Villaggio Hotel Lido San Giuseppe

I wouldn’t choose this hotel for a quality stay or a peaceful break. Our room was only okay, with a strange smell. The air conditioner dripped right outside the door, so you’d get wet unlocking or locking it. The metal door had no shade or cover, and when the sun hit it in the evening, it heated up the room and could burn you if you touched it. The beds were uncomfortable, thin, and slanted or leaning. The mattress had an oversized plastic cover that bunched up and became painful. The place was chaotic and noisy at nearly all hours, with constant entertainment and children running and screaming around. The WiFi hardly ever worked. Breakfast was bad. The coffee machines made terrible coffee, so you had to buy a decent one at the bar. The food selection was low quality, and the tiny breakfast room was a madhouse by 8:30/8:45. Lunch and dinner were mediocre, with small portions for a moderately active adult man, so I was often hungry. The hotel feels isolated, down a ridiculous hill with nothing nearby, which I guess is why some people come here. Getting to Briatico or Tropea, which is very nice, is a trek. Most of the staff are wonderful and do what they can, but management gives poor direction and clearly doesn’t want to improve the guest experience.

Our group of friends spent a weekend here and had an amazing time. The rooms were spacious, and we loved relaxing on the beach. The sea view made our evenings really nice.

The staff were the one bright spot, five big stars for them. Everything else felt stressful and overly strict, like being at a children's camp, and I had to get out of there fast. They charge for everything: even after booking the hotel, you have to pay for a beach towel, and swimming in the pool means buying a 3-euro headset every day. The pool also closes whenever they feel like it. The rooms weren't cleaned and the towels weren't changed. People smoked all over the restaurant despite the no-smoking sign, and the coffee cups were dirty, with broken glasses left on tables. Just bad.

Signor Biagi was especially courteous. We had a lovely day at their beautiful beach, with great spaghetti tarantina and agli scampi.