As part of my recent city break to Rome with Jet2, I stayed in the beautiful Hotel Villa Glori. Located in the area of Rome known as ‘Little London’ in the Flaminio District, it’s a charming hotel set amongst residential villas and colourful private streets. My experience of hotels in Italy is that they are quite traditional, embracing the Mediterranean colours and old features, and Villa Glori was no different. When exploring cities like Rome your good nights sleep is well earned, and I enjoyed a very comfortable three night stay here as part of my trip.

Disclaimer: I received a complementary three night bed and breakfast stay at Hotel Villa Glori as part of my trip to Rome with Jet 2 City breaks.

Checking in to Hotel Villa Glori

After my early morning Jet2 flights from Manchester airport, I arrived in Rome at midday, so my room wasn’t quite ready with check in officially being from 2pm which was no issue. I much prefer trip itineraries like this with an early flight so you can make the most of your first day, it’s always worth the early start.

I arrived and instantly loved the street and the hotel with it’s pink exterior and white details, a very tranquil mix of luxury and timeless Italian style. 

Villa Glori is a 4 star hotel by 4L Collection Hotels, and has 52 guest rooms of various sizes across the floors of it’s 20th-Century townhouse that was once a grand residence similar to it’s neighbours. When booking your trip through Jet2Citybreaks, Villa Glori is one of the hotels offered as part of your package that includes flights and your hotel.

Their range of hotels offers something for everyone as part of a hassle free package to suit the type and style you prefer. A stay at Hotel Villa Glori gives much more of a local feel than touristy, which is exactly what I enjoy – it feels much more authentic. The retained features of the townhouse including little archways, ornate details here and there, and feature windows on the staircase are what I loved most about it.

Rooms range from intimate single rooms to spacious suites, and mine was a small double, but still more than enough room for me staying by myself. There were modern amenities such as free Wi-Fi, coffee machine, en-suite bathroom and shower, safe and TV, but it was the old style window shutters overlooking the gardens that really made me love the room. That and it was so quiet which is exactly what you need staying in a city like Rome. 

They offer a luggage hold facility so I could get changed and freshen up in the bathroom, and leave my heavy bag behind while I went out to enjoy my first afternoon in Rome. Reception is staffed 24 hours which was great so you could leave your hotel key behind safely each day when you’re out exploring, and staff were lovely, happy to provide recommendations and arrange restaurant bookings for you if you needed. 

Hotel Villa Glori Location

I personally find that when you’re doing a city break anywhere, especially a European capital city your location is really important both for a comfortable stay and to make the most of your time there. You want to be nearby to sights and transport links for accessibility, but not too central that you can’t relax or sleep well. For Rome I think it’s worth staying slightly outside of right in the centre where streets are small and loud, and Hotel Villa Glori fits the bill perfectly for that. 

It took less than an hour, about 40 minutes to reach the hotel in a taxi from the airport, to it’s location in The Flaminio District just outside the historic centre of Rome, on an elegant cobbled street just off the main road of the neighbourhood. The street is beautiful, surrounded by pink and yellow buildings, and has a lovely peaceful atmosphere which was very much needed after busy days exploring Rome.

It is just a fifteen to twenty minute walk from here into Rome’s old city centre, so it’s very much doable, however I was there during the heatwave and walking in the heat for any distance with no shade from the narrower streets of the centre was pretty hard going, so I got Ubers most days purely to save time and my own energy in the heat. 

If you’re visiting Rome and it’s not almost 40 degrees, which would usually be the case then the walk would be very easy, it’s just straight down the road until you reach Piazza del Popolo.

The quickest route into central Rome isn’t really a scenic walk, just straight along the main road so if you prefer to get Ubers, local taxis or even lime scooter to save time which I did on a couple of occasions, then all are really easy to do and I didn’t ever have to wait longer than a few minutes for a taxi. I didn’t download any local apps, Uber was great as it offered both official Ubers and the local Italian taxi company from within the Uber app, and I just went with whatever was closest and cheapest. 

An ideal time to go both for the cooler city temperatures and fewer crowds would be September – November, which you can do as part of Jet2’s Autumn City Breaks. At that time of year then a slightly longer but more scenic route from Villa Glori could take you through the Borghese Gardens which are beautiful, and well worth a detour off the main road.

It was never more than ten euros to get from Hotel Villa Glori into the centre of Rome, with the exception of my visits to the Colosseum which is the far side of Rome, and Trastevere neighbourhood which is across the river. These rides were still less than 15 euros. 

I suppose this could add up across a few days, but I tended to head out early and not come back until later in the evening, and I’d much rather have the convenience of a short taxi ride to be able to do as much as possible and save time on walking, just budget it into your trip. On both of my trips to Rome, including a past visit also with Jet 2 City Breaks, I’ve stayed in hotels slightly out and much prefer it than right in the centre.

Other public transport options are the bus stops and the metro, both of which are nearby. If you’re visiting Rome for a sport or music event, then this is prime location as the Olympic Stadium and Olympic Theatre are very close by. When it comes to the sights of Rome, Piazza del Popolo one of Rome’s biggest piazza’s, the Da Vinci Museum, and the Borghese Gardens are all the nearest, and once you’re in the centre of Rome everything is within short walking distance. 

Bar & Breakfast Room

Due to the style of the building there isn’t a restaurant in the hotel, which suits me perfectly as I prefer eating out at the many incredible eateries of Rome, but there is a quaint breakfast room which offers a continental selection of breakfast options including cereals, toast and jams, baked pastries, croissants, coffees and juices. 

I made the most of this on my last day and it was great, but the other two mornings I was up so early and out enjoying the sights while there weren’t many people about.

There is also a bar and lounge area just off reception, Bar “Toccata e Fuga”, where you could relax and enjoy an aperitif or cocktail of the day before heading back out into Rome for the evening. 

I really enjoyed my stay at Hotel Villa Glori, I personally love boutique hotel stays that are somewhere unique and have lots of character and it had plenty of that. If I were to return I would probably upgrade my room for more space for two people, but the small double was perfect for me on this trip on my own, and I absolutely loved the view over the terrace garden and across to the villas nearby. 

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