Hotel Ambrosiano

The hotel's reply to my review made me feel it was dismissing customers as “rude customers who do not understand.” During our stay, my group was given eggs and hot dogs, while another group seemed to be refused them. I can accept that groups may have paid for different packages, but there were no clear signs or explanations to tell guests that. Instead of sorting out the confusion calmly, the hotel called those guests rude over something that wasn't their fault. A simple sign or explanation could have helped. The reply also blamed customers instead of addressing what they said, and similar recent reviews point to poor management and service. It gives me little reason to think the hotel is making an effort to improve or cares about guest satisfaction. The rest of the stay was no better. The rooms were tiny, dirty, and uncomfortable, and noise from outside kept disturbing us. Breakfast was the real nightmare: the man running the small buffet yelled at guests and put them down, telling people where not to sit and which glasses or mugs not to use. When food ran out, he'd groan and loudly complain about how much people were eating, as if feeding guests was a burden. It was mostly bread, with jam, ham, yogurt, and drinks. Some guests got eggs and hot dogs, but not everyone was entitled to them, which seemed to irritate him. Guests had paid for this, and a proper, plentiful breakfast is the least they should get after planning and saving for a vacation. After our two-week trip around Europe, this was by far the worst stay. Until the hotel deals with its problems, starting with basic respect for guests, I'd strongly advise against staying here. Avoid it.

The first-floor room today gets four stars from me, while the second-floor room two days ago was more like three. It looks like the rooms on the first floor have been repaired and renovated, so they differ from the ones upstairs. The towels were clean, though they had a slightly sour smell that might be from the detergent. Since only one towel is provided, it'd be nice to get even a small extra one for free.

It seems the hotel does a lot of business with groups, but the staff often came across as annoyed and put upon. Service was curt at times, especially around the dining room and bar. The place itself is attractive, with clean modern rooms, good amenities, and a lovely garden seating area. Just know you have to buy something at the bar, even a water, to sit out there. The internet was hit or miss, working only one of our two days. This was an educational trip for teenagers with teacher and parent chaperones. Over two days, nobody raised any questions or complaints about behavior or alleged transgressions with our group leaders. The hotel's response to my review only reinforced my point about its attitude and culture toward customers.

Some parts of the room looked newer, including the toilet and the automatic door system, which worked fine. But the toilet light shut off after a while, and the room itself was old and basic. The parquet-style laminate floor was dirty in places, and I stepped in something sticky, so I had to wipe it up with tissues. The bedding and towels also looked a bit worn.