Dolce Verona Suites

A lovely AC and a good, cheap room!

The room itself seemed fine when we got in, but there was no real welcome, and what we found inside was pretty bad. Behind the door was a pile of rubbish, apparently left by previous guests. The toilet and shower were dirty too, and the pillow was dusty, with dark marks clearly showing through the case. We sent the host a photo of the rubbish and got no reply. We were there for one night only, luckily, and couldn’t have managed another. Finding the place was difficult. The host’s Booking.com message said to call for directions and check-in details. They sent photos of the entrance, which is tucked away in a little square among the sleeper cars, but we were nearby and still couldn’t find it in a city we’d never visited. We sent photos over WhatsApp, the only way to contact reception, so to speak. They said they didn’t know how to help and suggested asking nearby shopkeepers. Eventually we found the entrance; they opened the door by phone and explained how to get in, which floor to go to, and where the keys were. There was no front desk, and they didn’t ask for registration documents as is usual. That left me doubtful about whether the place is registered or authorized.

The air conditioning worked, and the location was central. That’s about it. Dolce Verona "Suites" has few, if any, actual suites, and no one is there to greet you. If something goes wrong, you have to call a mobile number; they can only try to sort it out over the phone and can’t come in person. We had no towels because they’d been forgotten. After calling, we got permission to look in the cabinet outside the room, but all we found were terrycloth shower mats. The remote had no batteries either, and over the phone we were told to go buy some because, “I certainly can’t come over there for batteries.” To me, that’s not what a suite should be like. Maybe for one night, but bring toilet paper too, since they provide barely a roll.

We only stayed a single night. The main thing going for the place is its position right in the historic centre. The lock on the inside door had been sealed, so we couldn’t close it. We pushed a chair against it to keep it shut. There were cleanliness issues too: water on the bathroom floor, which we later found was from a leaking sink, and a dirty towel left hanging. The bathroom had only three towels, with no face or bidet towels, and just one spare toilet roll. The property brochure says rooms include a Nespresso machine and kettle, with free capsules and filters. There weren’t any capsules or filters, just a few tea, sugar, and jam packets, plus an opened, partly used container of instant barley.