May 2, 2025 • 40 mins
Step into the world of Italian hotels where everything (except the hospitality) is smaller than what you're probably used to. In this episode we let you know the quirks and thrills when it comes to staying at a hotel in Italy.
Read the full episode show notes here > untolditaly.com/271
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Join our mailing list and get our FREE Italy trip planning checklist - subscribe here | Join us on tour: Trip schedule | Discover our Trip Planning Services | Visit our online store | Follow: Instagram • Facebook • YouTube • Italy Travel Planning Community • Online travel assistant
The Untold Italy travel podcast is an independent production. Podcast Editing, Audio Production and Website Development by Mark Hatter. Production Assistance and Content Writing by the other Katie Clarke - yes there are two of us!
Read the full episode show notes here > untolditaly.com/271
NEW! - the Untold Italy app - DOWNLOAD FOR iOS • DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID
The app is FREE to download and check out our Milan guide and general travel content. Upgrade to PREMIUM for a one time fee to access Rome, Florence, Venice, Sorrento, Cinque Terre, Amalfi Coast, Capri, Ischia, Tuscany, Lake Como, Lake Garda, Veneto, Lombardy, Campania and Lazio with much more to come
Support the show
Join our mailing list and get our FREE Italy trip planning checklist - subscribe here | Join us on tour: Trip schedule | Discover our Trip Planning Services | Visit our online store | Follow: Instagram • Facebook • YouTube • Italy Travel Planning Community • Online travel assistant
The Untold Italy travel podcast is an independent production. Podcast Editing, Audio Production and Website Development by Mark Hatter. Production Assistance and Content Writing by the other Katie Clarke - yes there are two of us!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Ever wondered what it's like to stay at an Italian hotel.
In this week's episode of Untold Italy, I'm sharing everything
you need to know, from finding your perfect stay to
what to expect once you arrive, including passport checks, tiny elevators,
sweet breakfast and more.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Tawatuti and Benvenuti to One Told Italy, the travel podcast,
to where you go to the towns and villages, mountains
and lakes, hills and coastlines of Beli, Italia. Each week,
your host Katie Clark takes you on a journey in
a search of magical landscapes, history, culture, wine, glato, and
(00:41):
of course a whole lot of pasta. If you're dreaming
of Italy and planning future adventures there, you've come to
the right place.
Speaker 1 (00:59):
Do you dream of seaking Italian but feel stuck? I
hear you. Whether you want to connect with your Italian
heritage a partner, or you want to live in Italy,
finding the right tools to match your learning style is important.
My friend Michelle from Intrepid Italian offers a practical approach
to learning Italian with her unique eighty twenty method, teaching
you only what you need to know as an adult
(01:21):
learner herself. With Italian heritage, she really knows how to
bridge the gap between English and Italian, As Angela from
Australia said, I put my inability to learn down to
my senior stage of life, but with Intrepid Italian, it
seems to just fit. To find out how Intrepid Italian
can help you learn Italian, and to claim an exclusive
(01:42):
twenty dollars coupon code that you can use on any
of Michelle's online courses from beginner to intermediate, visit untold
Italy dot com, forward slash Italian or visit the link
in the show notes. As a bonus, you'll also get
a downloadable travel phrase guide absolutely free, So visit untold
Italy dot com, forward slash Italian to accelerate your Italian Jawadudi.
(02:06):
How has your week been going. My kids are back
to school after what seemed like the longest school holidays,
and now I'm in a bit of a sprint to
get things done before I head off to Italy in
six weeks. My trips always seem to come around so quickly,
which of course is very exciting, but it does mean
that I have to squash a lot into the coming
weeks and be very organized this time. I'm staying in
(02:29):
Rome for most of the trip to catch up with
the team and do some day trips before joining our
Umbria tour for a few days. It's going to be
really interesting to see what Rome is like after the
conclave to elect the new prope which is starting on
the seventh of May, I believe. But by all accounts,
things are somewhat quieter than predicted for this year, and honestly,
(02:49):
I am not surprised. I think many people delayed trips
due to projected crowd sizes for the Vatican Jubilee, and well,
you know, I don't know how helpful those projections were,
but anyway, it is what it is, and I can
see plenty of availability for our preferred hotels in Rome
during June at twenty twenty four prices, So if you're
(03:12):
thinking about a last minute trip to Italy, why not. Honestly,
the way the world is these days, I see absolutely
no reason to delay anything. Cap adm, I say, seize
the day and have some fun if you can. Speaking
of hotels today, I wanted to have a chat about
and give you some insight into the wonders of Italian
hotels because they're generally quite different from what we have
(03:34):
here in Australia and very different from those you'll find
in the US and around the world, which I love
because honestly, that's part of the fun of traveling, tapping
into the different cultural aspects of things wherever you go,
and you get a really concentrated taste of that at
a hotel because they're putting those little cultural differences to
play in everything that they do. And so I thought
(03:57):
it would be fun to take you step by step
through the hohleel tel experience in Italy, from searching to
booking and what happens when you arrive, with some little
anecdotes along the way. So the reason I choose hotels
is mainly because I like to know have like a
base and have be looked after really when I arrive.
(04:18):
Airbbs we have used in the past, and we do
use them for longest days. But you know, I can't
be bothered with all that fiddle fattle of getting keys
and stuff for a few units state. And actually Italy
is making things a little bit harder for those short
term accommodation rental places now in terms of checking procedures
and not having keypads and things like that. Anyway, I
(04:41):
love a hotel and I want to take you through
how we do everything when it comes to hotels in Italy,
so you're very well prepared for your state. And I
guess the first part is researching your hotel. And for
the purposes of this podcast episode, a hotel is going
to refer to any form of accommodation where you will
have a front desk and a small lobby and or
(05:03):
a breakfast room. And that's because there are lots of
different types of hotel style accommodation in Italy that may
not be common in your country. A great example of
this is an agriturismo or farms day, which we've discussed
at length on other episodes, and we'll link to those
episodes into the show notes so you can have a
listen to those because it really is worthwhile seeking those
(05:25):
out and I always do whenever I go to Italy.
So a hotel, as it relates to this discussion, maybe
a pensione, a small hotel, a large hotel, and agriturismo,
and there's like lots of different names that can be used.
I'm not going to talk about large international chains like
Marriott or IHD, because frankly, while they can be useful
(05:47):
and especially for airport hotels, in my opinion, they don't
quite manage to hit the Italian mark. And when I
go to Italy, I want to feel like I'm in Italy,
and that's why it's great to choose a small hotel. Now,
everyone has their own way to research hotels, and each
to their own, but I'm going to share mine, which
I've gotten pretty good at over the years. If I
(06:08):
do say so myself and Olivia, who's on our team,
she's like, oh, you've done it again. And I know
because I've created this method that you know it works,
and it works. It works all around the world. I
chose some good ones in America last year too. Before
I get started, I wanted to give you an idea
of the hotel landscape in Italy, including the types and
(06:30):
the star ratings, because it is a bit different to
what we're used to. There are over thirty thousand hotels
in Italy and of these only about six percent are
in a group or a chain of hotels, so most
are independently operated small hotels and around seventy five percent
of these are in the two to three star category
(06:50):
based on the Italian classification system, which really refers to
services available rather than the quality of furnishings or decoration.
So just take you quickly through these so you know
what to expect, because I think sometimes when you say
four star hotel, people have got an idea of the
standard as it relates to what a four star hotel
(07:11):
is in our country, and in fact in Italy it
is a little bit different. So a three star hotel
is the most of the hotels, probably about forty five
percent of the hotels in Italy, and they are mid
range hotel with some services. So the reception should be staffed,
you know, most of the time, maybe at nighttime it's closed.
(07:32):
Rooms are typically a bit larger than the lower stars,
and you will have a telephone, a TV, and often
air conditioning. We'll talk about air conditioning a bit more later.
The hotel may have an on site restaurant or dining
room for breakfast and other meals, and there may be
a bar, lounge or some luggage assistance at certain hours.
(07:52):
So this category is very very common and it covers
everything from small boutique inns to decent business hotels. In
this type of hotel, on suite bathrooms are standard, and
I'll talk about that in a minute, because in some
of the lower star hotels you will find shared bathrooms.
