Grand Hotel Duca d'Este

The 3 bubbles are the average between the spa and the hotel. The former is top notch, and it’s worth all the money we spent on it. The latter is dated, almost depressing, with old furniture and rooms. Food was disappointing at best. Very nice staff tho

A group of us stayed four nights here. It was breakfast and evenings meal included and the food was very good and generous portions. Wine choice was very good and good value People working here are very helpful and bedroom was made up to a very high standard. I used public transport a bit and from Rome. The stop is on the street outside

This is actually quite a difficult hotel to rate, simply because it is so very unusual. The first impression is that the entire building has been left stuck in a time warp, somewhere between 1940 and 1960, and that nothing has been done to it for the past 70 years or so. But first impressions can be misleading, and this one, I think, was. It obviously has been a very grand hotel in its day, and still retains many quite grand features. It has also had quite a lot done to it as time passed, since basically its rooms and their amenities are actually well up to modern standards, although they may not look as if they are. That is what the visitor needs to get over. It is difficult to take a place seriously that looks, everywhere, so very, very art deco. But actually, this is a very good hotel. It is quiet, comfortable and central, and has just about everything you would want (unless you’re an anglophone, that is, but more of that later). Using our usual rating system it comes out very highly on almost everything. Location Perfect, if Tivoli Terme is what you’re after. The shops, bars, station, and Spa Treatment centre are all within a few minutes’ walk. Having said that, there really isn’t anything much at Tivoli Terme these days. Its heyday as a spa resort seems to be well over. We settled on this hotel as a centre to visit Tivoli itself, and its gardens and Roman remains etc., but the location for that turned out to be less than perfect. Tivoli is much further away than you think, and you are reliant on buses or trains or expensive taxis to get there. Again, more of that later. Reception Very friendly, welcoming and accommodating. Speak perfect English and don’t pretend not to understand my, admittedly, less than perfect Italian. Accommodation Our suite was possibly the largest we have ever stayed in, far bigger than the flat we lived in when we were first married. It was a little daunting at first, in that all the furniture was in the same art deco style and looked a little worse for wear. It had obviously been of the highest quality when new, but was showing signs of its age. In practice, however, it was surprisingly comfortable, the room was extremely quiet, and we had no problems. Not with the furniture, that is. There were two drawbacks, however. First was the TV, which was absolutely enormous, but did not have a single channel in English on it, not even BBC World or CNN. Bring your laptop with a VPN and Iplayer/ITVX if you want to watch any English programmes. The wifi is free and worked perfectly while we were there. More serious was the complete absence of any tea or coffee making facilities in the room, and the refusal of reception to supply any on health and safety grounds. Having said that, they do a very acceptable pot of tea in the bar, at a very reasonable price, but you don’t always want to be bothered, do you? Breakfast Well up to standard, with the usual vast Italian array of cakes, a good choice of cereals (including mue

Horrendous hotel, horrible experience. The staff couldn’t be more unhelpful if they tried, completely lacking any customer service skills or hospitality. The manager completely uninterested, that’s if he deigns to take your phone call or speak to you. We unfortunately left behind 2 expensive items of clothing and called to ask them to arrange for them to be sent to us and we would transfer payment, they would do nothing to help . Despite numerous phone calls and an Italian associate calling them they would do nothing, How a hotel is run like this beggars belief. We know that service has gone down since the pandemic, but this beggars belief. Perhaps the manager might give a response in here, perhaps.

The hotel is very good value for money. It is very safe. The rooms are clean and comfortable. Friendly staff. Fantastic swimming pool. Good breakfast. The restaurant offers a good variety of dishes. If you need a taxi, it is a good idea to book in advance.

If you told me this was a 3 star hotel it would be good. It's hard to understand the 4 star grading. The prices we paid and the lack of services without extra costs plus small rooms and poor food quality I can hardly endorse this property. Having an over-priced spa doesn't make it a 4 star.