Last spring, Dan and I took a last minute trip to Ischia (Italy) and Rome due to changing jobs.  We just happened to have two Hilton Free Night Certificates that we needed to use, and the Cavalieri, Rome’s rumored “best hotel” and, conveniently a Hilton-owned property,  had available rooms. We booked immediately, despite my concerns that the Cavalieri was too far out of the heart of room. This post details our stay at the Cavalieri, and explains why I think the Cavalieri is totally overrated.

THE CAVALIERI HOTEL AND ITS LOCATION

The Rome Cavalieri is a Waldorf-Astoria property that is “set on Rome’s highest hilltop and boasting panoramic views of the Eternal City and St. Peter’s Dome.” In reality, the hotel sits on a hill about six kilometers outside the center of Rome, which equates to a 25 minute drive or a walk of over one hour to the heart of Rome. Notwithstanding the distance from Rome’s city center, the Cavalieri is very popular with celebrities visiting Rome, even Obama stayed here when he was President of the US.

The hotel itself is located in a brick building that looks like a conference center from the 1980s – this definitely needs a refresh. The interior of the hotel is decorated better, but it still seems stuck in the 1990s. Setting aside the decor, the Cavalieri is located on its own “campus,” with the hotel having everything that a tourist may need on site – restaurants, bars, shops, ATM, pool, spa, gym, etc. Indeed, one could spend a week here and not leave (except … you are in Rome!).

CHECK-IN TO THE CAVALIERI

We arrived at the Cavalieri on a sunny Wednesday afternoon, having taken the train up from Naples.  Despite the Cavalieri being insanely crowded with Americans during our visit, check-in was quite easy and quick. We used the designated Hilton Diamond member line and checked-in without a wait. Our room was ready and our luggage followed us a few minutes later. I would note that the check-in desk did not have much information regarding the hotel’s amenities, including spa appointments or restaurant reservations. We found this odd, but maybe its just not in their job description? There is a concierge on site who allegedly could assist with our questions.

OUR ROOM AT THE ROME CAVALIERI

Our room at the Cavalieri was lovely and very spacious, especially for Rome! Upon entry, there was a small bar area with our Hilton Diamond status welcome amenity (chocolates and bottled water) and a mini bar stocked with pricey drinks and snacks. We didn’t use the minibar, but the prices were clearly marked.

As you can see from the pictures below, the room opened up into a bedroom and living area, which was quite large with a comfortable, American-style King bed (!) overlooking a flat screen smart TV with all the cable channels. The area next to our bed, or the living area, which was about the same size as the bed area, included a small sofa and a desk. We also had a balcony with a nice table and chairs, but it overlooked a large red TV tower… I guess we should have booked earlier for a better view? I can see this being a deal breaker to some people, but it was ok for us given the last minute nature of our booking (I would not be pleased if I had paid full freight for this view….). The bed was great and we had no complaints about our room.

The WC was in the front of the room next to the door and included a full bath with shower. Ferragamo bath products were also a very nice touch, as were the hotel robes and slippers. No real complaints on the room or the WC.

Moving on from our room, I’ll discuss some of the amenities offered at the Rome Cavalieri.

THE POOL AT THE CAVALIERI

All checked in and wanting to check out the picturesque pool that is all over the internet, we changed into our bathing suits and visited the main pool, which is outdoors overlooking Rome. The Cavalieri’s main pool is a deep cold water pool surrounded by the hotel’s casual restaurant and lots of loungers. It’s also surrounded by gorgeous stone pine trees and pretty views of Rome. On entry to the pool area, guests are made to walk through a water/cleaning solution to clean the feet and take a towel and swim cap to use in the pool (ugh!). Side note – we thought the swim caps were free, but they were billed to our room. Not a huge deal, but someone should have said something! Staff is particular about the swim caps.

A pool attendant found us seats on each visit. Attendants also come around from the restaurant serving food and beverages, which are not cheap. We took a few dips in the pool, but this pool was just too cold and deep for me.  I prefer to lounge around, but there was really no option for this type of activity in this pool. It would be great for swimming laps.

THE SPA AND GYM AT THE CAVALIERI

The fact that the outdoor pool was too cold for me didn’t end up being a problem, as the Cavalieri has a second indoor pool that is warmer and shallower and its located inside the Cavalieri’s AMAZING spa. And yes, the Cavalieri spa is that amazing and absolutely the best part of this hotel. We received complimentary access to the spa facilities during our stay, and I believe this is true for all guests.  That being said, you should confirm, as there is a chance we received complimentary access due to our Hilton Diamond status.

