For a short, one-night stay, I tried the Le Meridien Visconti Rome hotel and was a little heartbroken at what’s happened to the brand over the years.
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Location
Close to most major attractions, the Le Meridien Visconti Rome is walking distance from major attractions in the city center. Within 25 minutes we were able reach The Pantheon, about the same for Trevi Fountain, a bit longer for the Spanish Steps. For those visiting the Vatican and St. Peter’s Square, it’s a bit shorter. The private black van ride from Rome Fiumicino International Airport was €77 and about 40 minutes. I’ve stayed more centrally located for around the same price point but the area is nice for strolling.
Address: Via Federico Cesi, 37, 00193 Roma RM
Phone: +39 06 3684
Check-in and Rate
I was in the city on business and we are Marriott Stars & Luminous approved travel agency. Part of my job is to evaluate our partners and the delivery of benefits associated with various special programs. The front desk manager reached out to me in advance of our stay to inquire as to our room type, needs, and preferences.
When we arrived at around 12:30 PM one of our two rooms were ready, the other was not. Fair enough, early check-in is only if and when it’s available. However, it was after 3 PM (check-in time) when we got the second key and that’s a pet peeve of mine. It wasn’t as bad as the Hilton Barbados (past dinner) but still, the hotel wasn’t full the night before, we should have been prioritized by rate and I also hold Gold status (not Ambassador or Titanium, but not nothing.)
Additionally, I had to inform them of the rate even though it was clear on the reservation, staff communicated in advance, and had mentioned it when we first arrived. They indicated that breakfast was downstairs and not in the restaurant, which is fine but not in compliance with the terms, they did not apply the on-site credit either. A struggle all the way through.
Staff was friendly, but probably should get a refresher on the rate code. I’d be hesitant to book a high-level elite from another chain there.
Room
We were each ultimately upgraded to a “Deluxe” King but an executive nor a suite. Both still available for sale at the time of the stay. It was fine but nothing special. On any other stay, €250-300 is probably fair for a room outfit to this standard, but not for what we paid on our stay (more on that below.)
There were elements of design throughout, but not to the standard I expect a Le Meridien to be. The bed was comfortable, there were plenty of outlets, and the desk was simply but functional. A welcome amenity of grapes (normal), a pear (normal), and an apple (normal), and then a single slice of lemon (odd.) Two water bottles at the small table next to the window offered still and sparkling water with the bottle refillable.
The hotel also offers to let you raid the minibar, though this consisted of two bottles of orange juice, a sugar-free Pepsi, and a standard Pepsi. I tried the orange juice and nothing else.
The room was fine, but nothing remarkable.
Bathroom
The bathroom was well designed and included a bidet (though the Japanese bidet attachment is better in my opinion.) Shower toiletries are wall-mounted, a disappointment for a variety of reasons. The shower was smaller than what I had on my Explora cruise and there was nothing special or unique in the bathroom outside of the bidet.
Breakfast/Benefits
I may have had breakfast anyway for being a Marriott Gold, I can’t recall which brands allow this and which do not. But for my Luminous rate it was a certainty. We sat down and my business partner, traveling with me on this trip, remarked that it reminded him of the Holiday Inn Williamsport. I’d argue the Holiday Inn was a step above.
After previewing the items hot and cold, I had a single piece of bacon and we left. Even for free or included in our rate, there’s no reason to settle for that mass-produced minimal effort. Frankly, it’s a little insulting for those that are being up-charged even €20/night. The eggs were either soupy or dry, nothing in between, pastries were limited and it just gave the impression that the staff – who are likely to be passionate about food – were just going through the motions. I don’t recommend, and we didn’t eat there even for “free.”
Paparazzo
We were invited to try the rooftop bar, Paparazzo. It was only other American hotel guests (a bad sign) in the indoor/outdoor space. The cocktails came with clever novelties, like the namesake in a repurposed camera lens, or with a smoke filled cloud on top. I’m not a big drinker, it was more to fill some time and report back – the cocktails were sugary and acceptable but the prices were absurd. A charcuterie board went to the table next to ours and looked impressive. The bar nibbles included brine-soaked lima beans and my business partner loved them, but I didn’t care for them.
Value
There was nothing technically wrong with this hotel. The room was competent, and comfortable, the shower had hot water, the toiletries were fine, and there was a breakfast with hot food items available. I was also offered a late check-out which I didn’t need upon departure. That said, the hotel was offered at 35,000 Bonvoy points (for one room) or €479/night on a Luminous rate. I wanted the benefits including an early check-in and potentially late check-out but only got the one I didn’t need. I was charged for our Paparazzo visit (we might not have taken it if we weren’t getting a $100 on-site credit) and breakfast was a disappointment. Given the nightly rate with Luminous at €449/night (it was particularly busy during our stay in Rome), points would have been a better redemption option as it gave a value of 1.2¢ (Euro)/point which far surpasses our valuation of 0.4¢ USD/Bonvoy point.
