“A Historic Hotel”

A gorgeous bit of history and a hotel all in one. Situated on the hilly streets of Siena, this was an excellent location and a beautiful place to stay. The room was perfect, clean and the staff was extremely helpful.

“Stylish, Not the Usual”

Il Chiostro del Carmine is a retired monastery, and that heritage gives it a unique sense of presence; it gave me a sense of calm and retreat. High marks for a very nice, large, comfortable, stylish room, with a great bath. Nice view. Also, high marks for great service from hotel staff in helping with transportation arrangements. For the money, I think the breakfast could be more substantial. While the hotel is only about 10 minutes from the center of Siena, it does feel remote, so not for people who want to feel part of a location's "buzz." And, best to get a cab for the short ride to/from bus or train station. Very glad I stayed--a unique hotel choice.

“OK - just very OK”

First of all just let me say - If you are going to do a lot of driving in Tuscany HIRE A SAT NAV! By the time I found the enterance to the city, nearest Il Chiostro Del Carmine my nerves were well and truly shot! During this torture, I tried to phone the hotel on three separate occassions for guidance, but with no answer,which was pretty frustrating. When we eventually got there, checked in and manoevured the tiny rental car into the tiny parking place all I could think of doing was downing a cold beer as quickly as possible - unforunately the hotel doesn't have a bar, but provided a couple of Singha beers in the rooms minibar (why Thai beer in Italy??) Previous reviewers complained about the hike to the second floor without a lift - believe me, this was a piece of cake after the trauma in the car! The room itself was adequate, a decent size and was clean and decently equipped (No coffee corner as stated though) The public areas though were pretty disappointing, a little bit shabby and without much charm considering the history and potential of the building. Breakfast was ok with a decent choice of cold meats/cheese/yoghurt etc. Staff were polite and helpful. The hotel has a four star rating which in my opinion stretched the imagination a little. I would think it is much nearer a decent three star. If you are looking for a base for exploring the city, it's fine. If you are anticipating spending much time in the hotel itself I'd suggest looking for a smaller, cosier B&B.

“Impressive building, good location, quirky service”

On the upside, the building itself was lovely, being a converted convent. Our room was on the second floor and had a very nice view over the countryside surronding Siena. The room was simply furnished and of a good size. Breakfast was good and served in the nice coutrtyard. The major attractions were all in easy walking distance. If you have a car there is parking, although it is limited and can be tricky to get into and out of. On the downside, the service can most kindly be desribed as "quirky" and a little disorganised. Depending on who was manning the front desk answers to queries for information were not forthcoming or basic courtesies (ie a greeting when you arrive to check in) were absent. If you are, like us, unfortunate enough to have a connecting door to the next room as part of your room, expect to hear everything that goes on in the next room. If you are truly as lucky as us, your neightbours will argue for two nights in a row, Also be prepared for the lack of lift and no porter.... To sum up this hotel is more than adequate base for exploring siena and surrounds but as a service experience and in terms of facilities/convenience probably lacking.

“A fitting hotel for Siena”

THe hotel was full of character and I am so pleased that we stayed there but with all that character comes with a slight draw back and that is they didn't build lifts in convents back in those days so being on the 3rd floor meant that we had 56 stairs to climb each time we came back and worse still when we had 2 weeks of luggage to carry! Apart from that and a dodgy shower head and tempermental airconditioning it was a lovely place to stay! Breakfast was particularly good sitting out in the courtyard. They just need a fit hotel porter to deliver the cases!!

“Nice place just outside the wall”

I spend 2 nights here for the Palio. Very well located. Lovely breakfast.

“We would return”

The hotel was beautiful, but not terribly convenient. The hotel has very limited parking and it is located a block away from the only entrance to the hotel. In addition, there are no elevators, so we had to carry our luggage (2 weeks worth of clothes and assessories) up 3 flights of stairs. Lastly, the mattress was extremely firm to the point of being hard. Despite these issues, we would stay here again. The location was great and the staff was very friendly, helpful and spoke english very well.

“Romantic Siena”

Excellent hotel, located in the heart of this beautiful medievil city.Could not fault the hotel, service was excellent and staff very friendly. Our room had a shuttered window that opened onto terrace looking out onto the roof tops of the Monastry and surrounding buildings . in the distance the Tuscan countryside..which was spectacular. We were there for 2 nights flying to Pisa then coach to Siena . We returned to Pisa by train which was excellent. One fantastic bonus of the location of the hotel, is that it has a brilliantly equipped supermarket 100mteres away. Hams,cheeses, bread and wine all reasonably priced. We didn't eat out once, made our own pack lunches and had feasts back at our room each night. Saved a fortune!!! Make sure you visit the Torre del Mangia overlooking the del Campo the climb of 400 steps is well worth it as the views are spectacular. Siena is a must for a few days.

“Fantastic Hideaway”

We stayed at Il Chiostro for two nights in Oct. 2009. What a wonderful place and the location was excellent! As others have mentioned, there is no elevator which can prove to be a challenge for some, however, we had no problems with it. The rooms was large, clean and very comfortable. The staff was very helpful and friendly. We would definitely stay here again. Unfortunately the weather wasn't great while we were there so we didn't get a chance to enjoy the courtyard much, however, we did sit under the arches and watch the rain fall in the courtyard one evening. It was spectacular.