You would almost wish that Basil, Sybil and Manuel were running this hotel when you stay here; at least their comedy routine would go some way to explain the atrocious service that we received. They say that "beauty is on the inside", it however becomes very apparent that once you get past the pretty exterior of Hotel Silva and set your foot steps inside the front door that the ugly truth is revealed: an inadequately equipped room, disgusting food and the most surly, rude staff we have ever come across. Do not book to stay here and that comment is not said lightly.
We arrived early afternoon to find that we had no curtains in our bedroom and our bedroom was overlooked by other buildings and so there was no privacy and the Safety Deposit Box was broken. Granted, bedroom curtains weren't stipulated as an ammenity but neither is a bed but it is assumed that a bedroom will come with them. The safety deposit box was listed. We reported both of the issues, the lady at the front desk didn't seem to know where the curtains were, it was only after more thought she guessed that the cleaners had put them into be cleaned. After booking the hotel 7 months prior to our stay, it is of course understandable that they weren't anticipating our arrival! We were assured that it would be rectified by about 7pm that evening, they weren't and the man in charge at this point showed all the concern for our problem that a fly would, much shoulder shrugging was demonstrated but no apology. The matter of the safety deposit box was dealt with in a similar fashion "it is very safe", well three objections to that statement: I will be the judge of when it is safe to leave a passport and other valuables in my room, if it is that safe then why provide one in the first place and thirdly, given the room keys have to be handed in each time you leave the hotel (yes it is that old fashioned) and are just left on an open shelf in the reception area; hardly Fort Knox.
The following day we went to breakfast, it was included in the price, only to be left very hungry and quite disillusioned at what we were paying for. There were no bowls left for cereal, the milk was warm and sour, the breads came in plastic packaging (the kind you buy at a petrol garage), the tablecloths and chairs were dirty and the room was dull, dark and quite frankly depressing. We did not eat there again.
When it came to pay, the man who did the night shift, the shrugging of the shoulders man asked us to pay the night before we left as we were going out for dinner. He wanted us to pay then as we were leaving the next morning at a time when no one would be at the reception desk (again, good safety measures in place). We explained that given our issues with the hotel and service that we had received that we felt we should get a discount on our stay. Apparently he couldn't authorise such a decision, we had to speak to the proprietor the next day (so suddenly someone would be available!).
The next morning we went to leave and pay the hotel, the proprietor was there ready and waiting to tak our money. Up until the point where we wanted to discuss a reduction in our payment her English was more than adequate. Then some strange event must have occurred because the moment we expressed our concern at the service we had received and felt that paying the full amount would not reflect the stay we experienced, she all of a sudden couldn't speak English! Her attitude and immaturity were astounding. She offered no apology what so ever, even that would have gone some way to appeasing the situation but she simply became the rudest person we had ever met and would urge everyone to come to Rome, just not to Hotel Silva.
Hotel - 2 stars
Staff - 0 stars
No lift.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