So yes, you can find many, many lovely hotels in
(08:15):
this category because perhaps the rooms are rather lovely, but
they may not have a twenty four hour reception as
an example. So as you can see, the star rating
is really related to the services rather than the quality
of the decorations. Now, a two star hotel is a
basic hotel with minimal facilities, while a one star property
(08:35):
will be very basic, so it will have a sink
in the room and a shared bathroom. So you can
really get down to sometimes around fifty euros a night
at this level and even lower. And if you're traveling
on a budget, yeah, look out for these because sometimes
they can be really fantastic. Now, a four star hotel
(08:56):
will offer more services, so you'll get like a twenty
four hour reception, concierge services, maybe a laundry service, and
a full restaurant and bar on site. So I actually
really like that level of service, so I'll really generally
choose between a three in a four star hotel. But
I'm looking for some things, other extra little things. Then
(09:18):
I'll talk about them later. The five star rating in
Italy is awarded only if the hotel meets stringent criteria
on facility quality and service hours, So, for instance, a
certain percentage of rooms must be suites, and the concierge
and reception must be available twenty four to seven. In Italy,
they also have a five star Deluxe rating. And you
(09:40):
know what, I truly covered a stay at one of
those properties. This is white lotus on steroids, and the
Italians know how to do this really well. My friend
Maria Pascuale, who goes on the handle Heart Room, she
is this hotel connoisseur and she gets to say, it's
so many of these beautiful properties and I'm just so
jealous of time I see them. And one day I
(10:02):
will stay for a week at one of these hotels.
It'll be my treat to myself, the ultimate untold Italy treat.
But for now, I really may lee stay at the
three to four star hotels that have some beautiful extra
things that I love, and I'll talk about them a
feit later. Okay, So with thirty thousand hotels, where do
you even start to look because that's a lot of hotels,
(10:24):
and obviously it'll depend on the location that you're staying,
but there are a lot of hotels, and there are
a lot of small hotels, and in this situation, the
most comprehensive listing of accommodation in Italy can be found
on booking dot com because you'll be able to see
every single type of property, and most people are familiar
with booking dot com because you can filter, you can
(10:46):
view by map, you can see the photos, read reviews,
understand the pricings and the different types of rooms, and
you can get a really good idea of terms and
conditions and things like cancelation, clauses and inclusions like breakfast.
So I think it's always a really good idea to
refine your list of requirements before you go into researching.
(11:09):
So make sure you know your budget per night and
have a good realistic idea of what that budget should be.
So if you're looking for a three to four star
hotel in Rome, really at this time during the main
tourist season, you're looking at three to four hundred euros
per night and that's standard. So set your expectations very
(11:30):
clearly and have a little brows around so you can
see what you can get for that price, because you know,
some people have a very strict idea of what they
want to pay and it might not be realistic in
terms of what is available. I have to say, though,
having been to London this year as well and also
New York, which of some other really big tourist y cities,
(11:52):
I think the hotel pricing in Italy is very reasonable.
You know, go on to the days where you can
find and really really great rooms for under two hundred
and fifty US a night. I think it's I think
now these days we are looking at three hundred a
night mark for something that's fairly decent in terms of
(12:15):
services and furnishings. So that's probably around my benchmark of
where I'm looking at, and then you can definitely get
great accommodation for much lower than that. It's just really
what you're looking for. And everyone's different, and I just
feel like everyone needs to travel their own way, and
I'm at the stage of life where I need some
(12:36):
comforts and I really covert that and I prefer to
spend my money on that, and everyone's different. If you
don't want that, don't go for it. Anyway, once you've
got your list of requirements done in booking dot com,
I really think it's good just to go for the
ones that have a rating of over eight and that
they have over one hundred reviews, because I think if
(12:59):
it's only got a number of your views and it's
showing ten, you don't know the people that are reviewing.
You don't know who they are, you don't know what
their likes and dislikes are. But when you get to
a higher number, you're actually you've got a nice spread
of opinions and so it sort of evens out over
a broader range of people. So I usually do that,
and I read the reviews a lot so to make
(13:21):
sure that the things that I'm looking for are covered.
And sometimes it'll just be a little comment here or
there that's repeated a few times, and you're like, aha,
I don't want that for my stay, so I'll discount
that property. So for me, some of the key features
to check for, and this is really you know, standard
to most hotels, but also in Italy because there are
(13:42):
some little quirks that you need to be aware of.
First of all, for me, the location is super important.
I like to stay in the center. You do pay
a little bit more, but you don't have to deal
with transport and you can just walk everywhere, and I
find that really really great. And it can just be
like one little area outside the main center, and that's
really quite lovely as well, because it's usually more of
(14:04):
a local area. So for example, a lot of people
like to stay in tust other day in Rome because
it's like just a little step out from the center.
Also in Florence, I like to stay in the Altrano
district because again it's just a step out. Or I
also like to stay in Santa Croce because again you're
right next to the center. You've got all of that
(14:25):
lovely historic feeling, but you can still walk and have
a bit more of a local feeling as well. So
location is pretty important. Now. Air conditioning, it's not air
conditioning as you know it in the United States or
here in Australia. This is you know, they have some
different ideas about air conditioning and Italians won't even sleep
with the air conditioning on because they think it's going
(14:47):
to get them sick. So it's a different standard. And
we stayed at one place a few years ago and
they had the air conditioning wedged on to twenty five
degrees celsius, which if you ask me, is heating. So
you know, just be aware that you're probably not unless
you're staying at one of the top top five star hotels,
(15:07):
air conditioning may not be at their level that you're expecting,
and so just to be aware of that. But you
do kind of want it, and especially in summertime, it
can get very very hot, so you do need some
sort of air conditioning. And if you've got a question
about what air conditioning standard it is, you do reach
out to the properties and they can tell you. Because
(15:28):
when we choose our properties for our tours, it's quite
important because a lot of our clients are American and
that's what you're used to, and some things are non negotiable,
and I think that is probably one of them for
a lot of Americans that are traveling. But if you're
staying in some of these more budget accommodation, it's not
(15:48):
going to be possible a lot of the time, So
just to be aware of that. Now. The other one
to look at is the bedding configuration, and in Italy
a lot of times twin rooms are not that common,
especially down south and so if you're looking for twin
share accommodation, it can be quite difficult and they will
offer like a sofa bed as an alternative. You might
(16:10):
be able to get a sweep with a sofa bed,
but sometimes can be quite hard to get a twin
and the twin will be two singles rather than two
doubles or two queens, which I know is really really
common in the US, and when we're traveling as a family,
we usually get the rooms with two queens if we can,
because it suits us because our kids are not quiet
at the age where they can have their own room.
(16:31):
And saying that interconnecting rooms not very common because you know,
a lot of these hotels are in historic properties, so
it's just not possible to have these interconnecting rooms. So
just make sure you look at the bedding configuration and
make sure that it's what you need. Also, things that
I'm looking for is like a balcony, a way that
(16:52):
the room has fresh air you can get into it,
and maybe a little view that you can look out on.
I really like that. More practically, elevators, especially at that
you know, one to two star hotel. Really make sure
it's got an elevator if you need it, because otherwise
you're going to be taking the stairs and sometimes it
(17:14):
can be quite steep and maybe not great with their luggage.
You will get help with that for sure, but I
know when I was traveling with my father a couple
of years ago, you know he can't do the stairs
very easily. So it's a really important factor about the
hotel that we're looking into, and even like a few
steps can be problematic, so just make sure you look
(17:34):
into that. Another one is parking. Don't assume there's parking,
and I would say check into whether the parking is paid,
because first of all, I wouldn't park in the big cities.
I think it's not sensible for a lot of reasons,
and you can if you've been listening to the podcast
for a while, you'll know why. But if you're parking,
say if you're in a smaller town like Saciena or
(17:56):
you're driving through tuscan you just check that they've got
parking because it can be much more convenient if it's
got parking. Breakfast if you want to included. Flexible cancelation
policies are also really ideal. And you know, the really
great thing about booking dot Com is you can see
everything laid out in a very standard way, so it's
easy to compare. The other thing that I'm always looking
(18:18):
for when I'm choosing properties is I want a desk,
want something to sit down, and I should always travel
with my laptop. I know that's pretty not maybe standard
for everyone, but a lot of these properties don't have
a desk and I need to be able to check
in with my team and do stuff, and I know
other people do too, so just have a lookout for
(18:39):
some of those things. Now. I prefer to stay in
a small, boutique style hotel for most of my trips,
and using my checklist that I have, which has got
all of the things that I just mentioned included, I
can really easily zoom into what's suitable very quickly. But
after that, I'm looking for a bit of style, some
local touches like frescoed seal, homemade breakfasts, spectacular views or
(19:03):
a rooftop bar. And being close to a small town
center is an added bonus. I have a few Unicorn
hotels that I know I like scattered around Italy, and
it is so exciting when you find them because you know,
if you get all of those things combined in one.
