As part of a 10 night stay in Italy this spring, my husband and I are planning to spend 4 nights in Sienna. We've found 3 great places, all with wonderful reviews.

Palazzo Ravizza
Hotel Santa Caterina
Le Meridiane Residence

We're having trouble deciding - would love to get some more opinions. Please Help!

I stayed in the Hotel Santa Caterina two years ago. It's a fine little hotel with nice views out the back of the hotel. The rooms (including bathrooms) are adequate, and the garden (where we had breakfast) is very nice. It's about a 10 minute walk to Il Campo, but it's a nice walk. If you stay here, ask for room facing the back of the hotel with a view. The street side of the hotel, I would imagine, is noisy. Four nights in Siena is a long time; are you planning day trips (Florence, San Gimignano, Orvieto)?

Thanks mixd!
Yes, we want to use Siena as a base. We're spending 2 nights in Florence also. We want to see Chianti, San Gimignano,ride through the country, etc.

We stayed at Palazzo Ravizza in the fall and enjoyed it very much. There was free internet use in the lobby. Our two rooms , one much larger than the other and only 10 euros different, looked out on the garden where if the weather is nice enough you can have breakfast. The linens and towels were nice and the staff was extremely helpful.

I meant to also tell you of the parking right at the hotel which was really convenient.

We stayed at the Hotel Santa Caterina and were delighted with it. We had a large room looking over the valley. The staff was very helpful and the location good. Breakfast in the garden was very nice, and the parking on site was wonderful. I would recommend this hotel, particularly if you are traveling by car.

Palazzo Ravizza is wonderful. We had a garden view room with a fantastic view. Great breakfast. Walking distance to the Il Campo, Siena's famous central square, and the unique striped church.

Free internet in the lobby, only 2 computers.

We highly recommend this hotel. Don't get a room on the street anywhere in Siena (or anywhere in any city!) Ask for a garden view.

One more point of comparison. We love the Palazzo Ravizza and stayed there...we never stayed at the Hotel Santa Caterina but hear good things about it. One difference is that Palazzo Ravizza is within the walls of Siena, and Hotel Santa Caterina is outside of the walls of Siena, and so Palazzo Ravizza is more conveniently located for walking to the Il Campo, central square of Siena, and to the striped church. Palazzo Ravizza does have parking too although we didn't have a car.

I would say that Santa Caterina is an okay choice if you plan to spend some time at the hotel and on the hotel grounds, and if you plan to use Siena as a base for day-trips outside of Siena. But if you are mostly coming to see the town of Siena, Palazzo Ravizza would be more convenient.

ttt

I stayed at the Ravizza in May 2003, and although it was a bit pricey for my budget, it was well worth it. For that price range I think it's hard to beat.

I agree completely with the other comments about Santa Caterina, where we stayed 2 years ago for 3 nights, and would add that the staff was quite helpful and friendly.

Thanks for all of the feedback. We've decided to go with Santa Caterina.

I don't know anything about Le Meridiane Residence, but I would strongly urge you to go with Palazzo Ravizza. It is a few minutes walk from everyting and Sienna is so hilly that you you don't want to have to walk outside the gates and back to Santa Caterina. Also, Palazzo Ravizza has free parking while Santa Caterina charges 10-15E or something, making thr price difference less than it appears.

Plus Palazzo Ravizza is simply much nicer.

We're planning to stay at P. Ravizza and will have a car for daily excursions to other hill towns.

Could someone please comment on coming and going from the Ravizza's parking lot?

We stayed at the Santa Caterina in 2003 and enjoyed our stay. It is right outside the main gates so if you have a car, that is much easier. Ask for a room with a view of the hills - away from the road (it was noisy closer to the road). The views of the rolling hills were beautiful. We really enjoyed sitting in the garden terrace area in the back having a glass of wine in the late afternoon. It was modestly furnished, but cozy. The bathroom was newer and very clean. It is not luxurious, but nice. I would stay there again.