B&B Casa Calenda

We spent 10 days here as a family, and I wouldn’t recommend it. We had booked the whole residence so we could all stay together, but from the first day the owner said another family had booked one room through Booking for two days, and we’d have to spread out among the rooms instead. Getting there by car was difficult. The villa sits at the top of a very narrow, steep climb that may be too much for some cars. The surrounding buildings and their condition also make the neighborhood unappealing. The listing photos don’t reflect the place as it is. Two bedrooms are in a BASEMENT that also serves as the family garage. Between them, a curtain hides the way up to the garage, with a treadmill in front of it. You can’t use the treadmill because it’s too close to the wall and its plug is faulty. The terrace is supposed to be a kind of luxury room, but without insulation it becomes a sauna and needs air conditioning. The air conditioning in the room facing the pool was impossible to control, blowing either freezing or hot air on whoever was directly underneath. And turning it on could cut power to the whole residence. At best, someone in the family had to reset the meter lever. At worst, you’d wait 20 minutes before the room devices worked again. That was one of the most frustrating parts of the holiday. The owner was sociable and nice, though at times she seemed intrusive and vindictive. Her cooking is very good, perhaps too salty for some, but I wouldn’t choose the fish meals because they weren’t as outstanding as she might have you believe. I call her vindictive because her son-in-law has a pizzeria about 90 meters from the villa. One night we turned down her offer of an appetizer, then our pizzeria order, worth about 60 euros, went up by 30 euros. It felt like a ridiculous scam. We also booked the whole place to stay together without problems. I wouldn’t make the same choice my family and I did.

Simona is such a rare kind of host, incredibly helpful and kind. I’m at a loss for words about her. And the garden, wow. You can tell everything has been arranged with so much love and care. Breakfast was great, too. They also have a small restaurant in Castelammare, about a five-minute drive from the apartment. The typical dishes were varied, tasty, and well priced. Great value for money, 100 *.

For the last three breakfasts they served us the same tart, and by day three it was simply inedible. The room for four was tiny and smelled damp, with a sewage smell from the bathroom. On our last day they wouldn’t let us use the pool because, apparently, they’d put chemicals in it. I’d been sitting there since 6 a.m. and nobody was at the pool. The children were very disappointed, as it was meant to be a day to relax there. The first impression had been very positive: a well-kept garden and a small swimming pool. The first two breakfasts were tasty as well. We rented a room with breakfast for five days. In general, I don’t recommend it.

Super hosts! We loved the place so much.