Mercure Hotel Palermo Centro

Overall, we were happy with our stay. The room was spacious and comfortable, though the decor lacked charm. We especially enjoyed the breakfast—everything was of high quality.

Our story: We were on a cruise when we had an emergency requiring my wife to be hospitalized. Our port agent set us up in this hotel. The reception was welcoming and sympathetic. We had to switch rooms to accommodate incoming guests and they made the transfer easy and moved out luggage. A big surprise was the restaurant. Our dinners were very good and the chef surprised us with a special treat each day. The service and food is exceptional.

Public areas good – room a complete letdown: Not Mercure standard. The contrast between the public areas and the room was like night and day. While the staff at reception, the bar, and the restaurant were friendly and the breakfast was good, the noise level in the restaurant/breakfast area was extremely high – clearly due to a lack of soundproofing. Even our Italian tour guide found it hard to believe. On the way to our room on the first floor, we had to pass through what felt like a “deep-frying tunnel.” After just 15 meters, our clothes already smelled unpleasantly of fried food – very off-putting. The room itself was spacious but completely outdated. It felt dark and gloomy, with a cheap wardrobe, a dark painting, and a safe that couldn’t even fit an iPad. There wasn’t a single item in the room that gave a sense of comfort or style. Strangely enough, the bathroom was nicer than the room itself – something we rarely experience. In the bath the socket was dangerously falling apart and the toilet brush was the most dirty one I ever saw. The air conditioning only had two settings: on or off – no way to adjust the temperature. The balcony, enclosed by three frosted glass panels, faced what seemed to be the hotel’s workshop, where noisy machinery was often in use. Definitely not a place to relax. Had we not been part of a tour group, we would have left immediately. This hotel in no way lives up to the usual Mercure standards.