City Hotel Catania

The host was very kind. We arrived in Catania early in the morning, and he offered us an early check-in. He also booked a taxi for our last day. Our room faced the boulevard but stayed quiet. The location worked well, with a park nearby and the centre about a 10-minute walk away. The place could use some renovation, though, as a few things need replacing.

We stayed for a week and had no complaints. The hotel was clean and tidy, and the manager at the desk was friendly, warm, and spoke English well. It’s right across from the park and close to the main tourist spots, and we had no trouble getting back after dark. I’d been a little worried about booking at first, but that turned out to be groundless. Breakfast was a typical continental spread, filling enough, though it did leave me wanting an English breakfast. We enjoyed our time here. All the best!

I booked five nights for work, but the air conditioning never worked. The room stayed above 24 degrees even after I switched rooms, and the vent was extremely loud. On the first night I ate pizza in the room, and within an hour the box was covered in ants. The manager said he would refund the unused nights if the room temperature didn’t improve. It didn’t, so I left my key at the empty reception and booked somewhere else. The next day, the hotel contacted me to say they were going back on that promise and wouldn’t refund me. I’d already paid for a new place. I told the manager I understood problems happen, but that it wasn’t right to reverse what he’d promised after I’d made other arrangements. He refused. I sent the messages to my credit card company, and after reviewing them they reversed the charge. Avoid this place if you don’t want ants, broken air conditioning, and a manager who, in my experience, tried to scam me.

The landlord is awesome, and City Hall is a nice place very close to the city centre. The building faces Bellini Park, one of the prettiest spots in the city, and there’s a large park area that’s especially useful if you’ve rented a car. A very good option for visiting Catania.