Starhotels President Hotel

The staff were friendly and accommodating, and breakfast had plenty of options, a good start before a busy day exploring. From the 9th floor we had a great view of the central area. The hotel is clean, with very clean rooms that are larger than you'd expect in Europe. You can walk around the shopping center and it's a short trip to the port. Underground parking beside the hotel is a little pricey, but worth it for the security in Star President private parking area. Definitely a 5 star hotel!

The room stayed at 27.5°C, so getting proper rest was impossible. Opening the window made no difference, the air conditioning wasn't running, and nobody offered even a fan. Reception was no help and came up with no real fix. At dinner, we couldn't order tap water even though it's drinkable, which felt like a way to push paid drinks when dinner was included. If the water isn't drinkable, why wasn't there a complimentary bottle in the room? We only got one very small Easter chocolate for two guests. Dinner itself was below expectations. A very disappointing stay, and not what I'd expect from a four-star hotel.

Check-in took nearly an hour, and the reception staff came across as very rude and slow. Our room was just as frustrating: it looked like it hadn’t been updated since the 1990s, smelled strongly of smoke, had no soundproofing, and came with several other problems. My husband had booked in a hurry and picked the first room category without checking. When I asked to move to a renovated room, reception said none were available. I also saw staff smirking to each other in Italian, as if my dislike of the dated room amused them. After I kept asking and agreed to pay extra, we were finally moved to a renovated room.

My last morning left a bad memory of the vacation. I had paid for breakfast, but with an early flight I couldn't sit down to eat, so I only wanted to take one croissant for the road. The restaurant staff member told me very rudely that I wasn't allowed to take it out. I felt really uncomfortable and don't understand why taking a single croissant was forbidden when I couldn't use the breakfast I'd paid for. Sorry to end the trip on that note.