After much deliberation- we picked Palazzo Ravizza for our stay in Siena- as it had very good reviews on TA, booking.com, etc. and was a RS recommended hotel.
Our requirements were: easy access to hotel with car, parking, close enough to walk to center, and views of any sort. On paper Palazzo Ravizza fit the bill. In reality it fit those requirements but unfortunately it was an expensive disappointment overall.
We found the service/reception to be lacking for a hotel in this price range.
When we arrived we were told they did not have our reservation- I had booked directly on their website and had the email confirmation and an email they had sent me to reconfirm just days prior to our visit. Then we were told they only had 1 night reserved for us. We were very upset and annoyed to say the least! I showed our confirmation emails to her and she looked at that for a bit, then fiddled around and finally asked for our passports- with no explanation or apology as to why the mistake.
We were handed a key and pointed to a door and stairway that led to our room, given no information about parking, wifi, breakfast, etc. We dragged our bags down the stairs, struggled with the key and finally got the door opened, deposited our luggage, then had to return to desk to ask where to park.
After parking we then had to call the front desk to get wifi info, and stop at desk again to get breakfast info, local map, etc.
The garden suite was lovely and spacious but the fridge was not even plugged in and looked as if it had not been used in years, the wifi was very spotty, only worked in a very small area in the room, hair dryer did not work, whirlpool tub did not work. We paid more for this hotel than any other we had stayed at in Italy!
The bed was as hard as the stone floor. The ice machine/coffee machine in lobby were not working.
Breakfast was just adequate, the coffee machine there caused a bit of a traffic jam as each guest has to make their own cup, one at a time.
PROS: Large spacious room (garden suite), lovely terrace with fantastic views. Easy walking distance to historic center. Free, secure parking within city walls.
CONS:
Unwelcoming reception. Uncomfortable bed and out of order amenities. $5 corking fee charged if you bring your own beverage to enjoy on the terrace. Spotty wifi.
We felt as if it was a bother when we asked anything at the reception desk.
**You must get specific driving directions from the hotel- do not use GPS, very important to only enter the city walls at Porta San Marco. It was a bit difficult, but in the end we did find the hotel. Because of the difficulty we decided to stay put for 2 days rather than day trip- did not want to deal with getting in and out of Siena more than once!