In terms of the actual spa, we skipped any treatments (massages, facials, manicures and pedicures and hair styling is available) and instead used the sauna, steam room and hot tub daily. Once checked in to the spa with our room information, we changed in the spacious locker rooms, which include locking lockers, showers with all the necessities (i.e. hair dryers), and a sauna.

Dan and I met in the hot tub after changing. And let me tell you, the hot tub is amazing. Its huge, bubbly, super warm, and located next to the sauna – a glass wall separates the hot tub from the steam room.  A couple chairs and a water cooler surround the hot tub. On the other side of the hot tub is by far, the nicest steam room I have ever visited. The steam rom is a large circular room that gets incredibly steamy with a circular cold, nay, freezing, pool in the center. It was so interesting to steam up and then cool off in the cold pool. It was also tough, as the pool was so cold that my legs started to go numb as soon as I went it. We did this circuit for quite a while – it was so luxurious.

In addition to the sauna and steam room, the spa also owns the indoor pool, which is located very close to the main outdoor pool. This indoor pool is shallow and warm, and inside this weirdly decorated room. It was too bad that sun does not touch this pool, but I still had fun paddling around. I used this pool much more than the main outdoor pool.

In addition to these facilities, the spa also has a HUGE gym that is so nice. Honestly, like a real gym that you would pay a membership fee to use. Definitely check it out if you have time!

THE RESTAURANTS AT THE CAVALIERI

Having its own “campus,” the Cavalieri is certainly home to several food establishments. First up, La Pergola. La Pergola is Rome’s 3 Michelin starred restaurant that wins all the best restaurant awards. It’s supposedly amazing. We tried, unsuccessfully, to reserve dinner at La Pergola, even putting our names on the waitlist and checking in each day to see if anything opened up. It did not. Oh well, I guess Diamond status only goes so far. In any case, we only attempted a reservation two weeks in advance (last minute trip), so I’m not surprised we struck out. Definitely reserve early for a guaranteed spot at La Pergola. We will do that next time.

The only real restaurant that we dined at was Uliveto for breakfast, which was included with our Hilton Diamond status. Breakfast at Uliveto is served every morning in the form of a buffet spanning multiple rooms. An insane amount of food is offered. We found the breakfast to be huge and more than adequate, but we have definitely had better breakfasts in Italy. We found that while having some Italian foods, the breakfast buffet had too much Western (or rather, American) influence. I guess this hotel knows its guests! Uliveto also serves lunch and dinner.

We also did Aperitivo, or traditional pre-dinner cocktails accompanied by small snacks, at Tiepolo Lounge and Terrace, the Cavalieri’s main lounge bar. While very pricey (around $20 USD), the drinks were fantastic! I ordered a strawberry cocktail that was insanely good. The accompanying snacks were pretty basic, but I was able to overlook that, LOL. If you are looking to have pre-dinner drinks, the bar gets very busy during this time, all with tourists, no Italians.

In addition to these restaurants, the Cavalieri offers room service and operates a “pool bar” when the pool is open. I thought that this was part of Uliveto, but according to the website, its not!

CHECK-OUT OF THE CAVALIERI

On our final morning, Dan and I missed breakfast because we had to catch a very early train for a wine tour in Umbria. Tough life! Check-out was quick and easy, despite it being very early. We were presented with a to-go box of the Cavalieri’s banana bread to take with us (a little odd, but appreciated). The Cavalieri also sets out American-style coffee, tea, water, and some cookies and cakes for early risers neat to the Concierge. These are taken away promptly when breakfast opens at 7 AM (also odd…).

I would also note that the hotel held our luggage for the entire day for free. All went smoothly and we collected our luggage later in the evening. Checking our luggage for the day only took about five minutes and we were provided tickets to re-claim our luggage. No issues there.

THE CAVALIERI’S OTHER AMENITIES

While this may not be exhaustive, here are some other amenities offered by the Cavalieri.

Shuttle into Rome.  As noted, the Rome Cavalieri is a good 20 minute drive from the heart of tourist Rome. Taxis are almost always available outside the hotel and Uber works (but can take a long time to arrive). We frequently paid between 15 and 20 euro for a one way trip. However, the Cavalieri offers a free shuttle between the hotel and Via del Corso, in the tourist center. We did not use the shuttle due to time constraints, but I would suggest taking advantage of it if you can.

Shops. The Cavalieri has a few shops on site that will fit most tourists needs – a tabac shop selling papers, paper products, stamps, and the like, a jewelry shop, a tourist sundries shop, and a tourist trinket shop. Obviously, I recommend buying all things outside of the hotel. But these shops are available without leaving the Cavalieri.

