We went for a city trip to Rome in Oct 2007. I choosed Aldrovandi from the list of the Alitalia best fares. One little issue is the reaction time on our emails to ask for the confirmation of the reservation. and on Sunday there is nobody to confirm the reservations. Once arrived, it was a great pleasure to discover this real palace. I was afraid of the distance between the hotel and the centre but you can walk through the Borghese garden or benefit from the shuttle to go tothe Spanish steps. Nice room and nice fitness room. Service was not that good as expected. There is still room for improvement. The breakfastbufet is extremely expensive and you'd better go to Piazza del popolo to have a real italian breakfast... Overall experience was very good due to the nice guys at the reception and taking care of your luggage and shuttle. I would not recommend it for people who like intimacy and small charm hotels but I would recommend for people who really like palace and who are not afraid to be a little distance away from the city centre.

A really beautiful hotel set in a very quiet and upmarket residential area of Rome. Plus points; Rooms beautifully crisp clean and very well appointed - beautiful pool set in lush gardens - courtesy schuttle bus to and from Spanish steps - very courteous and friendly front desk staff / and porters - (especially Danilelle who drives the schuttle bus). Nothing was a problem - everything we asked for was attended to immediately - we only had one meal in the hotel during our stay so we can't comment comprehensively, but the food we did have there was excellently prepared and presented. Overall - everything one would expect from a 5 star hotel in Rome. Negatives: Food is very expensive - we couldn't comment on the quality of the breakfast, but at ?33 for a buffet breakfast, it would want to be something really special for me to part with that kind of money - so with the exception of one pool-side meal, we ate out. Two excellent local eateries are located at Piatza Ungaria - 10 mins walking distance - turn left out the hotel and follow the tram lines. One is the Cafe Ungaria which served breakfast and a wide range of good value snacks - and not forgetting their wonderful selection of Ice Creams. The other eaterie is the Ristorante / Taverna Rossini - which served a wonderful selection of meat and fish dishes for lunch and dinner - we didn't have one, but the steaks looked to die for! The hotel is located a little too far away from the main attractions compared with other hotels, but we felt the free schuttle and the quietness of the setting/location off-set this negative. Via Veneto is about a 12 - 15 min walk through the Viall Borghese gardens, as is the Piatza Popolo. Another very good value eaterie on the Via Veneto is the Grand Cafe Roma - at the bottom on the right hand side just before the Piatza Berberini - serves a very good 4 course breakfast for ?12 - so eating breakfast out saved us ?40 each time! Overall I would rate this hotel very highly - yes it is expensive but thats the cost of staying in a five star hotel in Rome. Before we booked the Aldrovandi, we had already made a reservation for another 3/4 star in a more central loaction costing ?300 less for our 7 night visit. While this other hotel was rated very highly, many of the reviews mentioned traffic noise (due to it's central location) - and also that it was small and cramped - both common problems with many of the other centrally located hotels I gather. As we were celebrating a special occasion and as we were going to be staying for seven nights, we felt that comfort was very important to us and and on that basis, we decided to cancel our inital booking of the other centrally located hotel, and instead, spend the extra for guaranteed 5 star luxury at the Aldrovandi Palace - (about ?45 a night extra) and I have to say, that is exactly what we got - definitely money well spent!

Largely as other positive reviews. Things to be warned of though: - the staff were largely very friendly, but we got lost walking into town (we weren't told you had to pre-book the hourly shuttle bus, which was full when we first wanted it); the receptionist marked the hotel location on the map they gave us completely inaccurately(!) and we were never given very clear instructions of where we should have gone over a 3-day stay; the Concierge told us each day we would have to book to see the Borghese Gallery the next day, but at c. 9am each day told us it would already be fully booked that day; and we were only ever helped to take the Ciao Roma city-tour bus rather than any other (which was super), but we weren't told the first time we had to pre-book a ticket to get on it! - the pool looked super, but isn't open until May, and when we wanted a drink outside in the very pretty gardens, were told we couldn't because they had put no cushions out on the iron seats; - the Baby Restaurant is indeed fantastic and charmingly staffed, but very very expensive (still worth a visit though!); - the Grill Restaurant was less charmingly staffed by the hotel bar-staff when they have a spare moment, which offers a minimal published menu and while they serve other more substantial meals, they don't know what they might offer without going to enquire. My overall impression was that the hotel is over-staffed and under-managed, but we did have a super time! If you want tranquility and comfort with largely very friendly staff, this is a great place to stay, but you do have to travel or walk quite a way to see any of the main sites - which of course are all stunning.