B&B Del Monte

The rooms were comfortable and the location is excellent, but our stay left us feeling anything but welcome. If you’re getting married in Scardavilla, I’d think twice before booking this B&B. We booked four of the five rooms for one night on July 12 last year: one for the newlyweds and the others for guests. I raised the check-in issue months ahead and made sure an uncertain return time wouldn’t be a problem. The owner kept that promise, waiting until around 4 a.m. to give us our keys. That was about the extent of the welcome. Our only request was to leave at a reasonably relaxed pace the next day so we could get some sleep. We were told that meant paying for another night, even though we wouldn’t be staying in the rooms. We declined. Since we didn’t know when we’d get back, the rooms might have been available between Sunday and Monday anyway, and we could have vacated them quickly. The owner asked us to provide copies of everyone’s IDs and pay in advance, not to use the intercom so we wouldn’t disturb the guest in the fifth room, and to have breakfast by 9:30. We followed all of that. Still, after arriving at 4 a.m., we were expected at breakfast at 9:30, and there was no flexibility. We were all in the breakfast room on time, half asleep, when the owner greeted us in an aggressive tone and started scolding us. Her first complaint was that lights had been left on. The bride and I got home at 4 a.m. exhausted and fell into bed; we’d forgotten one light, which she turned off at 6 when she noticed. The family with three children had left a light on as a guide in case they needed it. We hadn’t done anything deliberately careless, and had only been in the rooms for a few hours, much less than a typical guest. Guests pay for a room and should be able to use it. Then came the complaint that we had locked ourselves in. The newlyweds’ room was described as the “panoramic” room: a small sitting area with a fireplace and sofas, a lovely window, then a bedroom and private bathroom. When I returned, I noticed there was no key for the entrance door, only one for the bathroom. I saw a latch on the room door and closed it. Apparently, the owner needed access to the “living area” to prepare breakfast. When we tried to explain that there was no key, she repeatedly contradicted us. If these rules matter so much, guests should hear about them at the start. After that wake-up, we had a very meager breakfast and left, with one final dig about unfinished yogurt. There’s potential here, and the location deserves to be made the most of. But the hospitality was truly awful. Some people can make guests feel welcome even under much harder circumstances, and people notice that these days.