It's very exciting, and it does take a lot of effort,
I've got to say. You know, you have to spend
(19:23):
quite a bit of time filtering out things to find
what you really want. But I do know one in
particular that I really love and it just fits all
of those criteria that I have, and it's called Palazzo Novello,
and it's in a really small town in Lombardy called Montequillerti.
And you know, this is well off the beaten track,
but it is quite close to Lake Garda. It's run
(19:45):
by three lovely sisters and it's simply delightful. And I
stayed there few years ago now and I always think
of it because it just did have all those lovely
extra things like beautiful linens and lovely toilet trees in
the bathroom and just everything that made you feel a
little bit special and that you could just still then
wander down the hill into the town and grab an
(20:06):
aperitivo and just feel like you're part of local Italian life.
That's not for everyone, and as I say, each to
their own, some people are very happy with a clean
room and a bed, and you can definitely find many
of those in Italy, with the added bonus that the
proprietor will generally be very very friendly. I also like
one of the very few Italian chains there's only a
(20:28):
handful of Italian chains, actually, and that is the Una
Hotel chain, which in my opinion, does an excellent job
of balancing local culture and a boutique vibe with modern amenities.
And they also seem to have a thing for rooftop bars,
and who doesn't love one of those. Now I'm going
to be doing some tough love here. Some things that
I need you to let go of unless you plan
to stay at ultra five star properties or international chains.
(20:50):
And they are ice machines. I've never seen one, actually,
but you can get them from the bar. You will
not generally fine just stopped minibar in room dining extremely rare.
Spacious rooms also extremely rare. You will be finding smaller rooms.
Walk in showers are not as common as you'd like.
(21:12):
So again, if you've got some mobility issues, really check
and look at the photos in the listings, because yeah,
you can have those ones that are over a bath,
especially in the one to two star hotels, and that
can be a bit problematic. They're not having very modern
amenities a lot of the time, so just make sure
(21:33):
that you check, especially if you need certain things, king
sized beds, very rare, very very rare, TVs with English channels.
Sometimes they have CNN or the BBC, but yeah, you're
not really going to find a lot of English language channels.
And depending on where you are and again the standard
(21:56):
of the hotel, you may not be able to do
streaming either. I never have TV when I'm initially I'm
too busy at enjoying the outdoors. But everyone's different and
everyone needs their own way to recharge, and you know,
if you need TV, then just have a good look
into that. If you want the ultra five star deluxe hotels,
then the Baglione and the rocofort properties are the ones
(22:21):
to seek out. They're absolutely stunning with all the amenities
and local details that will make your stay super special.
And Laseraneus in Positano also wins many awards and has
that really lax Italian vibe if that's what you're looking for.
Rooms will start from two thousand a night, so that's
you as dollars, maybe even more, maybe two thousand euros,
(22:42):
which the exchange rates not the best right now, but yeah,
so there's a broad range and I think though that
you can really find some really lovely three to four
star properties and I've managed to do that and it's
kind of like my I think it's my superpower. Actually
I like to find them. Okay, so now we've narrowed
down the perfect hotel or the perfect property, let's talk
(23:04):
about how to actually book your Italian hotel and some
things you'll want to know before you hit that reserve button.
So when it comes to booking your stay, there are
a few things to know. So, as you know, I
love so, so so much about Italy. However, managing commercial
arrangements is not one of them, and frankly it can
(23:25):
be a serious pain in the backside. As we've been
building our ontold Italy app, I can tell you now
that at least seventy percent of websites of the places
that we want to recommend are either out of date
or have no workable booking option. So if you want
to book online, things can become quite difficult. I do
not have time for an email exchange over three to
(23:47):
four days for a simple transaction, and prospect of handing
over payment information in a way that's not secure is
actually not an option for me, as I'm someone whose
partner works in cybersecurity, and we have very many robust
discussions about this issue, and this opinion is not popular
with many independent travelers. But I'm just going to be
(24:09):
upfront and tell you that I use booking dot Com
to book my accommodation, and so do most of my
staff who live in Italy and speak fluent Italian. And
that's because it's easy and you can easily find the
information that you need and be confident that you are
getting what you pay for. So the reason why some
(24:29):
people don't like to use the platforms like Booking dot
Com is because they do take a chunk of commission
from the hotels. But I need you to consider that
these places are not exactly investing in their own infrastructure
and marketing in a lot of cases. So you know,
I don't know how we'd find the places if they
weren't on booking dot Com. And certainly, as I mentioned,
(24:51):
we're finding that the website you cannot book online Booking
dot Com and other providers like Expedia, they do provide
us secut your booking platform and marketing engine for hotels,
and this is a service, and it's just like we've
just launched our new app and Apple and Google provide
this service for our app. I wouldn't be able to
have an app if it wasn't for Apple and Google.
(25:13):
And so they're not just taking commission, they're providing a service.
And it's the same with Booking dot Com. The hotels
are paying for the service of having a way to
customers to find them and also to take bookings, and
so it would probably cost them much much more if
the hotels were to do it for themselves anyway, each
of their own. A lot of people like to find
(25:35):
the hotels and booking dot Com and then book directly,
but I haven't really found actually an advantage to doing that,
because even though in our countries booking directly through the
hotel website can get you special perks like upgrades or
late checkouts or whatever, I haven't really found this to
be the case. In Italy, we book well over two
(25:56):
hundred rooms each year for our tours, and to get
even a small concession or discount, even for repeat business
requires you know, some ninja negotiating from our team. So
I'm sorry to say I can't see a benefit in
booking directly for that reason. Lastly, almost everyone has heard
a story about how someone was let down by a
big booking engine, but that's because they're big and well known,
(26:16):
and generally the more people use them, the more problems
will arise. But what I found is that the problems
generally arise from the hotel themselves are not the booking engine.
And hotels and small hotels in particular, they're not going
to risk their reputation with one of the big booking
platforms because like I said before, it's probably their main
(26:37):
source of business. Whichever way you choose to book, always always,
always read the terms and conditions and cancelation policies very
carefully and make sure that you understand what you're getting into.
I generally book, I book the rate that's the cancelation rate,
just because you know I'm booking quite far in advance
and maybe I may need to change plans later down
(26:59):
the track. But if you really know that you're not
going to change your plans, then you go ahead and
take the cheaper rate. For sure. It's usually at this point,
at the point of booking, that it's best to make
the special requests like when you're going to arrive and
if you need early check in for example, and if
you can just communicate really clearly and politely and even
(27:20):
use Google Translate, you know, and to do a little introduction,
it is a really lovely gesture and it is appreciated.
Another thing to note while you're in the booking phase
is most Italian businesses like to communicate via WhatsApp, so
that's another good way to follow up with your booking
once it's done. Okay, so now you've booked your dreams day.
(27:41):
That's exciting. Let's walk through what it's really like when
you arrive at your hotel in Italy. So when you
get there, some small hotels don't have twenty four hour
front desks, as we mentioned, so it's common to arrange
a check in time in advance. So if they reach
out by email, WhatsApp or the platform that you booked with,
keep an eye out for those emails because they often
(28:02):
give really useful parking information and instructions. Should they be
inside the historic zones, Please do read and pay attention
to those I learned this the hard way. This story
has been doing the rounds, but we did get stuck
between two stone walls in Sicily and that wasn't fun.
On checking. Italian hotels must take a copy of your
passport or idea if you're any citizens. It's completely normal
(28:26):
and necessary for official registration. By the way, it's also
required for airbnbs, so you will be asked for your
passport information and they'll take a copy of that, and
that's for their records. That is required by the government,
so it's nothing to be alarmed about. Some hotels will
ask you to complete an online form with your passport
details before arrival. It's up to you whether you would
(28:49):
like to do this. You don't have to, but it
can speed up the checking in process. I find the
websites a little bit flaky, just say so. I mentioned
before my partners works in cybersecurity, so we always check
out that first and I prefer not to do that.
But each to your own. So once you've checked in, look,
(29:12):
everyone's so friendly. There's one journald ben Venuti to the hotel.
