The holiday itself was good overall. Although the weather prevented us on a few days from fully appreciating all aspects of the beautiful scenery to the full, which of course could not be helped!
The highlight of the holiday was of course the visit to the opera in the amphitheatre in Verona. This was spectacular, despite the weather intervening again and delaying the start by an hour and getting totally drenched! It was definitely worth the wait and was an experience not to be missed! It began at 10pm and ended at 2.30am and we got back to the hotel at about 4am!
The excursions were well organised and the Tour Manager, Sylvia Barsanti, went out of her way to inform us about the places we were visiting and adding extras to the programme to increase our experiences and enjoyment. For example after the visit to Sigurta Gardens she arranged a visit to restaurant in a mediaeval village where we tasted a variety of tortellini and other Italian fare (4 courses + wine, water and coffee) for a very reasonable cost. Likewise before the Opera in Verona she arranged for us to partake of an eat-as-much-as-you-can buffet for only €3 per person + drinks, which was very welcome before the long evening ahead! On the last day we spent time in a lakeside village on Lake Garda on the way back from Verona as we had not actually been able to see the lake in the sunshine! The optional excursion to the hotel in the mountains with the balcony overhanging the lake was enjoyable and also the visit to Limone. Venice was very busy, hot and crowded but we were able to gain a flavour of the city as well as have an optional gondola ride!
Overall I was very impressed with Sylvia, who was outstanding – so helpful, accommodating, knowledgeable, reliable, responsible, hardworking and just a lovely person! She went out of her way to resolve any difficulties: trying to satisfy people unhappy with their hotel accommodation; arranging for alternative seating for 2 ladies with mobility difficulties at the amphitheatre in Verona so that they did not need to climb steps to see the opera. And her energy never seemed to flag no matter what was thrown at her!
My only real concern would be the hotel itself. This was a changed venue to original one advertised in the brochure and was supposed to be a superior 4* hotel. I would definitely from our experience debate that classification – it has the potential but not the reality! I, like many, looked it up and read the reviews which were not overwhelming in their praise but the photos made the hotel look spectacular and the rooms very well furnished and fitted. The location was indeed spectacular with magnificent views over Lake Garda from the terraces but it was rather isolated being up a very steep road and you had to be very fit to walk to or from the resort of Gardone Riviera. If there had been a courtesy minibus available then this would have helped to see more of the immediate locality. The public areas were very well cared for and were excellent. The dining rooms were spacious and beautiful, the terraces overlooked the lake, the outdoor pool was cool but excellent and the spa facilities absolutely excellent! It was just a shame that these were underused! Again a small complaint was the lack of wifi which was only available in the reception area and had to be applied for every 3 or 8 hours – if there was someone in reception from whom to get the password!
The hotel was very understaffed: only 3 waiting/serving staff with usually only 2 on duty at a time + a receptionist. However they were excellent, friendly and at times thoroughly stressed and overworked, just about coping but somehow maintaining a sense of humour and being thoroughly professional.
The food was generally good with a good choice for dinner(4 courses), being offered a choice of 3 alternatives for the starter and main course, and starting with a wide variety of vegetables/ salad items and a dessert after – which was not always very exciting but edible! Breakfast was always the same but plenty of choice from cereals, fruit, cold meats, cheese, eggs, bread rolls + pastries and yoghurts. Plenty of teas ad coffees were also served to individual tastes.
However the rooms allocated to the group – and there were not many other guests staying at the hotel even at the weekend – were not like those shown on the website or in the brochure! We were therefore rather disappointed with the rooms, many of which were small, sometimes dark and not always very clean. There were a number of complaints about the rooms which were not as expected especially if some had paid an upgrade for the previous hotel and were expecting lake views, toiletries, air-conditioning etc. I was lucky and had a lovely, spacious room, with a terrace but no lake view. The bathroom was enormous and had a good shower over the bath. However, the sealant around the bath was patchy and there were puddles which never went away on the tiled floor despite the mats and towels I placed on the floor to prevent myself from slipping. The air conditioning also did not work. Others had to ask for light bulbs to be replaced to be able to see and a shower head to be fixed! One or two asked for different rooms as they were so unhappy with the standard of the rooms allocated. There was so much potential in the hotel which comprised of 3 different blocks (ville) but I have the feeling that because we were a block booking, the best rooms were not allocated to us. I would advise any future Tour Manager to look at the allotted rooms before the arrival of the guests to sort any potential problem, as it did taint quite a few people’s impressions and to some extent spoilt their holidays!
I did enjoy my holiday and met some wonderful, generous fellow guests who helped to make my holiday memorable and pleasurable!
