Great Places
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Friuli-Venezia-Giulia
Hotel Riviera and Maximillian's
Strada Costeira, 22
344013 Trieste
Web Site: www.hotelrivieraemaximilian.com
(2009) After 20 years travelling to Italy, we are always looking for new places to see and we had never been to Trieste. It had been on our list and since we were making our way to Croatia it seemed the perfect time.
We usually stay in smaller hotels, but after seeing the location and web site, the Hotel Riviera and Maximilian seemed to be the best fit.
Our standard room, in the newer annex, was nicely decorated in a casual way perfectly suited to its location on the sea. Aside from the annex having lower rates than the older, more traditional part of the hotel, we liked that we had a balcony. The rooms overlooked the bay and to the left the maraina at Grignano and Castello Maximilian. In the modern annex there are two or three levels and due to the trees I would recommend a room on the upper floors as some web sites made mention as to the lack of view on the terrace level. After being there, we know why.
The front desk staff were friendly and helpful. The maid service also. The bar service on the patio was slow and could, however, use some improvement. Dinner in the large restaurant was good, but not exceptional and in the upper price range. They had a nice buffet breakfast offering far more than the usual fare.
When booking the rooms, we were told that we were getting a substantially discounted rate for the seaon. In the end, the room rate was in the 180-190 euro range which seemed a bit high considering it was in Trieste and it was just a bit lower than what we paid in Rome for a comparable hotel.
The hotel is located high up the hill and there is an elevator down to the beach. The beach was closed in the late afternoon so a swim after a long day of sightseeing was not possible and therefore we cannot speak to the facilities.
The hotel is about 7 kms from Trieste and a ferry may be caught at the marina in Grignano which is a 15-20 minute walk along the water. The service is irregular so you need to plan your time accordingly. Check the schedule. There is a bus which has a regular schedule from the marino to downtown Trieste. The hotel has a large, free parking lot which is always a plus.
The hotel has its own elevator for access to the dock and water, as well as the walkway over to Grignano where the ferries leave for Trieste. This is a handy plus staying at this hotel. The elevatory, however is not running the evening and if you come back in the later part of the evening, you will arrive in the dark and the stairs up are a bit of a challenge.
A short walk from the hotel, along the water, we had a very good fish dinner at the Principe Di Metternich down at the marina. www.principedimetternich.it We gave them cart blanche and it was delicious. A bit on the pricey side considering that service was not included but we enjoyed it nonetheless. We would recommend a taxi as the path up to the hotel at night would be dark and not easy to manage after a bit of vino.
We consider the hotel to be a “bit of a splurge” but a nice stopover to visit Trieste. We spent two nights in Trieste, but for us, one night would have been sufficient to see the city and Maximillian’s castello.