It's all gorgeous and they'll be explaining a few things
about their hotel. It's really good to pay attention at
this point because staying in these charming properties, they're a
little bit older and historic and they're just lovely, but
they have some quirks. So an example of these easy elevators,
(29:32):
and I love them. They're so funny. You've got to
like kind of wheel your way in and they may
take one or two people and the luggage, and then
you've got to close two doors and then wait and
then all sort of edge its way up, and you know,
I do find it quite amazing. You're like, you know,
you're tired, you just want to get to your room.
But these people will shimmy up the stairs with your
(29:54):
luggage and they do it very easily. And I'm very
jealous when they do that, because I feel like I
should be able to do it myself. And when you
get to your room, I need you to be aware
that they're maybe not as spacious as you might imagine,
because space is a premium in these older towns. They
can be quite cozy, and the floors likely won't be carpeted.
(30:17):
Italians don't really like carpet They prefer like floorboards or
you know, like a tiled floor. Just to be aware.
The beds themselves can be quite hard. I think Italians prefer,
you know, a more firm bed and you will not
be finding mattress toppers or pillow menus. Okay, that's just
a difference, and just to be aware. You can always
(30:38):
ask for more pillows if you need them, and there's
usually some in the cupboard, but you know, just to
be aware. One thing I do love though, especially in
northern Italy, is they put on if you've got like
a double bed or a queen sized bed, they'll give
you too quills so folded up. I think it's more
catering to German tourists or people from a Scandinavia because
this is very common there, but you don't have to
(31:00):
share your quilt. I love it. It's fantastic. We should
all do it. So we always love getting into the
hotel rooms in Italy and finding that situation and we're like, yes,
we don't have to argue over the bedding with each other.
The bathrooms will also be small. You'll find in there
a B day. I'm not going to go into the
(31:20):
B day right now, but suffice to say look that
up on how to use a B day on YouTube
and have a good laugh. We're not used to it.
I know people in Italy that are absolutely shocked when
they can't find a b day when they go abroad,
and you know, bad luck we don't have them, but
they do and a lot of people like them, so
(31:41):
enjoy shower pressure may not also be great, so just
to be aware. And there's a really weird thing going
on in Sicily with bathrooms with glass walls so that
you can see everything going on in the bathroom. I
don't honestly, I don't know why they think that's attractive.
No thanks, I'm not. It's just terrible. Why would you
(32:02):
want that? I don't know anyway, So look out for
that if you're when you're researching, because it's just weird. Okay,
TVs again, no English channels. They might be kind of
old style laundry, you know, if they have a service.
Sometimes it's slow and you might even be better off
going to like a laundrome match around the corner. But
(32:25):
regardless of how fast it is, it will be done
very well. Italians are very good at washing. My mother
in law can get out a tomato saucetain from a
white shirt and I have no idea how she does it.
I have not acquired that skill anyway, she does it
and it's amazing. The other thing that you need to
know is you may need to leave your key at
(32:45):
reception when you go out. So sometimes they have this
huge keys on a chain, like an old school key.
They're not the card keys that we have in more
modern hotels, so you don't want to be carrying that
around with you, so you just leave that at perception
when you go out. And just in terms of what's
left in the room, sometimes there's usually actually there's water,
both still and sparkling, and that's you know, usually quite nice.
(33:08):
Although Italian hotels stop using plastic really just annoys me.
I prefer glass if anything, and I think I should
do an episode about this because environmental considerations are not
in front of mine often in Italy. So when I
find a place that really does respect that, I really
do appreciate it. So breakfast breakfast will depend on where
(33:33):
you are and what you book. So this is another
tip you to read the reviews because sometimes breakfast can
be really simple like a coffee and a croissant and
maybe a homemade cake and some yogurt and fruit, or
it can be a full blown extravaganza. And again this
is more common in the north of Italy. But it's
amazing and my family absolutely loves an Italian breakfast extravaganza,
(33:57):
and we stayed at one place in South Carrol in
northern Italy where they had about three or four different
types of homemade cake, plus drudle, eggs, meats, cheeses, yogurt, fruit, cereals, pancakes,
anything you could think of, and it was all homemade.
It was literally nothing out of a packet. It was insane.
(34:19):
My kids will talk about that I reckon and for
the rest of their lives. They love it and they
want to go back. And you know, I guess it's
important to fuel up when you're heading into the mountains,
but it is a good two meals worth of food
you can easily eat and then I don't know why,
but you're still hungry afterwards. Anyway, I've never had it
anywhere else in the world, and if you are a
(34:42):
breakfast person, I say seek it out. It's fantastic. So
most hotels in the big tourist areas now offer more
American style breakfast with eggs and bacon and stuff like that.
But you know, in a traditional Italian breakfast is really
just a crossant and a coffee, and it depends on
what you for breakfast. If you like a big breakfast,
(35:02):
then you go looking for those hotels where they have
their breakfast extravaganza and you'll be very very happy in Italy. Now,
in terms of hospitality, expect genuine smiles, personalized restaurant recommendations
and help with anything you need. Italians take really great
pride in welcoming guests and they don't do tipping for
(35:23):
that stuff, so this is just part of the service
that they offer and it's really really lovely and very
very helpful. They'll remember your coffee order for breakfast if
you're staying there a few days and we you like
to sit. And a few years ago I stayed at
one of the top hotels in Iskia and the pool
guy learned our routine and had our towels ready as
soon as we looked like we were ready to leave
the pool, and he was constantly adjusting our umbrella for
(35:46):
the sun. He was very charming, thanks to Francesco, and
he was very nice, but it was the anticipation of
our needs that was really the lovely thing. Concierge or
front desk services are generally fantastic, very helpful with taxis,
restaurant recommendations, and last minute tickets. Again, this is like
part of the hotel service and it's well really worth
(36:07):
while having a chat with these people because I really
do love to help with recommendations that are specific to you.
And if it's a smaller family run hotel, they often
have a restaurant and they can be very good restaurants.
Earlier this year, we stayed at a hotel in the
Dolomites and their restaurant was outstanding and it featured local
produce from their very own farm, which is really nice. Okay,
(36:30):
we're getting towards checking out. Now we've got to leave
our lovely hotel and at this point you do need
to go to the front desk to settle your account
because unless they've collected it at checking, you need to
pay your tassa dish the journal, which is your city
tax in and sometimes they want that in casual. So
what this taxi is, it's a per person per night
(36:52):
tax that's levied by Italian cities and it's calculated based
on the star rating of the hotel. So currently in
Rome it's between six ten euro per person per night
and sometimes you know, as I said, they will try
and collect this in cash, but you can pay by card,
and I think I mentioned that when we were in
Italy in January. I didn't use cash once on that trip.
(37:14):
So we were there for I think twelve days, so
cash not necessary. Now you can't just walk out like
at hotels in the US. And so funny story when
we were in America last year, I got so many
confused looks when I was trying to have a chat
on checkout and someone just said, oh, you can just leave,
and I was like, oh, okay, all right bye. But
(37:34):
in Italy, yeah, it's customary to make sure you check
out with a person at the desk. And so then
to sum up, I love an Italian hotel. And you know,
while they may not have all the things that we
might expect in our countries, they do have a lot
of personalized charm no ice machine. So head to the bar,
grab some eyes. They'll give you some and have a
(37:55):
chat with a barrister or bartender. They'll also be happy
to share their favorite local horns, and they can make
you the best negroni you've ever tasted. If you're craving
carbonara in Rome or an ebike adventure close to your Tuscany,
stay ass the front desk. They're genuinely happy to make
your stay memorable for all the right reasons. Now, are
(38:15):
you in the planning phase of your trip? On our
you Untold Italy app, we have hotel suggestions at the
mid range, budget and luxury price points for all the
major tourist areas and off the beaten path places, including
small towns in Tuscany, along the Amalfi coast and on
Lake Como. We're constantly updating the content and in the
coming months the app will include all regions of Italy,
(38:38):
which is not available in any guidebook. This week I'm
working on Basilla Carta, including the cave hotels of Matera
and favorite places in Pulia. So go ahead and download
the app if you want a fast track you're Untold
Italy Recommendations. That's it for today's episode of Untold Italy.
I hope you're feeling a little bit more prepared and
(38:59):
maybe a little excited for your hotel stay in Italy.
As always, our recommendations and all the details of things
I mentioned are in the show notes Untold Italy dot com.
