Hotel Nel Pineto

The beach was lovely, with fine sand and clean water, and the beach club was well kept, spacious between umbrellas, and managed by Samuel. Our room was roomy and had a beautiful sea view, though the rooms facing Via Brandano were noisy, especially early in the morning when garbage trucks came by. There were too few outlets, just one in the room and one in the bathroom, and the small pool seemed neglected. I didn't see anyone clean it during our week. There was a gecko in it when I arrived last Saturday, and it was still there when I left today. Hardly anyone seemed to use the pool. Some entertainment at the hotel or beach club might help liven things up. I gave the week at Hotel Pineto three stars after weighing the good and bad. It's a quiet, old-fashioned place that feels almost like home, in an excellent location. The food is simple and genuine. Breakfast service struggled when the cappuccino and coffee machines broke. Guests were left to manage the manual machine, and the blonde woman with glasses grumbled if someone got it wrong, though we're not baristas. They also turned down the offer to make coffee at the bar or have a hotel staff member help with the machine. Lunch and dinner service could be organized better, with tables divided clearly among the waiters, and perhaps more staff. Side dishes often arrived after we'd finished the main course. The waiters, especially the one with a goatee and the girl, worked hard, but too few staff and poor organization made their jobs harder. The food quality was good, though I'd have liked more menu choices. The week was relaxing and rejuvenating, and if I vacation in the area again, Hotel Pineto will be my choice.

It's a quiet, pleasant hotel with a terrace pool, and you can borrow bikes for free to explore. The beach is an easy walk away. Food is homemade and tasty, though there's not much choice. Seafood is usually available at lunch, and dinner is lighter but still enough. Everything was good.

We expected much more, but this place was a huge disappointment. The pool looked clear in the photos, but in person it was black inside and covered in built-up dirt. There was no minibar in the room, either, just a small one at reception shared by all the guests. The room was very basic. The food was poor. Pasta was always overcooked and bland, with ready-made sauces. Main courses were passable, except the caprese salad, which came with dried-out mozzarella and rotten tomatoes. Reception staff were kind and helpful, but some of the dining room waiters, around three or four of them, were rude, slow, and unfriendly when we asked for anything. Housekeeping didn't clean the rooms, and they left them and the sheets dirty. We had to ask for the sheets to be changed, and that happened just once in two weeks. Towels were changed every other day, which was fine, but when we left a stained one on the floor, they folded it and put it away. Disgusting. There's also very little nearby. For bars or ice cream shops, you have to walk almost the whole seafront, at least 4 km. This place didn't live up to the photos or our expectations, and I absolutely wouldn't recommend it.

Don't be fooled by the price. The rooms were dirty, smelled bad, and had ants all over. Breakfast was lousy, and the reception and dining room staff seemed incompetent. The pool couldn't be used in June, during peak season. A terrible stay, and one I wouldn't repeat.