Hotel Lord Byron - Rome, Italy
The Hotel Lord Byron was once a patrician villa built in 1910. This small, “off the beaten path” property, located in the exclusive Parioli quarter of Rome, offers guests a high degree of luxury and service by a multi-lingual staff. The hotel is just a short walk to the Villa Borghese and the Via Veneto, and a stroll through the magnificent Borghese Park to the Spanish Steps and the Piazza del Popolo.
As part of The Leading Small Hotels of the World, the Lord Byron assures guests of getting special treatment. What the property lacks in facilities, it makes up for with charm, service and comfortable accommodations. While the 32-room luxury hotel does not offer a spa or swimming pool, it is home to an award-winning Italian gourmet restaurant, Sapori del Lord Byron, and a lounge and wine bar, Il Salotto, with a clubroom atmosphere.
All rooms and suites represent a delicate balance of the old world and the new. Our corner suite had been recently re-designed (as have all the rooms on the 4th floor) in a 1930’s art-deco style. A large Carrera marble bathroom housed a bathtub/shower with rain-shower head, a toilet, bidet and marble sink. A small shelving unit could be used for storing personal items and was where you found the shampoo, body wash and body lotion along with shower cap, shoeshine glove and cotton swabs. Towels were large and plush. A large walk-in closet with electronic safe was large enough for all of our luggage and had plenty of hanger space. A built-in dresser provided drawer space. The closet light was activated by a motion sensor and turned off automatically after a certain amount of time of no motion.
The bedroom was spacious and comfortable with deep red carpeting and fabric-covered walls in a subtle milk-chocolate herringbone pattern. The doors and ceiling were surrounded with beautiful moldings. Two large floor-to-ceiling glass doors opened to a step-out wraparound balcony which overlooked the front of the hotel and a beautiful little courtyard area. The blinds and sheers covering these doors were opened and closed by a bedside remote control. There was a desk with phone and a small table with two chairs which could be used for en suite dining. Opposite the bed was a corner unit that houses the minibar/fridge and a fairly wimpy 15” television. All the furniture was especially made for the hotel. Art work on the walls featured Roman scenes. The only thing missing was a full-length mirror. You know, women notice those things.
Perhaps the best feature, and for me the most important, was the bed. Our room had two twin beds that had been combined to form a queen-size bed with a large dark wooden headboard. Dark brown suede insets on each side of the headboard were protected from greasy heads by two white pieces of removable fabric with the hotel's initials embroidered on them. The mattresses were firm and the pillows extermely heavy but, when combined, they yielded four nights of the best sleep I can remember. I did not even have to adjust my pillows during the night, something I do continually at home. I would gladly pay a premium price per pillow if I could find them in the U.S.
The room was also extremely quiet, partly due to the hotel’s solid construction as well as the property’s secluded location. There is literally no traffic noise, a claim that hotels on Rome’s popular Via Veneto cannot easily make. Non-smoking rooms are available and guest room amenities include WiFi access, satellite color TV, telephone, individual climate control, minibar, electronic safe, walk-in closet, towel heater, hair dryer, and luxury bathrobes and slippers. The hotel usually offers a courtesy shuttle service to the city center and Via Veneto but, since it was August and a big vacation month for Italians, the shuttle was not running. However, if you didn't feel like walking, taxis were readily available at the hotel.
Sapori del Lord Byron restaurant
One of the great assets Hotel Lord Byron has to offer guests is the Sapori del Lord Byron restaurant. In addition to offering guests a wide variety of regional dishes and the best Italian wines, Sapori is the winner of an “Award of Excellence” granted by Wine Spectator in 2007. Sapori is worth a visit even if you do not stay at Lord Byron. It is in this elegant venue each morning that hotel guests are treated to a lovely complimentary buffet breakfast featuring such delights as homemade croissants and breads, gourmet preserves, fresh fruits and juices, cheeses, eggs cooked to order, breakfast meats, and natural cereals. The talented Executive Chef, Jean Luc Fruneau, meticulously selects the freshest seasonal ingredients for his a la carte menu. We enjoyed a specially prepared pasta dish and bruschetta for lunch on our last day at the hotel and everything was spectacular, including the impeccable service.
For more information, visit their website at http://www.lordbyronhotel.com/en
Originally posted on: 1/19/2009
