Madama Club Village

Our room was spacious and worked well. We were in the main hotel building on the top floor, with a high ceiling, good air conditioning, and a safe that was easy to use. Check-in was simple, and the front desk stayed in touch with us during the 24 hours before we arrived. They were helpful and accommodating. The airport transfer and the ride back were both well organized. We felt looked after, and the staff paid attention to what we liked. Their advice about checkout timing was helpful too. They made us feel like family. The beach was all sand, well organized, and well lit. From what we saw, it seemed to be monitored at night, so it felt very safe. The whole village felt safe. Each room had its own lunch and dinner table, plus a designated beach umbrella, which was convenient. We loved the animation team. They came up to guests and invited them to join in, which is how we found out about the children’s club. We went to that, water aerobics, and the evening show, and enjoyed them all. Special thanks to Sofia, Elena and Greta from the animation team for the children’s club. The person leading water aerobics turned out to be a choreographer, so maybe she could offer dance classes in the future. Live music at the bar was a lovely, unexpected bonus. The evening shows were probably great, but we couldn’t understand much because they were in Italian. Hotel service was in Italian too, but that didn’t bother us. Enough staff spoke English, and Google Translate helped with the rest. Food choices were somewhat limited, though most of the meals were super delicious. At lunch and dinner peak times, the lines for food were long. More servers and food stations would help then. It would also be nice to have cappuccino at lunch and dinner. The espresso machine was just standing there idle, and you had to walk to the bar building for a cappuccino. Paying for one wouldn’t be a problem, but going to another building just for coffee was inconvenient. There’s no bar by the swimming pool, and no gift shop or convenience store. A Saturday-only check-in and check-out policy was a major inconvenience, as was the lack of late checkout. I was willing to pay more to leave late, but they weren’t interested. I also would have liked a kettle and coffee machine in the room. Since Calabria has had earthquakes in the past, I looked for certificates showing earthquake-resistant construction on the hotel walls, but couldn’t find any. If the hotel was built with earthquake-resistant technology, it would be good to display those certificates prominently everywhere. We’ll return. Our holiday there was wonderful and unforgettable.