That said, there are too many outstanding properties or at least similar substandard properties in better locations for a stay in Rome and I don’t intend to return.
What do you think?
Who eats a hotel breakfast in Italy, let alone Europe, when delicious and inexpensive options are typically a stone’s throw from the front door of a city hotel?
Even worse it appears the buffet was not wiped down or had any attention since set up. Nothing says yuck like a heavy coating of hours old congealed scrambled eggs on the serving spoon.
I don’t understand the fascination about “free” breakfast at US chain hotels from travel bloggers. I couldn’t care less about it. There is absolutely nothing fresh there (or do you think they bring everything fresh every morning?), coffee is usually bad and I don’t need eggs, sausages and oatmeal when in Italy. I literally walk to a local bakery and order a real cappuccino and a fresh pastry and that’s all I need. Now, in small towns where you won’t have tons of options, I have had amazing fresh breakfast included in my rate by staying in local boutique hotels.
I just can’t get past the ” feeding trough”. And in an area with great coffee and pastry, why submit one’s family to this?
Some people don’t eat pastries.
Personally, I like a hotel breakfast IF AND ONLY IF the breakfast is served before 7 am. I start my dad early and like to eat breakfast before 7 am. There’s nothing worse than being in a downtown or city center hotel for business and not finishing breakfast until almost 9 am when you need to be at meetings by 1o am.
My preferred meal times are 6-6:45 am for breakfast. Lunch — if I have it — between 11:30 am and 12:30 pm and then dinner between 4:30 and 6 pm. If I’m entertaining clients, I’ll do drinks around 5 and then dinner a little later but before 7 or 7:30 pm.
@FNT Delta Diamond: Based on your post you cannot visit any country in Southern Europe. Try to go to Italy, Spain, Portugal or France and not eat a local pastry. Also, good luck finding a place that serves dinner between 4:30 and 6 pm.
I’ve never had a problem in Spain, Portugal and Malta having something besides a pastry for breakfast or having dinner early … even if off a lunch menu.
@ Santastico
Please don’t laugh. I’ve got a timed appetite from birth. You are absolutely correct. When asked about my favorite meal in Milan, the joke was it was in Switzerland, where they serve so much earlier!
I don’t, didn’t, and won’t.
@ Kyle, you are a good man. : )
Just FYI, we stayed at the Indigo Rome in July and it was a fantastic experience. We got a suite that was huge and easily fit our family of four comfortably. Breakfast was included (not because of status) although I prefer to eat out as the last thing I want is to eat American breakfast while in Italy. Also, we used a private limo service for €65 which was a great option.
Did you get the F&B credit?
@Christian – We did not and I will be disputing.
Hey! A Kyle review that doesn’t involve a hotel near Didney Wurl. Much appreciated
This is the hotel that the 2 American college students stayed at (and where they hid the knife…in the ceiling tiles in their room) after stabbing a Carabiniere.
I wonder if the hotel will place you in their room on request?
It’s not surprising that Marriott properties aren’t complying with Marriott Stars & Luminous requirements given how many of the properties don’t comply with Bonvoy requirements.
However, I’m curious to know the difference between breakfast downstairs and a restaurant breakfast, the latter of which you said was required under Marriott Stars & Luminous terms.
Outside of the Japanese bidet, I’d say the hotel looks like a Hyatt Place or maybe a dumpy old Sheraton in some no-name office park in the suburbs back in the USA. It certainly doesn’t look like a 4-star or 5-star hotel.
As for the buffet, that’s pathetic for Europe. I’d put that on par with a basic 3-star Novotel, Holiday Inn, etc.
And for being in Italy, the overall decor/interior design is also very drab. To be honest, it almost feels institutional. Like a dorm or conference retreat hostel. At least from the photos, there is nothing that looks or feels Italian or Rome chic or Le Meridien 4-star boutique.
@FNT Delta Diamond – The restaurant would have presumably had a menu to order fresh from. We won’t be recommending the hotel to our clients.
And by the way … in regards to the rooftop bar, there’s a reason only Americans were at it. Most Europeans would go to a street-level cafe for a glass of wine and a heavy dose of people watching.
@FNT Delta Diamond – As mentioned, we only went up there to scope it out for this blog and report back.
How do you not have Marriott Platinum status?? It’s basically free with Brilliant card.
Bonvoy Gold does not entitle you to any breakfast anywhere since 2018. Similarly, you have to be Platinum for suite upgrade eligibility.
Platinum was gold in the legacy Marriott and Ritz-Carlton programs while gold was silver before 2o18, when Marriott combined Marriott Rewards, Ritz-Carlton Rewards and Starwood’s SPG into one unnamed program that later, in April-ish 2019, became known as Bonvoy.
