolutely excellent! I have spent a wonderfull time there. The people are so nice and the hotel is very well designed. The bathroom is so nice.

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We stayed at this hotel for 4 nights following a safari with the intention of relaxing by the pool and maybe taking in a few of Johannesburg's sights. The good points of the hotel were:-

Great lobby, bar, restaurants, terrace, pool area.....in fact the whole hotel is very well designed and feels quite luxurious.
Good food. From the breakfast, to lunch, to dinner; every meal we had at the hotel was of a good standard.
Great service. The bar staff, restaurant staff and concierge staff were all excellent.
Location:- The hotel is about 40 mins from the airport and is located in a complex featuring a casino and a rather disney-like indoor shopping mall with many restaurants. This area was nice to stroll around at night, but the restaurants were fairly mediocre and i would recommend eating at the hotel as a first choice.

Bad points:
Check In: Unfortunately the check in staff were not very efficient, and were not aware of the procedures for Ambassador members. So we had to change rooms, have the bill ammended and also had trouble getting our 4pm standard check out. However, everything was sorted out fairly quickly.
Swimming Pool: Whilst i really liked the pool area, the pool itself was quite dirty at times with bits of rubbish and feathers from the ducks which kept flying in for a dip!

Overall i would stay at this hotel again, as it was perfect for our needs, and the friendliness of the staff made me feel very welcome.

We stayed at the Palazzo for one night in November 2006. We found it to be a good hotel. Nothing outstanding, but it was a good five star property.

We were met at the airport by one of their drivers, who whisked us to the hotel in a new Mercedes. Check in was fine, despite how busy the lobby was. The room was fine, if a little on the small side. You’d expect this size of room in London, New York or Hong Kong, where space is at a premium. But you don’t expect it in somewhere like Johannesburg.

The room may have been small, but it was perfectly formed. The bed has huge and very comfy, while the mini-bar had a good selection. The bathroom was a good size, with a separate walk in shower and a bath. I’ve noticed a couple of people comment about the cleanliness, but our room was clean and comfortable.

The style of the hotel is mock-Italian. It tries its best, but it does come across as a little Disneyesque.

We didn’t try the restaurant, but the room service was good and arrived quickly. The breakfast was good (particularly as we’d just flown in from a tent on the Maasi Mara), there was a good range and it was all good quality.

The pool was excellent. Free juice to keep you hydrated, little tubs of sunscreen and papers to read.

All in all, not the best hotel we’ve stayed in, but by no means the worst.