Hotel Caravel in Rome

⭐ 3.5/5 – Comfortable Stay, but Room for Improvement

Our stay at Hotel Caravel in Rome was overall quite good. The rooms were comfortable, the breakfast options were nice, and the hotel is conveniently located about 20 minutes away from Roma Termini train station, which made getting around easy.

However, there were a few things that could be improved. There was no kettle in the room, and we had to ask for one from reception, as well as for the air conditioning each time we needed it — which was a bit inconvenient.

The reception team, while helpful at times, could be more welcoming and proactive (The Female staff who was present on Date- 9th Oct. Time- 11:25 AM) As reception staff are the first impression of the hotel, improving their approach toward guests would make a big difference in the overall experience.

The stay was comfortable, and the hotel itself is clean, modern, and well-maintained. With a bit more attention to guest service, this could easily become a top choice in Rome.

Definitely not 4 star, but a good 3 star. I wouldn't recommend for families or those with young children due to the proximity to the 6 lanes which are noisy. I didn't like that the balcony looked like you could climb over to the neighbouring balcony, but there was no handle on the other side so it was secure enough.

The shower gel compartment kept dropping into the shower but everything else was fine including a good bed.

Breakfast, food was cold and the bread was stale. Sat in the corner and knocked a spider's website which wasn't great. In general, you can make it work on a budget.

The location is excellent in proximity to the centre. TIP- If you're coming from Roma Termini get the bus 714, it'll drop you right outside the hotel. I'd also recommend getting a Roma pass for travel and booking attractions ahead of your trip (worth the money!). It'll give you a local travel pass that you can validate near the Centrale food court in the station and you can get transfer tickets to the airport.

Overall hotel is good for a budget weekend. No fridge or kettle, local restaurants available if you want to stay close.

The hotel itself is great overall — friendly staff and nice rooms. However, our room felt quite dated. There were no USB ports in the sockets, which you’d expect from a modern hotel by now. The hairdryer wasn’t working properly, and the walls were scratched and looked dirty; a fresh coat of paint would help a lot.

The location is probably the biggest downside. You need to make reservations at most restaurants nearby, and they’re about a 15-minute walk into the Garbatella neighborhood. There was a bar in the hotel, but oddly, we were asked if we had a reservation — which was confusing, considering we were staying there and there were plenty of empty seats.

The nightlife in the area is also quite limited. It’s probably better to book somewhere closer to the centre of Rome, otherwise you’ll need to rely on the metro or bus to get around.

I recently stayed at this hotel and while there were a few positives, the overall experience was disappointing due to a series of overlooked details and frustrating issues.

To start with the good—the staff were great: friendly, helpful, and informative. They made an effort to assist whenever asked, and that hospitality was appreciated. The location was decent, about a 30-minute bus ride to the city center. It’s not exactly central, but manageable if you’re okay with the commute.

The room was reasonably clean upon arrival, but the quality of housekeeping declined quickly. A lotion stain I accidentally left on the shower floor was never cleaned, and instead of actually scrubbing the area, housekeeping simply placed a mat over it—as if to hide it. Initially, the room came stocked with two sets of towels, but after the first day, only one of each was replaced. While the booking was for one person, maintaining the original quantity would have shown a bit more care and consistency.

There were several small inconveniences that added up. For example, the room phone had no directory, so I had no idea how to contact the front desk or reach any services. On top of that, the air conditioning didn’t work for the first two days, which turned out to be because the previous guest had asked for it to be turned off, and it was never reset. It took me that long to realize I had to ask the concierge to enable it again. In a properly managed hotel, the AC should be reset and ready for the next guest without needing to make a request.

The continental breakfast was another letdown. The scrambled eggs were dry, lumpy, and had a strange grey tint. The bacon and sausages were cold, and orange juice was served in plastic cups. There was very little fresh fruit, and to top it off, they had a random speaker on the floor playing radio ads during breakfast—a strange and unpleasant ambiance for a morning meal. I’m glad I didn’t pay for breakfast for my entire stay, because it definitely wasn’t worth it.

The Wi-Fi was by far the worst I’ve encountered in any hotel. It disconnected constantly and, when connected, barely reached speeds of 5 Mbps. For a hotel in a tourist-heavy area, this is unacceptable and suggests a clear lack of awareness of guest needs—especially for travelers who rely on Wi-Fi to plan outings or stay in touch.

Noise was another major issue. The elevator makes a blaring siren-like noise when it opens, which woke me up every single morning. The walls and doors are paper-thin, making it easy to hear people walking or talking outside, and the doors slam shut loudly, adding to the disturbance.

Finally, while not the hotel’s fault, there were a few homeless individuals living around the property, which might make some guests feel uneasy, particularly at night.

All in all, while the staff were excellent and the location worked, there were just too many frustrating and avoidable issues—poor housekeeping, unusable Wi-Fi, subpar breakfast, noise problems, and a lack of attention to guest experience basics. I wouldn’t recommend staying here unless the hotel makes significant improvements across the board.