@Esquiar – I have 30 credit cards in my name alone but I don’t stay in Marriotts enough to justify holding a card with them and I loathe the secret decoder ring needed to enforce benefits for which the hotel may flout if it so chooses. That’s why I booked the Luminous rate which (as pointed out in another response) guarantees the benefits listed there along with a suite upgrade if available.
Not that Marriott effectively enforces rules or policies — though a majority or a near-majority of full-service branded properties internationally are still Marriott-managed — but I would be curious to know which upgrade benefit takes priority: Bonvoy elite or Stars & Luminous.
Kyle: With all due respect, this review missed the mark. You act as if the hotel should have bent over backwards for you as a Gold member when there are 3 levels higher than Gold (Platinum, Titanium and Ambassador) that struggle across all Bonvoy hotels to provide the benefits that you seem to demand for a hotel to get a good review. Gold status means almost nothing with Bonvoy, and yet your review strongly comes across as penalizing the property for not giving you benefits that you feel you are owed. No Bonvoy status (not even Ambassador) promises early check-in (either guaranteed or upon availability) and Gold status doesn’t provide free breakfast or suite upgrades under any circumstances, and so you lost all credibility in this review by criticizing the hotel for not getting these things. I wish that only Matthew did hotel reviews, as he doesn’t act like he’s due the world with such a lowly status.
@Daniel M: I think that I didn’t make it clear enough what a Marriott Luminous rate is. It includes:
• Early Check-in/Late Check-out as available
• Upgrade to next room category if available (it was and it was granted)
• Daily breakfast for two in the hotel restaurant (this was not delivered)
• Welcome amenity (fruit tray as shown)
• $100 on-site credit (not delivered)
Marriott Stars & Luminous rates are there for those willing to pay a little more to have these benefits regardless of their status. We have these for IHG, Hyatt, Hilton, and Tablet as well. The Gold status mention was just to say that I was not only a Luminous customer but ALL of these benefits trump status.
I guess the question is…not delivered as in not proactive? But you did get it in the end like the credit? I can’t tell you a single hotel in years that credits properly benefits and that’s why you check out and have them correct it. Pretty standard stuff, even at FS or higher end brands.
Also, allow me to correct you, your hotel booking service does not “trump” status. I am very aware from GM’s and others that as a FS Elite (as one example) my status is far above those booking through agents within the programs you speak of like Luminous. As well, as a Lifetime Globalist, trust me, your clients are not getting an upgrade or anything else prior to me. That is just absurd and, respectfully, you should probably be better informed so as to inform your clients a bit better.
But is this actually codified anywhere? If I was a sales manager or reservations coordinator and a travel agent was referring a lot of customers to my hotel through something like Stars & Luminous then I would be more inclined to take care of that customer over some Bonvoy ambassador or titanium who has never stayed at my property and will probably never return. At the end of the day, so many hotels are relationship-based. Frequent customers, big spenders, house corporate accounts –– you name it –– are always going to get better recognition and better service, at least at franchised properties.
I don’t have access to the systems for which they “codify” it. I am speaking of interaction with front managers and GM’s who were clear in conversation that Elites at top levels of programs are first in line for upgrades. Period. However, with that, I will add that these were properties that I do frequent quite often. This leads me to believe that there are no written terms that hotels abide to, it’s simply ad hoc as a review of their guests in which they internally prioritze. Or, in the case of a lot of hotels these days, simply don’t upgrade anyone to avoid issues. You do it by saying, “we upgraded you to a higher floor room.”
With that, yes, if an agent is booking in significant amounts of clients at a single property I imagine their clients will certainly be priority. I highly doubt the Visconti is one that Kyle sends tens of thousands of dollars in revenue to each year given it’s the first time he visited and why would anyone need an advisor for Rome unless you have been living under a rock for 30 years. I would say most of his regular bookings are for resorts and cruises. Or properties related to cruises before and after.
Between this and the AC flight review I am really wondering what world Kyle lives in.
One where a hotel honors the promises made to guests and travel agents.
Travel agents, lol. Who then come on blogs and flex their muscles as if they will enact their revenge on a property for not giving them an upgrade. As to his $100 credit…I question if he argued this at checkout and made a point. More likely left in a hurry and tried to later….which is his problem.
To use a Reddit term, can someone explain to me like I’m 5 why anyone would pay €300 per night for the lowest room category (just 20sq.m.) at this hotel as opposed to getting a large double with a balcony at the Mama Shelter for €225 or a junior suite (34 sq.m.) at the NH Collection Vittorio Veneto for the same price (actually one Euro less)*?
Many thanks.
*I checked random dates in a couple of months (14-16 Nov)