Hotel rules in Italy
 

Hi, I'm trying to book a trip to Italy (Rome, Venice, Florence and Sorrento) next summer for our family of 4 and have been told by a travel agent that rules in Italy prohibit us all in one room as my son will be 12. Yet when I look on line the hotels with quad rooms don't seem to say anything about this rule. I have found reviews of places from families similar to ours which seem to have had everyone in 1 room. I realize the places are small, but we're ok with this. I just don't want to book a room and then arrive only to be told that we are out of luck! Can anyone clarify this? Thanks in advance for any help.

We had quad rooms in Rome, Florence and Venice for our family of 4. In Rome, we stayed at the Hotel Miami and in Florence the Hotel Casci. Loved both and would absolutely return. The place in Venice was not very good, so I hesitate to even name it.

The number of people allowed in a room is up to the hotel. But quad rooms are not as common as doubles or triples.

What you can't do is book a room for three and 'sneak' in a fourth.

So either book 1) quad rooms, 2) two doubles, or 3) apartments that sleep four.

look for hotels that have family rooms - but make sure that they know it is for 4 adults and that they do not try to give you a "cot" - which is the british term for a baby crib.

There are definitly hotels that have this - but it may be only one room in many smaller hotels.

Quads are quads!
And, four for breakfast are four for breakfast--part of the tab.

Oh -- meant to add . . . >>have been told by a travel agent that rules in Italy prohibit us all in one room<<

Just <i>another</i> reason to not use a travel agent. This one is blowing smoke >)

The sorry fact is that a lot of travel agents fall short at their livelihood, but in this case did you actually tell the agent that you wanted a quad room? In most, if not all of Europe, someone 12 years of age is considered an adult when it comes to occupying a hotel room.

Some hotels will allow a family with two young children to share one room if the room is large enough, but rooms in some older hotels are simply too small for such an arrangement, and as noted, quad rooms, or family rooms, are few and far between. A smaller hotel, one with less than 90 rooms, may only have one quad room, and few if any connecting rooms. The fact that the room is too small means that the house cleaning staff will have difficulty cleaning up after you each day if there are four people squeezed into a tiny space.

The number of people allowed in a hotel room is based on the fire and safety codes, as well as its occupancy rating, not the hotel. Otherwise every room, in some locations, would be packed to the ceiling with people sleeping on the floor, which sounds very much like what happens at the typical American motel.

If you see a hotel that you are pretty sure would be right for you, except for that room question, get in touch with that hotel, state clearly who and what and when - it's the only way to be sure on a case-by-case basis. Everything else is guesswork.

Ditch the agent and post your budget per night here. You'll get lots of suggestions. If you are staying enough nights in one location an apartment might be your better option (most apartments in cities will have a 3 night minimum, in the country it's usually 7 nights during high season). More room and save a bit on food.

In Sorrento, I've stayed at Il Nido and they have family rooms for four or five. It's in the hills above Sorrento (great views) with a free shuttle to town (in summer until midnight or so) which takes about 10 minutes. Has AC and breakfast is included.

http://www.ilnido.com/

I've also stayed a little above this hotel, La Vue D'Or, just a bit further up the hill than Il Nido. They also have a quad room (was very spacious) and a pool. Free breakfast and free shuttle.

http://www.lavuedor.it/

You can see their quad here:
http://www.lavuedor.it/camere-e-prezzi/

For a bit more money and closer to town, the Aminta. Has pool, shuttle, etc.

http://www.aminta.com/

I'm afraid that there is a bit too much balderdash here.

As bob said, a quad is a quad.

It's a room for four people. There are no restrictions on the ages of such persons. While it is doubtful that four 80 year olds will book a quad room, please please please rest assured that families with two children, the youngest of whom is 12, constantly book quad rooms.

Your TA isn't helping you.

Many booking engines have a place for the age of each guest in a room. And you can certainly email any hotel you're interested in to tell them what kind of a room you want and who your family is.

That is what I would do, and I do it all the time. I have yet to have a hotel in Italy tell me that they can't accommodate a family with two teens in a quad room.

Thanks so much for all your help! The "advice" felt wrong to me, so I'm glad I've checked. I'll look into the hotels mentioned and book on my own without the TA "help".

Ditto what the rest said - our son was 13 this summer, my daughter 11 and we stayed in quad rooms in Rome, Florence and Venice. I booked them all directly with the hotels, via email. When I booked I would email the hotel directly, ask if they had quad rooms and specify that I wanted a double bed and two twin beds for my kids, and list their ages. You won't have any problems at all!

If you are looking for any recommendations, we stayed at Albergo del Senato in Rome, Hotel Monna Lisa in Florence and Hotel Al Ponte Mocenigo in Venice.

Have a fantastic trip!

We had five sharing a room in Venice.

Myself, wife, D' 20 & 18 and S 16

Hotel Marconi - right on the Grand Canal near Rialto Bridge.

Terrific location, decent, slightly worn hotel (no elevator - the 5 share was on Fl 3 or 4, but with fabulous "eat as much as you want" breakfast included in tariff

http://www.hotelmarconi.it/eng/index.html

Hills- I can second the suggestion for Hotel Casci in Florence. Great hotel. Breakfast is included and is excellent. Free wifi, multi-charging stations in every room, as are minifridges. A/C is great. Water is hot. Family owned and operated. Have stayed there four times and love it!

Buon viaggio!

Hi

You might want to think about an apartment. Cheaper, more space, washing machine, kitchen to prepare snacks. There are thousands to choose from.

Just to clarify about US motels - they do not stack people like firewood.

The fact is that in smaller cities, towns and by the side of the highway land can be practically free - so motels typically have very large rooms with 2 queen beds - and sometimes even a sofa as well. And there are a lot of bargain "suite" hotels with 2 beds in the BR and a pull-out sofa in the LR.

Obviously you won't get this in cities in europe - with older buildings, small rooms and a premium on very expensive space.