Piccolo Hotel Casa Mia

A charming hotel, quiet and very welcoming; nice breakfast. Rooms very clean. We liked the pot plants on the balcony.

We really liked the hotel location, the hotel itself, the rooms, the breakfast, and the staff. What we didn't like was the parking situation--the Hotels.com description states, "Free parking is available onsite." That was partially true--the hotel staff said there were 2 parking spots in front of the hotel on a first-come basis. In my opinion though, 2 parking spots for a whole hotel does not merit the description. Parking is a problem in this area. Thankfully, at the time of our visit the city did not have a contract with a towing service to enforce parking rules so we were able to park near the hotel. But if you can find a hotel that truly has parking for guests, I would recommend that option.

The hotel is perfectly sited in a quiet courtyard off the main road between the Old Town and the Greek historical sites. The rooms were a bit tatty but characterful, eg the air conditioning didn't adjust and the TV didn't work. This didn't spoil our enjoyment of our stay in a fascinating city.

We really enjoyed our stay at the Piccolo hotel. The room was sparsely decorated but all the furniture was substantial (not Ikea or cheap contemporary Italian style). Our room was clean and larger than I expected for the value price we paid. It is 4 blocks in from the bridge to Ortigia, which is convenient since most of the fun stuff to do in Syracuse is on the island. When we got into our room I noticed that 2 lightbulbs needed replacing and they fixed this within a few hours. The breakfast options were ample but not exactly high quality - watery American style coffee and cheap mortadella were disappointing. This wasn't terribly important to us anyway as we were more interested in getting out and expected that for the budget rate we got that breakfast wouldn't be fancy. Instead, we loved going to a cafe called Mondilo down the street for cappuccinos and savory morning pastries. Overall we were very pleased with our stay at the hotel and found the service thorough, appropriate and warm.

At first glance, the room looks fine, but you don't have to do a Hotel Inspector style search to spot the mould in the shower cubicle, the rusted shower hose and the thick dust above the bathroom door lintel. There was also a thick layer of dust over the bedside table lamp and electric heater. Towels and opened soap were changed every day, but resources should be targeted in cleaning properly and perhaps updating a bit. Breakfast was disappointing. There is a large bowl of fresh fruit, but the plums are frozen solid, which then chills the rest of the fruit. The "long" coffee in thermos flasks is undrinkable, but you can ask for capucchino or espresso. Lots of hard boiled eggs available, but these are obviously cooked well in advance as we left at 7.00am on our departure morning, and no signs of life from kitchen, or indeed anybody to check out with. Red carpet runner from lobby could do with a thorough beating and clean. It looks as if a lot of money has been spent in making the breakfast and lounge area look good, to the detriment of the rooms. On the plus side, very quiet in the evening, so no problem sleeping. Parking isn't free, and not plentiful. When we went, parking was available because there was a dispute between the local council and the company operating the parking.

Our airconditioning did not work properly the first couple of nights but the owner fixed it by our last night. A friendly b&b, good value for money. A pleasant stroll (10 mins) to Ortigia. Ideal for families or couples.

The Casa Mia is in the great location in Syracusa.

Good location, within easy walking distance of Ortigia. Staff were very helpful and spoke English. Very good breakfast buffet. Only a couple of parking spaces outside the hotel, but we did find some about 100m away.

We were a group of seven Americans. This hotel accommodated us in a outstanding manner. It was very clean and unique. They also had an English speaking staff which helped us tremendously, because none of us could speak Italian. From the hotel we drove easily to the Greek Theater, the catacombs, and the Teardrop Catholic Church. We also walked and toured Isola di Ortygia. Wish we would have had more time to spend at this hotel and tour more of Siracusa.

Friendly, but bathroom was a little tired with small amount of mold in shower. Bed was noisy as was corridor outside room during day. The WIFI didn't reach the room, and they couldn't provide an iron. But the location is just a five min walk to the old town so reasonable value for money, but would prob pay a little more and stay in the old town next time.