"Our stay was spectacular….and it started even before we left. A few days before I received a phone call from Antonella asking how she can make my stay special. I told her we were going to visit my daughter, who is studying in Milan and will be celebrating her 21st birthday, she said she would handle it….and she did…..Let’s start from the first day.
We arrived to the hotel at around noon. Our room was ready, but I asked if there might be an upgrade and Edoardo (who was just the most amazing person) found us a “nice” upgrade but said it would not be ready for a couple of hours, but promised it would be worth the wait…..and it was! We stayed in Suite 521 and it was beautiful. Guest bathroom, dining area, living room, huge tub and separate shower, and very nice bedroom. The suite was very well appointed including plush robes and slippers, a mini fridge and a Nespresso machine with 6 pods plus lots of delicious water (no plastic). The room also had a beautiful balcony with a gorgeous view. The bed was as comfortable as a bed could be and the room was very quiet! A great nights sleep!
In the morning we went to breakfast…..I don’t know that I can really call it breakfast, or a buffet, because that really is not accurate. First of all, the variety was very impressive! The amount (and quality) of food that was available was impressive. From pistachio cream filled croissants to every cured meat you can imagine to caviar to some kind of buffalo milk cream dessert (that was delicious)….and it did not end there. Perfectly round and cooked fried eggs, pork and chicken sausage, tofu (not usually a fan, but again, this was no ordinary tofu, it must have been some kind of magic). If you wanted more, no problem, order an omelette….it was made a little differently. Delicious, but it was completely sealed, almost like an egg burrito….very nice touch. The french toast was another winner, and of course, how can you go wrong with Nutella pancakes?? Thank God we walked a lot, otherwise, I would have gained a ton. With that said, I should also note that the cappuccino were out of this world. I had two every morning. :) Daniel was the most amazing server….more on the staff at the end.
The hotel is across from the train station, which made it very easy to travel. Ubers and taxis were plentiful (take an Uber, taxi drivers were hit/miss with some not resetting their meters and trying to rip us off). The hotel also has free shuttle to the Duomo, which we used a lot. You have to reserve it, but we never had a problem.
As much as we enjoyed all the amenities and lavishness, what was most impressive was the commitment to service, not only by the superstars (Edoardo, Antonella and Daniel), but by all the staff. They were all so engaging and friendly and knew us by name. THEY created an amazing atmosphere. I should also note that we had put a lot of euor’s in the safe the first day and forgot to lock it, and nothing was touched. Being from NY, we tend to be cautious and would prefer not to leave anything to temptation, but we never felt unsafe, nor did we feel that anyone of the staff would take advantage of us. Quite the opposite, I feel like they always looked out for us. It was so great, that we ended up canceling a reservation to what had been a higher rated hotel so that we could continue our stay here, and again, Edoardo saved the day and made it all happen and Antonella did her magic as well. I can’t imagine anyone not giving this property an EASY 5 star review. We travel all over and stay at all kinds of properties and I think this has been the best all around for a cosmopolitan stay. I can’t recommend the Excelsior Hotel Gallia enough."