Forward slash two seven one for episode number two hundred
and seventy one and just embrace those small differences of
the hotels. Some of them maybe minor annoyances, but you
(39:20):
know what, you'll get a story out of them. You'll
have a bit of fun. And it's all part of travel,
because travel is about experiencing new cultures, new ways of
doing things, and you might pick up something new for yourself,
and in fact from the breakfast extravaganzas. Every now and
again I do do an Italian breakfast extravaganza for my
children and they absolutely love it. It's one of those
(39:43):
things that is it's something that we share, it's a
tradition and it's all come from traveling initially and embracing
these different local ways of doing things. So if you
enjoyed this episode, it would really mean the world to
us if you left a quick rating or review, and
it helps more travelers find their way to Italy. Next
week we're heading north to the mountains and discovering some
(40:04):
of the dishes to expect in south to roll. But
until then, it's chowfin now. The Untold Italy Podcast is
an independent production podcast editing, audio production and website development
by Mark Hatter, Production assistance and content writing by the
are They KG Clark yes, there are two of us.
For more information about untold Italy, please visit untold Italy
(40:26):
dot com.
Ever wondered what it's like to stay at an Italian hotel.
In this week's episode of Untold Italy, I'm sharing everything
you need to know, from finding your perfect stay to
what to expect once you arrive, including passport checks, tiny elevators,
sweet breakfast and more.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Tawatuti and Benvenuti to One Told Italy, the travel podcast,
to where you go to the towns and villages, mountains
and lakes, hills and coastlines of Beli, Italia. Each week,
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a search of magical landscapes, history, culture, wine, glato, and
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of course a whole lot of pasta. If you're dreaming
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finding the right tools to match your learning style is important.
My friend Michelle from Intrepid Italian offers a practical approach
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(01:21):
learner herself. With Italian heritage, she really knows how to
bridge the gap between English and Italian, As Angela from
Australia said, I put my inability to learn down to
my senior stage of life, but with Intrepid Italian, it
seems to just fit. To find out how Intrepid Italian
can help you learn Italian, and to claim an exclusive
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twenty dollars coupon code that you can use on any
of Michelle's online courses from beginner to intermediate, visit untold
Italy dot com, forward slash Italian or visit the link
in the show notes. As a bonus, you'll also get
a downloadable travel phrase guide absolutely free, So visit untold
Italy dot com, forward slash Italian to accelerate your Italian Jawadudi.
(02:06):
How has your week been going. My kids are back
to school after what seemed like the longest school holidays,
and now I'm in a bit of a sprint to
get things done before I head off to Italy in
six weeks. My trips always seem to come around so quickly,
which of course is very exciting, but it does mean
that I have to squash a lot into the coming
weeks and be very organized this time. I'm staying in
(02:29):
Rome for most of the trip to catch up with
the team and do some day trips before joining our
Umbria tour for a few days. It's going to be
really interesting to see what Rome is like after the
conclave to elect the new prope which is starting on
the seventh of May, I believe. But by all accounts,
things are somewhat quieter than predicted for this year, and honestly,
(02:49):
I am not surprised. I think many people delayed trips
due to projected crowd sizes for the Vatican Jubilee, and well,
you know, I don't know how helpful those projections were,
but anyway, it is what it is, and I can
see plenty of availability for our preferred hotels in Rome
during June at twenty twenty four prices, So if you're
(03:12):
thinking about a last minute trip to Italy, why not. Honestly,
the way the world is these days, I see absolutely
no reason to delay anything. Cap adm, I say, seize
the day and have some fun if you can. Speaking
of hotels today, I wanted to have a chat about
and give you some insight into the wonders of Italian
hotels because they're generally quite different from what we have
(03:34):
here in Australia and very different from those you'll find
in the US and around the world, which I love
because honestly, that's part of the fun of traveling, tapping
into the different cultural aspects of things wherever you go,
and you get a really concentrated taste of that at
a hotel because they're putting those little cultural differences to
play in everything that they do. And so I thought
(03:57):
it would be fun to take you step by step
through the hohleel tel experience in Italy, from searching to
booking and what happens when you arrive, with some little
anecdotes along the way. So the reason I choose hotels
is mainly because I like to know have like a
base and have be looked after really when I arrive.
(04:18):
Airbbs we have used in the past, and we do
use them for longest days. But you know, I can't
be bothered with all that fiddle fattle of getting keys
and stuff for a few units state. And actually Italy
is making things a little bit harder for those short
term accommodation rental places now in terms of checking procedures
and not having keypads and things like that. Anyway, I
(04:41):
love a hotel and I want to take you through
how we do everything when it comes to hotels in Italy,
so you're very well prepared for your state. And I
guess the first part is researching your hotel. And for
the purposes of this podcast episode, a hotel is going
to refer to any form of accommodation where you will
have a front desk and a small lobby and or
(05:03):
a breakfast room. And that's because there are lots of
different types of hotel style accommodation in Italy that may
not be common in your country. A great example of
this is an agriturismo or farms day, which we've discussed
at length on other episodes, and we'll link to those
episodes into the show notes so you can have a
listen to those because it really is worthwhile seeking those
(05:25):
out and I always do whenever I go to Italy.
So a hotel, as it relates to this discussion, maybe
a pensione, a small hotel, a large hotel, and agriturismo,
and there's like lots of different names that can be used.
I'm not going to talk about large international chains like
Marriott or IHD, because frankly, while they can be useful
(05:47):
and especially for airport hotels, in my opinion, they don't
quite manage to hit the Italian mark. And when I
go to Italy, I want to feel like I'm in Italy,
and that's why it's great to choose a small hotel. Now,
everyone has their own way to research hotels, and each
to their own, but I'm going to share mine, which
I've gotten pretty good at over the years. If I
(06:08):
do say so myself and Olivia, who's on our team,
she's like, oh, you've done it again. And I know
because I've created this method that you know it works,
and it works. It works all around the world. I
chose some good ones in America last year too. Before
I get started, I wanted to give you an idea
of the hotel landscape in Italy, including the types and
(06:30):
the star ratings, because it is a bit different to
what we're used to. There are over thirty thousand hotels
in Italy and of these only about six percent are
in a group or a chain of hotels, so most
are independently operated small hotels and around seventy five percent
of these are in the two to three star category
(06:50):
based on the Italian classification system, which really refers to
services available rather than the quality of furnishings or decoration.
So just take you quickly through these so you know
what to expect, because I think sometimes when you say
four star hotel, people have got an idea of the
standard as it relates to what a four star hotel
(07:11):
is in our country, and in fact in Italy it
is a little bit different. So a three star hotel
is the most of the hotels, probably about forty five
percent of the hotels in Italy, and they are mid
range hotel with some services. So the reception should be staffed,
you know, most of the time, maybe at nighttime it's closed.
(07:32):
Rooms are typically a bit larger than the lower stars,
and you will have a telephone, a TV, and often
air conditioning. We'll talk about air conditioning a bit more later.
The hotel may have an on site restaurant or dining
room for breakfast and other meals, and there may be
a bar, lounge or some luggage assistance at certain hours.
(07:52):
So this category is very very common and it covers
everything from small boutique inns to decent business hotels. In
this type of hotel, on suite bathrooms are standard, and
I'll talk about that in a minute, because in some
of the lower star hotels you will find shared bathrooms.
So yes, you can find many, many lovely hotels in
(08:15):
this category because perhaps the rooms are rather lovely, but
they may not have a twenty four hour reception as
an example. So as you can see, the star rating
is really related to the services rather than the quality
of the decorations. Now, a two star hotel is a
basic hotel with minimal facilities, while a one star property
(08:35):
will be very basic, so it will have a sink
in the room and a shared bathroom. So you can
really get down to sometimes around fifty euros a night
at this level and even lower. And if you're traveling
on a budget, yeah, look out for these because sometimes
they can be really fantastic. Now, a four star hotel
(08:56):
will offer more services, so you'll get like a twenty
four hour reception, concierge services, maybe a laundry service, and
a full restaurant and bar on site. So I actually
really like that level of service, so I'll really generally
choose between a three in a four star hotel. But
I'm looking for some things, other extra little things. Then
(09:18):
I'll talk about them later. The five star rating in
Italy is awarded only if the hotel meets stringent criteria
on facility quality and service hours, So, for instance, a
certain percentage of rooms must be suites, and the concierge
and reception must be available twenty four to seven. In Italy,
they also have a five star Deluxe rating. And you
(09:40):
know what, I truly covered a stay at one of
those properties. This is white lotus on steroids, and the
Italians know how to do this really well. My friend
Maria Pascuale, who goes on the handle Heart Room, she
is this hotel connoisseur and she gets to say, it's
so many of these beautiful properties and I'm just so
jealous of time I see them. And one day I
(10:02):
will stay for a week at one of these hotels.
