Let me begin by saying that this hotel's four star rating is well deserved. My husband and I found Hotel Barocco on Expedia and booked right away since the reviews were excellent, price was very reasonable, and location was clutch.
We flew in from an eight day trip from Paris which was quite a disappointment. We stayed at a hotel that even though it was rated four stars, I must say that it currently stands at a two star rating IMO. From filthy carpeting to poor lighting and broken mirrors in the room to poor recommendations from the concierge. People in general were rude. We couldn't wait to get out of Paris and leave to Rome. We knew that it couldn't get any worse plus we had a good feeling about Rome.
We arrived via taxi to Hotel Barocco and were so pleased from the moment we set foot inside. Check in was a breeze. We got there a lot earlier than our check in time. The front desk assured us our room would be ready in 15 minutes and kindly asked us to wait in the lobby. We were so surprised that we didn't have to leave our luggage in a closet and wait for hours until check in time unlike the hotel we stayed at in Paris.
When the room was ready, we were taken in the elevator which is quite small. I say maybe five slim people fit maximum. Our bags were to follow separately. We stayed on the first floor in lucky room number 13 which was a room very near Piazza Barberini. The room had windows--each window consisted of double pane windows so you had to open two windows in order to hear the outside street noise. Since the hotel controls the central a/c, you don't have access to adjust the temperature in your room. If it's too warm, you would need to open the windows. The room was perfect only for two people. It provided enough space for each piece of luggage we brought along with a carryon each. The bed was very comfortable. I couldn't use the down comforter they provided because the most I sleep with is a thin blanket plus I found the room to be a bit hot for a down comforter unless you slept with the window open. Pillows were comfortable as well. I loved the bathroom--so spacious, with great toiletries, and a bidet. The shower was very nice as well. My only complaint about the shower is that if I tried to make the water hot just how I like it, the pressure kept decreasing. It decreased to the point where it barely had pressure and it was a rain shower head which you can adjust. As I adjusted it, the water just dripped downwards rather than sideways. The safe was super duper tiny. We could only fit a few pieces such as wallet, weddings bands, small camera, iPad, etc. Our professional Canon camera and MacBook had to stay outside. We felt very safe there, so we knew it wouldn't be a problem.
Our room rate included free breakfast buffet plus wifi. The breakfast buffet was incredible! As soon as you walk into the dining area, you are greeted by your friendly waitress and you get to choose where you would like to sit. The center table had a spread of various cheese and bread, luncheon meats such as ham and prosciutto, pastries such as glazed croissants and cannoli, butter, jams, and honey. The back table had a spread of various cereals, juices, and milk. You also had the option of ordering eggs from their menu. Every morning I had scrambled eggs with bacon and it was delicious. Now, when it comes to their wifi, it pretty much is terrible. Many sites I tried visiting could not be opened, most site that did open where directed to their European affiliation, and every time the laptop went idle, the wifi connection was lost and the access code had to be reentered. My husband had to turn off and on the wifi on his iPad over and over again in order to get it working properly. We read in an announcement the hotel left in our room that Italy has one of the worst Internet connections in the world with very slow speeds. Quite frankly, it's true. They are working on improving it.
Concierge service was excellent! All dining recommendations were fantastic! Not one restaurant was mediocre. Every place we dined at had excellent food and top notch service.
We are looking to come back to Rome with our family since we had such a fantastic time, so we asked if they had suites for a family. Unfortunately, they don't provide rooms for over three guests which is quite a bummer. We loved everything about this hotel except for the wifi issues. Guess we will need to look elsewhere with a family suite. :( read more