The welcome
The entrance is so discreet it borders on unnoticeable, but once inside the secret lair a blissful tranquillity is all-consuming. Bags are whisked away to the room, an orange-and-strawberry welcome drink and tray of nibbles is brought out in the marble-drenched, glass-roofed, classical statue-lined lounge area. Everything looks impeccable – hitting that perfect note of sophisticated elegance without overstepping the line into gaudy bling.
The neighbourhood
JK Place is in the most attractive part of Rome near Piazza Navona, with key sites such as the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, the River Tiber and the Trevi Fountain just a short stroll away. But there’s enough life around to stop it from being anaesthetised as a sterile tourist ghetto.
The room
The most important thing is the high-quality bed – a maddening rarity in Italian hotels. The high ceilings, mirrors and spectacular photographic print behind the bed are used to make the room look more spacious than it is.
A complimentary minibar full of little snacks and a broad range of soft drinks is very welcome, but the huge balcony and the bathroom are the real stars. The latter gleams with polished grey and white marble, and has the biggest rain shower I’ve ever seen. It could make a passable hubcap for a 4x4 vehicle.
The scene
There’s an in-the-know, sanctuary-like feel to the JK Place. It’s for people who want to withdraw from the city’s intensity for a while, and leans towards well-heeled leisure guests rather than business clientele. It’s the sort of hotel for people who want to see Rome with a private, expert tour guide rather than tag along with a generic group. But it also fills a significant gap in the market – most of Rome’s five-star hotels fall into the big, ostentatiously grand and worn-at-the-edges historic bracket. This is discerningly small and contemporary.
The service
Staff have clearly been brought in from the other JK properties in Capri and Florence, and for now struggle a little with local knowledge. But the standard of training is evident. Everything runs impeccably smoothly, with bonhomie for the guests that revel in that and ghostlike efficiency for those who are less interested in making new temporary friends.
The food
The on-site restaurant feels like something of an afterthought – and certainly a missed opportunity to do something as special as the rest of the hotel. The food is good, but outrageously overpriced – €28 euros (Dh140) for a club sandwich on a fairly limited and unimaginative menu screams of a hotel that doesn’t really want to bother having a restaurant but must to keep a five-star rating.
Loved
If there’s a cooler lift in the world, I’d like to see it. Hidden behind what looks like an ordinary door, once inside there are plush velvet couches to park yourself on as the lift ascends.
Hated
For the price, facilities are perhaps a little limited. There’s no gym or pool, while smaller rooms don’t have work desks. Business travellers may find these little inconveniences to be a little too nagging.
The verdict
Feel is one of those great intangibles with a hotel. And that’s the thing that makes the JK Place Roma far greater than the sum of its parts – a sense of calming, elevated exclusivity runs through it.
The bottom line
Double rooms are available for from €540 (Dh2,700). Via di Monte D Oro, 30, Rome (www.jkroma.com; 00 39 0698 2634).
weekend@thenational.ae
