The Palace

Stayed in this lovely hotel recently for a week. The hotel is located in a residential area which seemed very safe. As many others have said, it is located about a 5 minutes walk away from the ferry port in one direction and about the same distance in the other direction to another waterfront area that hosts a number of cafes and restaurants. Only thing I would say is the approaches to the hotel all seem to necessitate an uphill walk so if you have mobility problems you should bear that in mind. I have to say our arrival could have been smoother. Having originally booked a superior room, we took advantage of a pre-arrival upgrade offer from the hotel to book a junior suite and a taxi from the airport. Agreed with the hotel that the taxi fare would be added to my bill but the taxi driver knew nothing of this and insisted he charged it to my room which meant I was initially double-charged for the journey. And the receptionist clearly didn’t know which room to allocate to us! In the end, we were shown both a superior room and a junior suite and allowed to choose! In fairness, all handled very smoothly and sorted out by a very friendly and efficient receptionist but really this should not have happened. I will add that the hotel obviously has different Junior Suites. The one we were allocated was a very large room with a seating area in one corner and a small balcony. However, the ones shown on the hotel website have a separate seating area and a very large balcony with sun loungers and a table and chair. Not a problem for us for a week in winter but I would be really disappointed if I had paid top dollar in the summer for the room shown on the website and been allocated the room we had. If booking a Junior Suite I would definitely check with the hotel to see which type of suite is to be allocated. Our room was spotlessly clean and very comfortable. It had free wi-fi which worked really well and an in-room safe. Bottled water was provided each day and we had complimentary use of the in-room mini-bar which was restocked once daily. (I think only rooms above a certain type get that perk so check before using the mini-bar!) A bit disappointed we weren’t advised of this perk when checking in and I only knew about it because of TripAdviser reviews I had read on here! And I will say the room we had was right in front of the church and we hardly noticed the bells chiming, particularly when the patio doors were shut! Breakfast was very good and in my opinion, definitely worth booking. However, it did lack what I can only call that touch of sparkle. I also found it very strange that the chef who was on duty to cook eggs to order either couldn’t (or wouldn’t?) cook a boiled egg! I found out later that if you want one, you have to ask a waiter who will ask the chef in the kitchen to cook one! Otherwise, I found the staff all really friendly, smiley and helpful. They are a credit to the hotel. This is an excellent hotel but if I am totally honest it maybe just lacks one or two things I would have expected to find in a true 5 star hotel – in fact, I suspect most UK guests would recognise the hotel as a high quality 4 star. However, would I stay again? Undoubtedly yes. Would I recommend to others? Most definitely. I hope the coronavirus crisis soon passes so that other people can enjoy a stay in this hotel in the not too distant future.

Nice hotel in a good location for getting around Sliema. The foyer and reception area is nice and staff are very friendly. Main restaurant is good value but not quite 5 star cuisine. The rooms are probably 4 star but even so the rooms are tired with electric sockets that don't work, showers that leak. The Aircon is hotel wide so you can't cool your room.