Empire Suites

We barely slept with the window open because the room was so hot without working AC, and the road noise at night was loud. The bed was low and creaked, the walls were very thin, the towels were thin, and the room didn’t look as good as the photos. There was no Vatican view. After I complained about the AC, the room wasn’t cleaned the next day. For value, service, and comfort, this was easily the worst accommodation I’ve stayed in. The AC didn’t work after check-in. Claudia first told me to press the mode button and wait. When that failed, she said a technician would come the next day. The following evening it still wasn’t working, and she told me to press the fan button, which also did nothing. I felt lied to. What kind of working AC won’t turn on with the on/off button? I asked for a refund because AC was listed as a feature and the room wasn’t as described. Claudia agreed over whatsapp messages, but wouldn’t confirm the amount and kept making excuses instead of sorting it out.

The location is the one good thing about this place. We paid 305€ for two nights for a “double” room with a private bathroom, but the room was tiny, had no closet, and only a small fridge that could barely hold anything. The room we got wasn’t even shown on booking, so we’d expected something bigger and different. The bathroom looked awful and dirty, and the floor had dust and hairs when we arrived. We’ve been to Rome before and never had such a horrible experience. They refused to give us a second card, saying they only had one, so we couldn’t come and go separately. What if one of us wanted to go out while the other was asleep? There were no slippers, either. The tile floor was really cold, and they said they didn’t have any. After paying 300€ for this ridiculous room, they couldn’t provide two pairs. The walls felt like they were made of air, so you could hear the neighbors and they could hear you. That made it hard to rest after a long day in Rome. I’d never heard of “suites” with checkout at 10 am, or at the latest 10:30. We’d just arrived when the “host” told us to leave by then. For that much money, we were VERY disappointed. You pay a lot and get nothing. Avoid it.

The room was clean, roomy enough, and had what we needed, so it could be okay for a short stay. But across five nights, we never got a good sleep because it was so noisy. There’s no soundproofing; we could even hear every sound from the bathroom next door. Cleaning started at 10 am and was noisy too. The bathroom needs updating, since there was almost no hot water.

The hostess was polite and helpful, and check-in and checkout were easy. The room was clean, and everything matched the description when we booked. It was also in a great location and easy to find. We loved it, everything we could ask for.