It'll be my treat to myself, the ultimate untold Italy treat.
But for now, I really may lee stay at the
three to four star hotels that have some beautiful extra
things that I love, and I'll talk about them a
feit later. Okay, So with thirty thousand hotels, where do
you even start to look because that's a lot of hotels,
(10:24):
and obviously it'll depend on the location that you're staying,
but there are a lot of hotels, and there are
a lot of small hotels, and in this situation, the
most comprehensive listing of accommodation in Italy can be found
on booking dot com because you'll be able to see
every single type of property, and most people are familiar
with booking dot com because you can filter, you can
(10:46):
view by map, you can see the photos, read reviews,
understand the pricings and the different types of rooms, and
you can get a really good idea of terms and
conditions and things like cancelation, clauses and inclusions like breakfast.
So I think it's always a really good idea to
refine your list of requirements before you go into researching.
(11:09):
So make sure you know your budget per night and
have a good realistic idea of what that budget should be.
So if you're looking for a three to four star
hotel in Rome, really at this time during the main
tourist season, you're looking at three to four hundred euros
per night and that's standard. So set your expectations very
(11:30):
clearly and have a little brows around so you can
see what you can get for that price, because you know,
some people have a very strict idea of what they
want to pay and it might not be realistic in
terms of what is available. I have to say, though,
having been to London this year as well and also
New York, which of some other really big tourist y cities,
(11:52):
I think the hotel pricing in Italy is very reasonable.
You know, go on to the days where you can
find and really really great rooms for under two hundred
and fifty US a night. I think it's I think
now these days we are looking at three hundred a
night mark for something that's fairly decent in terms of
(12:15):
services and furnishings. So that's probably around my benchmark of
where I'm looking at, and then you can definitely get
great accommodation for much lower than that. It's just really
what you're looking for. And everyone's different, and I just
feel like everyone needs to travel their own way, and
I'm at the stage of life where I need some
(12:36):
comforts and I really covert that and I prefer to
spend my money on that, and everyone's different. If you
don't want that, don't go for it. Anyway, once you've
got your list of requirements done in booking dot com,
I really think it's good just to go for the
ones that have a rating of over eight and that
they have over one hundred reviews, because I think if
(12:59):
it's only got a number of your views and it's
showing ten, you don't know the people that are reviewing.
You don't know who they are, you don't know what
their likes and dislikes are. But when you get to
a higher number, you're actually you've got a nice spread
of opinions and so it sort of evens out over
a broader range of people. So I usually do that,
and I read the reviews a lot so to make
(13:21):
sure that the things that I'm looking for are covered.
And sometimes it'll just be a little comment here or
there that's repeated a few times, and you're like, aha,
I don't want that for my stay, so I'll discount
that property. So for me, some of the key features
to check for, and this is really you know, standard
to most hotels, but also in Italy because there are
(13:42):
some little quirks that you need to be aware of.
First of all, for me, the location is super important.
I like to stay in the center. You do pay
a little bit more, but you don't have to deal
with transport and you can just walk everywhere, and I
find that really really great. And it can just be
like one little area outside the main center, and that's
really quite lovely as well, because it's usually more of
(14:04):
a local area. So for example, a lot of people
like to stay in tust other day in Rome because
it's like just a little step out from the center.
Also in Florence, I like to stay in the Altrano
district because again it's just a step out. Or I
also like to stay in Santa Croce because again you're
right next to the center. You've got all of that
(14:25):
lovely historic feeling, but you can still walk and have
a bit more of a local feeling as well. So
location is pretty important. Now. Air conditioning, it's not air
conditioning as you know it in the United States or
here in Australia. This is you know, they have some
different ideas about air conditioning and Italians won't even sleep
with the air conditioning on because they think it's going
(14:47):
to get them sick. So it's a different standard. And
we stayed at one place a few years ago and
they had the air conditioning wedged on to twenty five
degrees celsius, which if you ask me, is heating. So
you know, just be aware that you're probably not unless
you're staying at one of the top top five star hotels,
(15:07):
air conditioning may not be at their level that you're expecting,
and so just to be aware of that. But you
do kind of want it, and especially in summertime, it
can get very very hot, so you do need some
sort of air conditioning. And if you've got a question
about what air conditioning standard it is, you do reach
out to the properties and they can tell you. Because
(15:28):
when we choose our properties for our tours, it's quite
important because a lot of our clients are American and
that's what you're used to, and some things are non negotiable,
and I think that is probably one of them for
a lot of Americans that are traveling. But if you're
staying in some of these more budget accommodation, it's not
(15:48):
going to be possible a lot of the time, So
just to be aware of that. Now. The other one
to look at is the bedding configuration, and in Italy
a lot of times twin rooms are not that common,
especially down south and so if you're looking for twin
share accommodation, it can be quite difficult and they will
offer like a sofa bed as an alternative. You might
(16:10):
be able to get a sweep with a sofa bed,
but sometimes can be quite hard to get a twin
and the twin will be two singles rather than two
doubles or two queens, which I know is really really
common in the US, and when we're traveling as a family,
we usually get the rooms with two queens if we can,
because it suits us because our kids are not quiet
at the age where they can have their own room.
(16:31):
And saying that interconnecting rooms not very common because you know,
a lot of these hotels are in historic properties, so
it's just not possible to have these interconnecting rooms. So
just make sure you look at the bedding configuration and
make sure that it's what you need. Also, things that
I'm looking for is like a balcony, a way that
(16:52):
the room has fresh air you can get into it,
and maybe a little view that you can look out on.
I really like that. More practically, elevators, especially at that
you know, one to two star hotel. Really make sure
it's got an elevator if you need it, because otherwise
you're going to be taking the stairs and sometimes it
(17:14):
can be quite steep and maybe not great with their luggage.
You will get help with that for sure, but I
know when I was traveling with my father a couple
of years ago, you know he can't do the stairs
very easily. So it's a really important factor about the
hotel that we're looking into, and even like a few
steps can be problematic, so just make sure you look
(17:34):
into that. Another one is parking. Don't assume there's parking,
and I would say check into whether the parking is paid,
because first of all, I wouldn't park in the big cities.
I think it's not sensible for a lot of reasons,
and you can if you've been listening to the podcast
for a while, you'll know why. But if you're parking,
say if you're in a smaller town like Saciena or
(17:56):
you're driving through tuscan you just check that they've got
parking because it can be much more convenient if it's
got parking. Breakfast if you want to included. Flexible cancelation
policies are also really ideal. And you know, the really
great thing about booking dot Com is you can see
everything laid out in a very standard way, so it's
easy to compare. The other thing that I'm always looking
(18:18):
for when I'm choosing properties is I want a desk,
want something to sit down, and I should always travel
with my laptop. I know that's pretty not maybe standard
for everyone, but a lot of these properties don't have
a desk and I need to be able to check
in with my team and do stuff, and I know
other people do too, so just have a lookout for
(18:39):
some of those things. Now. I prefer to stay in
a small, boutique style hotel for most of my trips,
and using my checklist that I have, which has got
all of the things that I just mentioned included, I
can really easily zoom into what's suitable very quickly. But
after that, I'm looking for a bit of style, some
local touches like frescoed seal, homemade breakfasts, spectacular views or
(19:03):
a rooftop bar. And being close to a small town
center is an added bonus. I have a few Unicorn
hotels that I know I like scattered around Italy, and
it is so exciting when you find them because you know,
if you get all of those things combined in one.
It's very exciting, and it does take a lot of effort,
I've got to say. You know, you have to spend
(19:23):
quite a bit of time filtering out things to find
what you really want. But I do know one in
particular that I really love and it just fits all
of those criteria that I have, and it's called Palazzo Novello,
and it's in a really small town in Lombardy called Montequillerti.
And you know, this is well off the beaten track,
but it is quite close to Lake Garda. It's run
(19:45):
by three lovely sisters and it's simply delightful. And I
stayed there few years ago now and I always think
of it because it just did have all those lovely
extra things like beautiful linens and lovely toilet trees in
the bathroom and just everything that made you feel a
little bit special and that you could just still then
wander down the hill into the town and grab an
(20:06):
aperitivo and just feel like you're part of local Italian life.
