Agatha Cosy Hotel

The room was filthy and smelled bad, especially the bathroom, and the walls looked unfinished, with plaster but no paint. The heater seemed broken, so they brought a portable one. Wi-Fi was meant to be available, but it never worked, even after I asked several times for it to be fixed. The bar right beside the hotel was so loud that I couldn't sleep at all. This was the worst hotel I've ever stayed in. I definitely wouldn't recommend it.

The worst part was the breakfast. We had to leave at 8 a.m., exactly when breakfast began, so we arranged takeaway the night before and chose two savory meals. We were told they'd include scrambled eggs, ham, and mushrooms. At 8, though, we got a bag that we'd already seen sitting at reception two hours earlier. It had two croissants, two slices of toast that seemed several days old, and two juices. After I complained, the receptionist sent me to the bar. The woman there looked annoyed, then took about 15 minutes to prepare the food. My partner, our luggage, and the taxi were all waiting outside, and they were still handing over the juice. We got everything without a bag. Then the hotel's taxi driver nearly shouted at my boyfriend, assuming the juice we'd just been given was open, and said he wouldn't let us in until my boyfriend drank it. I stepped in and told him I was Italian. He immediately became very sweet, but still charged us €20 for the 2.4 km ride after the hotel had quoted €15 the night before. The reception was empty for a long time, even after we called twice. When someone finally attended to us, they did let us have the room before official check-in. It was on the first floor, though, with no elevator, which was a pain with two 30 kg suitcases. Our room was clean enough, but not spotless. Wi-Fi only worked in a small shared room and not in our room. There was just one bottle of body wash and shampoo, the sink blocked the bathroom door from opening fully, the air conditioning barely worked, and the card for the lights was useless. Noise came from a restaurant and bar outside, with loud music late into the night. It didn't bother us much, but it's something to consider if you want a quiet stay. One of the worst stays of my life. I've found better service in remote parts of Indonesia.

The room had broken floor tiles, damaged shutters, and a shower door that was broken. It also had a damp patch on the bedroom wall, which backs onto the bathroom next door. They'd put a mirror over the patch. The mould in the photo looked like a forest. There was no toilet seat when we arrived. They said previous guests had damaged everything, which is fair enough, but they kept promising to fix it the next day and still hadn't done it after four days. They also refused to move us to another room. We asked hotels.com for a refund by email and phone, but the hotel kept ignoring them. When we mentioned compensation, we just got blank looks. There's apparently no maintenance being done, and it shows. Take my advice and stay elsewhere. The location is good, but it isn't worth the stress or the possible health problems of a mould-infested room. This place was shockingly awful.

I went with friends for a short trip in June. The reception staff gave us a really warm welcome and were very friendly. The hotel is easy to get around from on foot, and city tour buses, bars, and restaurants are nearby. The view of Piazza Stesicoro from my window was magnificent. The rooms have some vintage charm, though parts are showing their age. The downside is the busy Catania area can be noisy. My friends' room was near a restaurant that stayed open late, and their air conditioning also had a problem, which made their stay unpleasant. If you can put up with some noise, the location may make it worth considering. I might stay here again on a future trip to Catania.