Hotel Napoleon

The room was clean, the staff were wonderful, and we had a good stay. The hotel is well placed for getting around, though the metro stop right outside is closed. Many sights are around a 30-minute walk away, so walking or using the metro makes sense. Parking caught us off guard: despite the listing mentioning a lot, we were advised to park on the street or use a garage for 25 EUR per night. Agoda showed a small breakfast with our booking, but at check-in we were told it wasn't included.

The morning team deserves the two stars I’m giving: they were warm and cheerful, and breakfast was a lovely start to the day. The room was fairly clean and a reasonable size, the shower stayed hot, and the bed was turned down daily. I also found the other staff friendly and helpful. But my arrival on October 31st 23 was a very different experience. The woman at reception was chilly and gave me little information. My room was stifling, the air conditioning didn't work, and I asked if it could be fixed or the heat switched off. She told me it was my problem and nothing could be done, saying other guests wanted sauna-like rooms to dry clothes after the rain and that there was no separate room control. The hotel has since agreed that this was unacceptable. I had to insist on a solution, and she rolled her eyes, huffed, then mocked me in Italian to two guests, gesturing at me with a sneer. It was petulant and appalling, especially from someone in a guest-facing job. A young man also stared at me throughout, like a constipated sausage dog. I opened the windows to deal with the heat, but the hotel faces a busy, rather ugly road, so there was plenty of noise. It’s outside the old town, and although the walk is short, the route feels unpleasant, with busy traffic, poor paths, and a sense of coming in from nowhere. Breakfast itself was good, and the morning staff were excellent. I told the hotel what happened; management apologized and explained that the employee had been stressed and unable to manage Lucca Festival guests amid technical problems. They rightly said that was no excuse. Still, I should have had an apology before leaving. I hope they provide her with management and customer service training, and reconsider her suitability for this role. I used to work in travel and have stayed in thousands of hotels, yet I’ve never encountered behavior so rude. I usually prefer to write positive reviews, but this needs saying. That one employee gave the hotel a bad name for no reason, and this would have been a much better review without her.

The breakfast buffet was really good, and my room at the quiet rear of the hotel was clean and comfortable. The road outside is busy, though it settles down after rush hour. To get to Lucca’s old town, you can walk along a partly quiet route and enter through one of the gates in the old wall.

The club next door kept loud dance music going until midnight on the Wednesday we stayed, so I probably wouldn’t choose this place again. It’s about a five-minute drive to the edge of town. The room decor felt dated and garish, though it was reasonably clean and usable. Breakfast was okay.