That's not for everyone, and as I say, each to
their own, some people are very happy with a clean
room and a bed, and you can definitely find many
of those in Italy, with the added bonus that the
proprietor will generally be very very friendly. I also like
one of the very few Italian chains there's only a
(20:28):
handful of Italian chains, actually, and that is the Una
Hotel chain, which in my opinion, does an excellent job
of balancing local culture and a boutique vibe with modern amenities.
And they also seem to have a thing for rooftop bars,
and who doesn't love one of those. Now I'm going
to be doing some tough love here. Some things that
I need you to let go of unless you plan
to stay at ultra five star properties or international chains.
(20:50):
And they are ice machines. I've never seen one, actually,
but you can get them from the bar. You will
not generally fine just stopped minibar in room dining extremely rare.
Spacious rooms also extremely rare. You will be finding smaller rooms.
Walk in showers are not as common as you'd like.
(21:12):
So again, if you've got some mobility issues, really check
and look at the photos in the listings, because yeah,
you can have those ones that are over a bath,
especially in the one to two star hotels, and that
can be a bit problematic. They're not having very modern
amenities a lot of the time, so just make sure
(21:33):
that you check, especially if you need certain things, king
sized beds, very rare, very very rare, TVs with English channels.
Sometimes they have CNN or the BBC, but yeah, you're
not really going to find a lot of English language channels.
And depending on where you are and again the standard
(21:56):
of the hotel, you may not be able to do
streaming either. I never have TV when I'm initially I'm
too busy at enjoying the outdoors. But everyone's different and
everyone needs their own way to recharge, and you know,
if you need TV, then just have a good look
into that. If you want the ultra five star deluxe hotels,
then the Baglione and the rocofort properties are the ones
(22:21):
to seek out. They're absolutely stunning with all the amenities
and local details that will make your stay super special.
And Laseraneus in Positano also wins many awards and has
that really lax Italian vibe if that's what you're looking for.
Rooms will start from two thousand a night, so that's
you as dollars, maybe even more, maybe two thousand euros,
(22:42):
which the exchange rates not the best right now, but yeah,
so there's a broad range and I think though that
you can really find some really lovely three to four
star properties and I've managed to do that and it's
kind of like my I think it's my superpower. Actually
I like to find them. Okay, so now we've narrowed
down the perfect hotel or the perfect property, let's talk
(23:04):
about how to actually book your Italian hotel and some
things you'll want to know before you hit that reserve button.
So when it comes to booking your stay, there are
a few things to know. So, as you know, I
love so, so so much about Italy. However, managing commercial
arrangements is not one of them, and frankly it can
(23:25):
be a serious pain in the backside. As we've been
building our ontold Italy app, I can tell you now
that at least seventy percent of websites of the places
that we want to recommend are either out of date
or have no workable booking option. So if you want
to book online, things can become quite difficult. I do
not have time for an email exchange over three to
(23:47):
four days for a simple transaction, and prospect of handing
over payment information in a way that's not secure is
actually not an option for me, as I'm someone whose
partner works in cybersecurity, and we have very many robust
discussions about this issue, and this opinion is not popular
with many independent travelers. But I'm just going to be
(24:09):
upfront and tell you that I use booking dot Com
to book my accommodation, and so do most of my
staff who live in Italy and speak fluent Italian. And
that's because it's easy and you can easily find the
information that you need and be confident that you are
getting what you pay for. So the reason why some
(24:29):
people don't like to use the platforms like Booking dot
Com is because they do take a chunk of commission
from the hotels. But I need you to consider that
these places are not exactly investing in their own infrastructure
and marketing in a lot of cases. So you know,
I don't know how we'd find the places if they
weren't on booking dot Com. And certainly, as I mentioned,
(24:51):
we're finding that the website you cannot book online Booking
dot Com and other providers like Expedia, they do provide
us secut your booking platform and marketing engine for hotels,
and this is a service, and it's just like we've
just launched our new app and Apple and Google provide
this service for our app. I wouldn't be able to
have an app if it wasn't for Apple and Google.
(25:13):
And so they're not just taking commission, they're providing a service.
And it's the same with Booking dot Com. The hotels
are paying for the service of having a way to
customers to find them and also to take bookings, and
so it would probably cost them much much more if
the hotels were to do it for themselves anyway, each
of their own. A lot of people like to find
(25:35):
the hotels and booking dot Com and then book directly,
but I haven't really found actually an advantage to doing that,
because even though in our countries booking directly through the
hotel website can get you special perks like upgrades or
late checkouts or whatever, I haven't really found this to
be the case. In Italy, we book well over two
(25:56):
hundred rooms each year for our tours, and to get
even a small concession or discount, even for repeat business
requires you know, some ninja negotiating from our team. So
I'm sorry to say I can't see a benefit in
booking directly for that reason. Lastly, almost everyone has heard
a story about how someone was let down by a
big booking engine, but that's because they're big and well known,
(26:16):
and generally the more people use them, the more problems
will arise. But what I found is that the problems
generally arise from the hotel themselves are not the booking engine.
And hotels and small hotels in particular, they're not going
to risk their reputation with one of the big booking
platforms because like I said before, it's probably their main
(26:37):
source of business. Whichever way you choose to book, always always,
always read the terms and conditions and cancelation policies very
carefully and make sure that you understand what you're getting into.
I generally book, I book the rate that's the cancelation rate,
just because you know I'm booking quite far in advance
and maybe I may need to change plans later down
(26:59):
the track. But if you really know that you're not
going to change your plans, then you go ahead and
take the cheaper rate. For sure. It's usually at this point,
at the point of booking, that it's best to make
the special requests like when you're going to arrive and
if you need early check in for example, and if
you can just communicate really clearly and politely and even
(27:20):
use Google Translate, you know, and to do a little introduction,
it is a really lovely gesture and it is appreciated.
Another thing to note while you're in the booking phase
is most Italian businesses like to communicate via WhatsApp, so
that's another good way to follow up with your booking
once it's done. Okay, so now you've booked your dreams day.
(27:41):
That's exciting. Let's walk through what it's really like when
you arrive at your hotel in Italy. So when you
get there, some small hotels don't have twenty four hour
front desks, as we mentioned, so it's common to arrange
a check in time in advance. So if they reach
out by email, WhatsApp or the platform that you booked with,
keep an eye out for those emails because they often
(28:02):
give really useful parking information and instructions. Should they be
inside the historic zones, Please do read and pay attention
to those I learned this the hard way. This story
has been doing the rounds, but we did get stuck
between two stone walls in Sicily and that wasn't fun.
On checking. Italian hotels must take a copy of your
passport or idea if you're any citizens. It's completely normal
(28:26):
and necessary for official registration. By the way, it's also
required for airbnbs, so you will be asked for your
passport information and they'll take a copy of that, and
that's for their records. That is required by the government,
so it's nothing to be alarmed about. Some hotels will
ask you to complete an online form with your passport
details before arrival. It's up to you whether you would
(28:49):
like to do this. You don't have to, but it
can speed up the checking in process. I find the
websites a little bit flaky, just say so. I mentioned
before my partners works in cybersecurity, so we always check
out that first and I prefer not to do that.
But each to your own. So once you've checked in, look,
(29:12):
everyone's so friendly. There's one journald ben Venuti to the hotel.
It's all gorgeous and they'll be explaining a few things
about their hotel. It's really good to pay attention at
this point because staying in these charming properties, they're a
little bit older and historic and they're just lovely, but
they have some quirks. So an example of these easy elevators,
(29:32):
and I love them. They're so funny. You've got to
like kind of wheel your way in and they may
take one or two people and the luggage, and then
you've got to close two doors and then wait and
then all sort of edge its way up, and you know,
I do find it quite amazing. You're like, you know,
you're tired, you just want to get to your room.
But these people will shimmy up the stairs with your
(29:54):
luggage and they do it very easily. And I'm very
jealous when they do that, because I feel like I
should be able to do it myself. And when you
get to your room, I need you to be aware
that they're maybe not as spacious as you might imagine,
because space is a premium in these older towns. They
can be quite cozy, and the floors likely won't be carpeted.
(30:17):
Italians don't really like carpet They prefer like floorboards or
you know, like a tiled floor. Just to be aware.
