Excelsior Grand Hotel, Amalfi

As anyone who has read my early reviews knows- I love Italy! I've been going there now for the past ten years with my parents, and for the first time last year I made my own way there with the boyfriend for a nice Italian holiday. The Grand Hotel Excelsior was my residence for numerous weeks holiday, and it certainly not one for the faint hearted! In the Thompson guide book it is described as 'quaint' which to put it politely is rather an understatement. One thing that can be said for it is it is completely oozing with Italian charm.

If you book with Thompson as we did (though other tour operators go to the same location) flights go from Manchester Airport on a Friday morning, taking just over 2 and a half hours to get to Naples International Airport. From Naples the coastal resort of Amalfi is approximately two hours drive, depending on how confident the driver is. For a fee of £15.00 a transfer to the hotel can be booked, and I completely advise this is purchased, as a taxi would cost over 50 euros. The first time I went they picked us up in a small people carrier, but the other times we have been in a coach. Let me tell you, the Amalfi coast road is not for the faint hearted, as the hairpin bends are truly terrifying. To allow two coaches to pass each other often the driver has to lean out and take a wing mirror off…which is extreme motoring! If you look down the cliff on the coast road it is a sheer drop, but the fear of imminent death does not seem to bother the Italian drivers.

Eventually you arrive at the coastal town of Amalfi, which nestles into the cliff face, literally clinging to the side overlooking the sea. In the brochure the description of the hotel says 1km away from the centre of Amalfi, which is slightly misleading. It may be 1kn upwards, but in terms of the road there is no direct way there. Instead you have to go on a little winding road all the way up the cliff side, heading upwards to the village of Pogerola, which is where this hotel should really be advertised as being located. Eventually however, after a good 2 hours you finally arrive at the hotel, and it does not disappoint.

Advertised as four star, it is four star by the Italian Tourist Board, not the English, so don't expect English standards! On arrival your bags are carried in by a porter, to be taken to one of the 97 rooms available, while you sign in. The hotel also asks for your passports, but I have found this in numerous hotels in Europe. You are then given the room key and you get the joy of finding it in what for Italian standards is a HUGE hotel! The bottom floor is a restaurant and bar, with a games room with a giant flat screen TV for watching the football. Above this are the 97 rooms, we were in a garden room which was accessed from the third floor, but seemed separate from the rest of the hotel. We did not ask for these rooms, they were just allocated to us and we were delighted!

Stuck to the side of the hotel is one of its main features; the swimming pool. It is this pool that makes the hotel not a particular great stay for those families with young children. The pool is over 9foot deep in some places, and there is no life guard as it is not a requirement in Italy to have one present. The cool refreshing water is brilliant after a long days sight seeing, and if you are just sun bathing in one of the lovely orange sun loungers then drinks can be served to you at your lounger. This is really the height of decadence!

We stayed half board, which means breakfast and an evening meal. To be honest breakfast was what you would expect from a European hotel. On offer was a selection of cheeses, bread rolls and scrambled eggs. For extra money the chef could rustle up a full English breakfast, but to be honest I was satisfied with what was already on offer.

What didn't satisfy me was the evening meal, which in all honesty was appalling! Each morning the chef would pin the evening's menu on the notice board by the reception area, and everyday reading it my mouth would water. However, come night time the food just wasn't up to the standard you would expect of such a large hotel. The starters were small, the mains just nasty and the desert often resorted to dull ice cream. It became obvious that they were catering for their large German market, as veal was on the menu literally every night. My mother frequently goes for the vegetarian option, believing it to be a safer bet. However, she was faced with an omelet every night, not the most filling of meals. You would have thought in Italy, the home of pasta the chef would have been able to come up with a few good pasta dishes, but this clearly wasn't the case. By the fourth night we decided it was safer to just head out to the centre of Amalfi (using the hotel's free bus service) and eat down there. Thus bus service runs till 11 at night so there was no problem getting back up the cliff.

Overall my views were mixed. The hotel and its location were beautiful, just like out of a film set. The food however really let it down. When you are paying upwards of £500 per person you would expect better service, and this really put a downer on things. Luckily the hotel is only a small part of the holiday experience in Amalfi, as the surrounding area is beautiful so you don't actually spend that much time in the hotel at all. A day trip to Pompeii is a must, as is a trip to Positano: the land of the kaftans. My one word of advice would be not to book these tours through the operator, as they charge the earth. Instead just go and catch the bus, it is no more than 3 euros and gets you there just as fast for a fraction of the price!

CONTACT DETAILS
Grand Hotel Excelsior
Via Papa Leone X,
Pogerola,
84011