Hotel Best Western Premier Hotel Royal Santina

The location is great, right across from Termini station. My room was average in size, with a nice shower and basic toiletries, but the TV wouldn’t stream or mirror. The fitness equipment needs updating. Breakfast service could be better: staff were rushing around replenishing food, and you had to approach them to get proper coffee. In Italy, missing out on an espresso or cappuccino at breakfast is a real letdown.

It’s very handy for the train station, though I’d avoid that area at night, and most attractions are a 10-15 minute walk away. Even with a coach stop opposite, the hotel was fairly quiet at night. The rooms were tidy, the hotel spotless, the beds comfortable and washing amenities supplied. But for €330 a night, getting only two cartons of water per stay, rather than fresh water daily like at other hotels, seemed mad. The restaurant claims to serve typical Italian food, yet there was no pasta, spaghetti or pizza, so no traditional Roma food. Odd, and I should’ve checked before sitting down and ordering a drink. Breakfast is €16 if paid in advance, or €18 otherwise.

Marinella and the restaurant staff were friendly, and Kelly at reception helped by switching off the heating in our room. Still, we were very disappointed and it wasn’t worth the money. We booked five nights, paying twice as much because we wanted a four-star hotel with air conditioning so we could rest after full days out. On our third night the air conditioning was turned off and the heating turned on. Staff said this followed Italy’s winter guidelines, but booking sites should make that clear when they advertise air conditioning in the rooms. Night staff told me to leave the windows open. That didn’t help with the heat, and I also had to keep the curtains open, leaving us with no privacy because rooms opposite could see right in. We also had to ask staff to fix a couple of toilet issues. The location was great, the staff friendly and the breakfast had a good range of choices, but the heating situation was a shock.

The front desk staff were friendly and helpful. They let us leave our cases both before check-in and after checking out. Our room was bigger than expected, spotless and cleaned daily, with a large comfortable bed, walk-in shower, separate bath, shampoo and shower gel. It faced the front, so there was some traffic noise, though it didn’t bother us; you could ask for a room at the back. We stayed at the end of February through Jet2 city breaks, and it worked out as a great choice. The station is a five-minute walk away, and from there it’s about 20 minutes into the city for the sights. The metro from Termini to the Vatican museum was easy to use, and handy when our legs were tired. Breakfast had cereals, pastries, hot food, pancakes, fruit and more, plus hot and cold drinks. Staff would make cappuccino or espresso too, and everyone on the breakfast team was friendly and helpful. It costs €16 per person per day, but through Jet2 we paid £40 for the two of us for three days, an absolute bargain. If I come back to beautiful Rome, I’d stay here again. Great position and price for a Jet2 city break. Thank you Best Western Royal Santina.