La Villa Calvi

We spent four nights at La Villa Calvi for our honeymoon, and it felt like true luxury. The balcony had a stunning view of the sea and mountains, and our room was very spacious. Everyone on staff, from the cleaners to the managers, was polite, friendly and excellent. Breakfast was superb, and we loved the food at both the beach restaurant and the main hotel restaurant.

We came to Calvi from different places, some of us from Asia and some from Paris, and had been looking forward to dinner at La Villa. Even though the restaurant was half empty when we finally went last May, getting a table had been very difficult. Then the meal itself was a letdown. Nobody welcomed us at the hotel entrance, and service was very slow. A nice woman seemed to be handling several tables alone. At these prices, I expected more from a restaurant in a 5-star hotel. The sommelier was the worst part: arrogant and rude, with no interest in explaining the local wines. He just kept filling and refilling our glasses to the brim, spilling wine on the table from the start, before we’d even had bread or food. I wonder whether the experience gets even worse in high season, when the hotel is busier. It's a shame to have such poor service at this price in such a beautiful setting.

We spent a week at La villa Calvi and were so happy there. The breakfast was amazing, and the staff were lovely, making sure we had everything we needed. We loved every bit of the hotel and will be back!

The hotel has an excellent location, and the place is clean, airy and modern. Our rooms were bright, spacious and clean. The housekeeping team were especially good, friendly, enthusiastic and professional. The food was good, though I've had better elsewhere. The young woman running the restaurant was professional and friendly, and the drivers were excellent, especially Euan. Even as guests, we couldn't get a table, despite being flexible about the time. The wine waiter needs retraining. He pushed us to order wine before we'd chosen our food, wasn't helpful, overfilled our glasses, then wanted to pour a different wine into those same glasses. We were appalled, and he argued with us. He was rude and arrogant. The children's room service menu lacked imagination. Hot food wasn't available until after 7:30 pm, and our food didn't actually arrive until 8:50. One of our friends was served a meal with paper in it. The waitress apologized, but at a 5-star hotel I expected the owner, manager or chef to come apologize too. The chef did come out, but then spent 15 minutes talking to the people at the next table with his back to us. That was a missed opportunity. My wife and daughter were at the beach, and the hotel refused to pick them up, although it had done so two days earlier. The person we spoke to was unhelpful and didn't offer to arrange a taxi or suggest anything. The service didn't live up to the 5-star rating. They need to be more consistent, with better attention to detail and staff training.