Century Hotel

At night there were a few strange people around the area, which was a pity, though that’s not the hotel’s fault. The location itself is great, right by the station and close to the city center. Rooms were very clean, the staff professional, and breakfast had everything you need. A special thanks to the lady at breakfast, who was especially kind and attentive.

Room 404 was spacious, with a bath in the room, a separate decent shower and washroom, and a comfortable bed. It needed the air conditioning to warm it up, though. Parking is €15 per night, and the process is a bit awkward: park outside, check in, and pay before you can take the car to the nearby lot, which is narrow. Breakfast had four kinds of filled croissant, eggs you cook yourself, and a limited choice of cold meats and cheese. You also had to find a staff member to make coffee. The hotel is close to the station and about a 15-minute walk from central Parma. It was fine, though there are nicer B&Bs in town.

The hotel was good, and Fatima gave very kind service at breakfast, thank you. Breakfast itself was average, but making your own omelette was a really nice option.

The cappuccino was the one good part of breakfast. The rest was easily the worst hotel breakfast we had in Italy, which surprised us after eating so well elsewhere in Parma. It’s a short walk into downtown, where the food was fantastic. The location by the train station is hard to beat: Google Maps said three minutes, but it took us no more than one. This was also the cheapest of the five hotels my husband and I stayed at on our Italy trip, and we both agreed it was the worst of them. We booked a superior double room expecting one double bed, but found two rooms, each with a double bed. That was unnecessary for just the two of us, though it meant we each had two pillows, since there were only two on each bed. Neither bed had a blanket, just a sheet, and both were so firm they felt like sleeping on the floor. The bathroom setup was strange: the shower was partly in the bedroom and partly in the bathroom, so you could see through it into the bedroom while sitting on the toilet. We didn’t like that. Soundproofing wasn’t great, and it often felt as if the windows were open, though thankfully it wasn’t noisy at night. Breakfast was free, but we didn’t think it was worth having. If all you need is a cheap stay near the station, it could work. Otherwise, I’d look elsewhere.