Grand Villa Tuscolana Hotel

“ Nice hotel in a historical building with an magnificant view on the city of Rome.
Some way to walk to the Frascati with an uphill return.
It seems to be mostly a place for conferences and business meetings at least during off season

“ After reading so many reviews on here, I wanted to review how the position has developed and what I thought. Just so you know, I stayed here for 4 days 31 Aug-4 Sep 2011 on my own in a Single Room.

In short, my review is mixed. Some of the comments on here by previous users have a lot of truth in them. Others however, im happy to say, are now not so much the case.

The hotel is definitely grand and luxurious. It is the perfect spot for a romantic weekend or event. The public areas of the hotel are decadently laid out, with gilded chairs, chandeliers and grand pianos. The views across frascati, tivoli and the surrounding areas are also to die for- especially at night. This in itself is 5* plus. It's what I loved most about this hotel and the parts I remember most.

However, there were some issues that seemed to knock off a bit of the lustre. Most were things that the phrase "When in Rome" could forgive.. however some were also not. To save you from reading loads, ill write in bullets from here...

LOCATION AND TRANSPORT
To clear a few points up: The hotel does not show up well on maps. The reason is because, like so many of the villas (and villa hotels) in frascati, they are on hills. So many reviews on here complain about long walks, but it wasn't too bad timewise. I am not going to deny that this is a definite hotel for those with transport or those who have budgeted in taxi or (cheaper) hotel shuttle bus costs (Charged at 5 Euros each way to the station (in the centre of frascati) except on check in and check out) but that is because of the gradient of the walk, not so much the distance. The shuttle bus takes you around a windy road that seems to take hours, but ask at reception and they'll give you details of a shortcut. It took me 5-6 minutes to walk down to frascati (right to the centre: Piazza San Pietre Apostolo) but, to give you an idea of the gradient, a good 15-20 minutes (including stop for a water break- even despite being a young 'un) to get up. It is tiring, especially after you have sore feet after a day sightseeing in Rome. Tip: Budget transport or bring comfy shoes. Walk is NOT suitable for disabled, elderly or children.

RECEPTION STAFF:
These were very helpful to me. The hotel do not give out a welcome pack on check in (or offer much of one in the room- what they offer in the room is very generalised). This means that, especially when alone, you do feel a bit like you're perched on a hill with nothing to do. This, however, is far from the case. The hotel has a spa, it has a pool (see below), it has restaurants... but you will need to ask about them. Incidentally, all reception staff spoke good English. Advice: You get what you ask for in this hotel until this changes. It isn't 4* service at the moment..but it is forgivable until they change. Tip: Litter the reception staff with questions until they produce what you need!

ROOM:
I'm used to getting the rough end of the deal as a singleton. We do in general the world over, I think... so this is not the place for me to complain. However, I can confirm that a single room *IS* a single room (no mini double bed etc to be expected). The room is perfectly adequate and seems bigger thanks to its vaulted ceiling and expanding window views (I dont think any room here would have a poor view). The headboard was not attached to the bed (I note similar reviews on here about this). The bathroom is small: No bath but a small shower unit. Again, im in agreement with comments already made on here: I'm anything but large but getting in and out of the shower was near impossible without clipping yourself onto the side. I'm told (by others I was with) that this was not the case in the larger rooms. Everything else however is perfectly servicable and fine.

EVENTS / CHECK OUT
This hotel is definitely geared up towards events managment rather than the general holiday maker. On big event days you get the feeling that you're less important- again not 4/5*. The biggest let down of my experience was due to there being 2 BIG events on the day I checked out. Understandably they needed the rooms, so couldn't offer me late check out (my flight was at 10pm and check out was at 10am!) but were unable to offer me a shower room or any service (other than the spa at an extra charge) to get myself ready after the day. I was further told that the pool area was out of bounds for the day. In fact, as I left I noticed a sign saying it was out of bound for the entire WEEK. It seems that because the events marquee is by the pool, when an event is on guests are encouraged not to use the area. Fine if youre on an event, but not if you're on youre last day and dont fancy trudging around rome with a case (see tips) without a shower before the flight. It also counteracts the case that this hotel is children friendly- as there is no other pool or bathing area to access other than in the spa (for a charge).

RESTAURANT/ BAR:
I only had breakfast here. It was lovely. Try out the croissants. Reccomended. Expect continental breakfast only. Hot food is provided but at an extra charge. I think this is pretty standard form. The bar isn't always staffed.

Hope this review helps. All in all I think this is a gorgeous hotel, with staff that are friendly and helpful.. though which misses a few tricks in providing what I would consider luxurious service. All in all, my check out card highlighted my views and i'd hope that, as they are little things (but things that can make or break a holiday) they can do something about them. You must head there for the views though if anything else: STUNNING.

“ Top Tip: ** Take comfy shoes to head to the hotel and for walking around rome- there are LOTS of cobbled streets- Flip flops and sandals dig in after a while!**

Piazzas are beautiful but eat in the local trattorias. It's cheaper, they usually throw in some deals and they usually serve frascati wine :-)

Be careful of Gelato. It's addictive stuff. In frascati there are deals to be had. The restaurant (yellow facade) next to the train station taxi rank (at the top of the stairs) serves a huge range and is the cheapest I found. Im also told it serves some of the best in frascati. Around Rome, its best to find some in non-tourist areas. Around the Colleseum they were charging 2.5x the amount for one scoop as they were in Frascati!

Doing it on a budget?: Frascati wine in Frascati is cheap! And scrummy! Get it in the supermarkets for a steal of a price.

Re Rome: If sight seeing the Colleseum entry ticket also grants you entrance to the Forum.

Around the vatican, people line the streets offering to sell tours- DONT. They charge an arm and a leg. On the door it was 15 Euros to go unguided (even my travel guide got that wrong!) Expect the Vatican museum to take longer than you expect. I was short on time and wanted only to see the Sistine Chapel and ended up staying in there for 3 hours! (And I was rushing!)

“ The hotel provided us with a fantastic holiday experience of staying in a magnificent Villa (only 30 mins by local train and 2 euros away from the centre of Rome). The Villa has outstanding views and is a work of art. It is so grand, elaborate and historic and is located a 10-15 minute downhill walk from the lovely
town (and train station) of Frascati. The uphill walk is managable but took us twice the time. Hotel helps organise taxi returns and you can pay to use their mini bus to get to and from Frascati Station.The small outdoor swimming pool and surrounding garden area was very peaceful, extremely well maintained and equipped with sun loungers, umbrellas, towels etc - all free of charge.

We were given lots of helpful advice by Matthew in Reception (who spoke good English) and received excellent care from Loreto in the Restaurant.

“ Top Tip: We had hired a car, so it was possible to visit Villa D'Este Gardens and the surrounding towns and lakes plus see the Vineyards for Frascati wine!