Executive Lounge. Ah, the elusive Executive Lounge. The Cavalieri does have an Executive Lounge, but it’s one of the only ones in the entire world not open to all Hilton Diamond members. Instead, you must be staying on an Executive level floor.  While we were upgraded on checkin, it was not to the Executive floor, so we missed out on the lounge. You will probably have better luck at a less busy time. Someone please follow up and let me know how it is!

Conference space. The Cavalieri has lots of conference space on the level below checkin, which seemed to be fully utilized during our visit. While I’m sure this great business for the hotel, I found it really odd to walk through the conference goers while dressed for the pool or a day of sightseeing. The conference area was not at all separated from the regular hotel guests.

Spaces. The Cavalieri also has some just sitting areas around the hotel, as well as some “art” outside of the hotel. I found this unnecessary and a bit weird for a hotel in one of the world’s greatest cities, but who knows. The art installations outside were nice.

PARTING THOUGHTS ON THE ROME CAVALIERI, INCLUDING WHY ITS OVERRATED

During our stay and after, I found the Cavalieri to be lacking in many respects, and I would have been very upset had I paid for our rooms.  That being said, we stayed for free on a last minute bonus trip, so the Cavalieri was fine. I’m glad to have experienced the property. However, I would only stay here again on points/free night certificate and to use the spa. The spa is that nice! In any case, here is a list of my issues with the hotel, as well as some things that it did well:

1. The hotel needs a renovation. It looks like a conference center from the 1980s. And not in a cool Taylor Swift 1980s kind of way. Refresh and revamp the space, especially the exterior.
2. Again, Rome Cavalieri is FAR from the historical center of Rome. Budget your time and money for this. In other words, this hotel is not ideal for a 3 day sight seeing sprint around Rome. Its better for those in Rome wanting a few days of relaxation – not sightseeing.
3. Americans, Americans, Americans. The hotel is FULL of Americans. Depending on the reader, this either a pro or a con, the latter for me. If you say at the Cavalieri, you will avoid much local culture.
4. And on that note, while in Rome, everything is done toward the American palate at the Cavalieri, from food to service to style. Again, good or bad depending on the person.
5. This is a great hotel if you want to avoid the “real Italy” and just sit in an upscale hotel and mingle with similar tourists. You don’t want to see the “real Rome” yet say you have been, stay here.
6. Make La Pergola reservations far in advance if you want to experience the restaurant or the best views of the hotel. That’s right, the best views of Rome from the hotel are from the top floors, and if you are not staying on one of those floors, you can only access via La Pergola. We asked if we could just go up to take pictures and got a hard no.
7. The Cavalieri seemed to be hosting multiple conference at the hotel when we visited. I did not love walking through a professional conference in my swim wear.
8. The rooms are geared towards American likes and style. For example, the bed is large, the air condition is cold, and the hotel room had out lets for both European and US appliances.
9. The food and drinks at the Cavalieri are good, but they are expensive. You can get better and cheaper food in Rome. Note – this does not include La Pergola, as we did not dine there.
10. The Cavalieri has one of the nicest spas that I have ever visited. Do not miss it staying here!

STEAL OUR TRIP

Rome Cavalieri: Via Alberto Cadlolo, 101, 00136 Roma RM, Italy.

ON A BUDGET

On a budget, not on a budget? Honestly there are hundreds of better hotels in Rome.  Some recent favorites are:

Hotel Damaso: P.za della Cancelleria, 62, 00186 Roma RM, Italy. Damaso is not part of any points/loyalty programs that I’m aware of.  But, its a gorgeous hotel that has a lot of American-friendly amenities: good, big breakfast with a couple American things (eggs and bacon or sausage), good air conditioning, great beds, normal showers with Fragonard products, and a lovely rooftop deck! Deals can be found in off season. Hotel Damaso is also in a fantastic location in the center of Rome.

Le Meridien: Via Federico Cesi, 37, 00193 Roma RM, Italy. Located close to the Vatican, Le Meridien is a Marriott property. Rooms are small, but the hotel is US friendly, and you’ll see lots of tourists here. Great breakfast with lots of options.

The Tribune (a Hyatt property): Via Campania, 45, 00187 Roma RM, Italy.  Located close to the Villa Borghese, The Tribune is a Hyatt property. Due to its location, however, you will see both Americans and other nationalities. Good bed and shower. Good wifi. A bit out of the heart of Rome, but no where near as far as the Cavalieri.