Hotel Tigullio

The best part of our stay was the owner's help on our last day. I hadn't realized we needed to arrange our train and airport transport ahead of time. With our flight from Milan at around 5 p.m., I assumed we'd take an express train from Chiavari to Milan and then head to the airport. When I spoke to the owner about checkout, he helped us book train tickets and a bus from Milan to the airport, and explained that getting there from Lavagna would take much longer than I'd thought, so we needed to leave early. It was Saturday evening, though, and none of the taxi drivers he called answered. No one wanted to work early Sunday, and there is no Uber in Lavagna. The owner ended up driving us himself from the hotel to another train station so we could catch the express train. He runs a family hotel and is busy managing it from early each morning, so he really didn't have to do that. His kindness is the thing I most want people to know about this hotel. The hotel is in a handy spot near the train station, beach, harbor, boats to nearby cities, and downtown. It also felt like a welcoming family place from the moment I checked in. The decor and little touches show care, and while the furnishings aren't fancy, they're clean and well kept. Our room and pillows smelled fresh. There's an elevator and individual air conditioning in the rooms, both useful features in summer, especially if you're new to traveling in Europe. Breakfast was another highlight. It's not a big hotel, but there was plenty to choose from: freshly made coffee, eggs cooked to order, salami, pastries, cereal, fruit, and drinks. They asked what we wanted to drink and made it on a professional barista machine. We could also see the eggs being prepared nearby. When the owner's wife saw my daughter at the table, she gave her beach toys to play with. Such a thoughtful gesture. As I recall, the staff speak French and English as well as Italian, which made communication easy and the trip more comfortable. The owner's family showed us so much care. This was one of our most welcoming travel experiences, and I'd gladly recommend the hotel to anyone visiting Lavagna.