Residenza Ca' Tazzoli , Mantegna Hotels

“Not bad. Not great.”

Ca' Tazzoli is a sort of annex of Hotel dei Gonzaga and they share most amenities such as front desk, restaurant, cleaning etc. I believe that Ca' Tazzoli is a bit cheaper, but I am not sure. Ca' Tazzoli is an old building built on a square around a central atrium that serves as a common seating ar… more

Ca' Tazzoli is a sort of annex of Hotel dei Gonzaga and they share most amenities such as front desk, restaurant, cleaning etc. I believe that Ca' Tazzoli is a bit cheaper, but I am not sure. Ca' Tazzoli is an old building built on a square around a central atrium that serves as a common seating area that is not used very often. The rooms are situated on three floors around the atrium. My room was clean and adequate for my needs. I was back in Mantua on business for a couple of weeks and stayed here for one of those weeks because I needed to spend most of my time alone and uninterrupted. That was all fine. I had a desk and generally good WiFi. Here is where one of the irritants of the place came into play, however. When you check in they give you your own ID and password for WiFi. I was staying for a week, but the clerk gave me a password for only 3 days and told me I had to come back for another in 3 days. It ran out right in the middle of doing business, which was annoying because I had to walk to the front desk (about a block) and get another. The clerk at the time could not understand why I had a password for only 3 days and gave me another for 7 without a problem, and was puzzled as to why I had been given only 3 days in the first place. My general conjecture, based on other experiences, is that some of the desk staff are more competent/knowledgeable than others. They were all friendly and polite (even putting up with my bad Italian), but not always helpful. I drink yerba mate day and night, and for that I need a supply of hot water. The desk clerk who showed me the room at the beginning of my stay told me to use the hot water tap! Really? You use the hot water tap to make tea? She then told me that I could get hot water from the restaurant (when it is open). That worked, although it meant I was limited in the hours I could get hot water. Eventually I asked if they had an electric kettle. Nope. Never heard of such a thing. Also, my room was cold at night by my standards and there was no way that I could get heat. I used extra blankets for sleeping, and they suggested I move to a room on a higher floor because they are a bit warmer (heat rises). I declined, not wanting to waste my time on what would probably be wasted effort. This meant I had to wear a coat at night when talking to partners in Asia and the US. The desk clerk also sent me on a wild goose chase for a full service laundry -- sending me first to a dry cleaners'. To be fair, full service laundries do not exist in Mantua; you have to use self service laundromats. I did not know this because when I lived there I had a washing machine. I know this part of Mantua very well because I used to live on the other side of piazza Sordello for 2 years. It's central enough for just about anything tourists want to see. No more than a 15 minute walk will get you pretty much anywhere in centro. You can spit and hit the duomo and palazzo ducale, there is a market each Thursday on piazza Sordello, and within 5 minutes you can walk to the basilica, the rotonda, the clock tower etc etc, as well as plenty of shopping and eateries. I don't know about the breakfasts at Hotel dei Gonzaga because I did not order them with my room cost. I know a dozen places in the area to get coffee and a pastry if needed. On the whole, my stay was constantly annoying, but the annoyances were all minor in the grand scheme of things. I am unlikely to visit Mantua again, and if I do I will stay with friends. Therefore, I cannot say that I will stay here again. I'd say that for the price you probably cannot do better for the location, but for the price I usually get better service in other cities than I got here. This probably has as much to do with Mantua itself as with this hotel. Mantuans are a special breed of people.

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