The beds themselves can be quite hard. I think Italians prefer,
you know, a more firm bed and you will not
be finding mattress toppers or pillow menus. Okay, that's just
a difference, and just to be aware. You can always
(30:38):
ask for more pillows if you need them, and there's
usually some in the cupboard, but you know, just to
be aware. One thing I do love though, especially in
northern Italy, is they put on if you've got like
a double bed or a queen sized bed, they'll give
you too quills so folded up. I think it's more
catering to German tourists or people from a Scandinavia because
this is very common there, but you don't have to
(31:00):
share your quilt. I love it. It's fantastic. We should
all do it. So we always love getting into the
hotel rooms in Italy and finding that situation and we're like, yes,
we don't have to argue over the bedding with each other.
The bathrooms will also be small. You'll find in there
a B day. I'm not going to go into the
(31:20):
B day right now, but suffice to say look that
up on how to use a B day on YouTube
and have a good laugh. We're not used to it.
I know people in Italy that are absolutely shocked when
they can't find a b day when they go abroad,
and you know, bad luck we don't have them, but
they do and a lot of people like them, so
(31:41):
enjoy shower pressure may not also be great, so just
to be aware. And there's a really weird thing going
on in Sicily with bathrooms with glass walls so that
you can see everything going on in the bathroom. I
don't honestly, I don't know why they think that's attractive.
No thanks, I'm not. It's just terrible. Why would you
(32:02):
want that? I don't know anyway, So look out for
that if you're when you're researching, because it's just weird. Okay,
TVs again, no English channels. They might be kind of
old style laundry, you know, if they have a service.
Sometimes it's slow and you might even be better off
going to like a laundrome match around the corner. But
(32:25):
regardless of how fast it is, it will be done
very well. Italians are very good at washing. My mother
in law can get out a tomato saucetain from a
white shirt and I have no idea how she does it.
I have not acquired that skill anyway, she does it
and it's amazing. The other thing that you need to
know is you may need to leave your key at
(32:45):
reception when you go out. So sometimes they have this
huge keys on a chain, like an old school key.
They're not the card keys that we have in more
modern hotels, so you don't want to be carrying that
around with you, so you just leave that at perception
when you go out. And just in terms of what's
left in the room, sometimes there's usually actually there's water,
both still and sparkling, and that's you know, usually quite nice.
(33:08):
Although Italian hotels stop using plastic really just annoys me.
I prefer glass if anything, and I think I should
do an episode about this because environmental considerations are not
in front of mine often in Italy. So when I
find a place that really does respect that, I really
do appreciate it. So breakfast breakfast will depend on where
(33:33):
you are and what you book. So this is another
tip you to read the reviews because sometimes breakfast can
be really simple like a coffee and a croissant and
maybe a homemade cake and some yogurt and fruit, or
it can be a full blown extravaganza. And again this
is more common in the north of Italy. But it's
amazing and my family absolutely loves an Italian breakfast extravaganza,
(33:57):
and we stayed at one place in South Carrol in
northern Italy where they had about three or four different
types of homemade cake, plus drudle, eggs, meats, cheeses, yogurt, fruit, cereals, pancakes,
anything you could think of, and it was all homemade.
It was literally nothing out of a packet. It was insane.
(34:19):
My kids will talk about that I reckon and for
the rest of their lives. They love it and they
want to go back. And you know, I guess it's
important to fuel up when you're heading into the mountains,
but it is a good two meals worth of food
you can easily eat and then I don't know why,
but you're still hungry afterwards. Anyway, I've never had it
anywhere else in the world, and if you are a
(34:42):
breakfast person, I say seek it out. It's fantastic. So
most hotels in the big tourist areas now offer more
American style breakfast with eggs and bacon and stuff like that.
But you know, in a traditional Italian breakfast is really
just a crossant and a coffee, and it depends on
what you for breakfast. If you like a big breakfast,
(35:02):
then you go looking for those hotels where they have
their breakfast extravaganza and you'll be very very happy in Italy. Now,
in terms of hospitality, expect genuine smiles, personalized restaurant recommendations
and help with anything you need. Italians take really great
pride in welcoming guests and they don't do tipping for
(35:23):
that stuff, so this is just part of the service
that they offer and it's really really lovely and very
very helpful. They'll remember your coffee order for breakfast if
you're staying there a few days and we you like
to sit. And a few years ago I stayed at
one of the top hotels in Iskia and the pool
guy learned our routine and had our towels ready as
soon as we looked like we were ready to leave
the pool, and he was constantly adjusting our umbrella for
(35:46):
the sun. He was very charming, thanks to Francesco, and
he was very nice, but it was the anticipation of
our needs that was really the lovely thing. Concierge or
front desk services are generally fantastic, very helpful with taxis,
restaurant recommendations, and last minute tickets. Again, this is like
part of the hotel service and it's well really worth
(36:07):
while having a chat with these people because I really
do love to help with recommendations that are specific to you.
And if it's a smaller family run hotel, they often
have a restaurant and they can be very good restaurants.
Earlier this year, we stayed at a hotel in the
Dolomites and their restaurant was outstanding and it featured local
produce from their very own farm, which is really nice. Okay,
(36:30):
we're getting towards checking out. Now we've got to leave
our lovely hotel and at this point you do need
to go to the front desk to settle your account
because unless they've collected it at checking, you need to
pay your tassa dish the journal, which is your city
tax in and sometimes they want that in casual. So
what this taxi is, it's a per person per night
(36:52):
tax that's levied by Italian cities and it's calculated based
on the star rating of the hotel. So currently in
Rome it's between six ten euro per person per night
and sometimes you know, as I said, they will try
and collect this in cash, but you can pay by card,
and I think I mentioned that when we were in
Italy in January. I didn't use cash once on that trip.
(37:14):
So we were there for I think twelve days, so
cash not necessary. Now you can't just walk out like
at hotels in the US. And so funny story when
we were in America last year, I got so many
confused looks when I was trying to have a chat
on checkout and someone just said, oh, you can just leave,
and I was like, oh, okay, all right bye. But
(37:34):
in Italy, yeah, it's customary to make sure you check
out with a person at the desk. And so then
to sum up, I love an Italian hotel. And you know,
while they may not have all the things that we
might expect in our countries, they do have a lot
of personalized charm no ice machine. So head to the bar,
grab some eyes. They'll give you some and have a
(37:55):
chat with a barrister or bartender. They'll also be happy
to share their favorite local horns, and they can make
you the best negroni you've ever tasted. If you're craving
carbonara in Rome or an ebike adventure close to your Tuscany,
stay ass the front desk. They're genuinely happy to make
your stay memorable for all the right reasons. Now, are
(38:15):
you in the planning phase of your trip? On our
you Untold Italy app, we have hotel suggestions at the
mid range, budget and luxury price points for all the
major tourist areas and off the beaten path places, including
small towns in Tuscany, along the Amalfi coast and on
Lake Como. We're constantly updating the content and in the
coming months the app will include all regions of Italy,
(38:38):
which is not available in any guidebook. This week I'm
working on Basilla Carta, including the cave hotels of Matera
and favorite places in Pulia. So go ahead and download
the app if you want a fast track you're Untold
Italy Recommendations. That's it for today's episode of Untold Italy.
I hope you're feeling a little bit more prepared and
(38:59):
maybe a little excited for your hotel stay in Italy.
As always, our recommendations and all the details of things
I mentioned are in the show notes Untold Italy dot com.
Forward slash two seven one for episode number two hundred
and seventy one and just embrace those small differences of
the hotels. Some of them maybe minor annoyances, but you
(39:20):
know what, you'll get a story out of them. You'll
have a bit of fun. And it's all part of travel,
because travel is about experiencing new cultures, new ways of
doing things, and you might pick up something new for yourself,
and in fact from the breakfast extravaganzas. Every now and
again I do do an Italian breakfast extravaganza for my
children and they absolutely love it. It's one of those
(39:43):
things that is it's something that we share, it's a
tradition and it's all come from traveling initially and embracing
these different local ways of doing things. So if you
enjoyed this episode, it would really mean the world to
us if you left a quick rating or review, and
it helps more travelers find their way to Italy. Next
week we're heading north to the mountains and discovering some
(40:04):
of the dishes to expect in south to roll. But
until then, it's chowfin now. The Untold Italy Podcast is
an independent production podcast editing, audio production and website development
by Mark Hatter, Production assistance and content writing by the
are They KG Clark yes, there are two of us.
For more information about untold Italy, please visit untold Italy
(40:26):
dot com.
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