Hotel Dimora Fornillo

November turned out to be the perfect time for us to visit Positano. We were among the last guests of the season. Days were warm but not hot, and nights got a little chilly. With all the uphill and downhill stair climbing, I’d prefer temperatures around the mid 50s to high 60s Fahrenheit, or 12-20 Celsius. We loved breakfast on the patio each morning, with its beautiful view. It was accommodating for my diet: soy milk cappuccino, eggs, cornetto, fresh fruit, juice, salami, ham, and cheese. There were more choices on the menu, too. By the time we finished eating, our room would magically be cleaned by a ninja. The staff and owner were so kind and helpful. Franco at reception always had an answer, and Vincenzo took great care of the property and guests. His family built it over 300 years ago, then helped expand and maintain it. He’d wander around the patio checking that guests were comfortable, looking after the plants, including the lemon tree, and planning hotel repairs and needs. We enjoyed hearing a little about Positano’s history from him. The hotel is a bit of a hike from the boats, though all of Positano is. There’s a private beach entrance, and towels are available on request, but we didn’t try that option because we had other adventures planned. Porters can help with luggage for what I believe is €10 per bag, but we were too stubborn and carried everything ourselves. We enjoyed our stay so much that my husband is planning to book again next year.

The view from breakfast was amazing, though the menu was quite limited. Our room was spacious and mostly clean, and the terrace was clean too, but there were lots of fruit flies, a couple of spiders, and webs on the ceiling. The room, view, and staff were wonderful. When we arrived, we were told there were 150 stairs down to our room, and those stairs also lead back up to the main road. You have to get used to them for meals out, and there are even more steps down to the beach.

The view was breathtaking and the rooms were immaculate. A young man at the front desk gave us wonderful A+ service and seemed to be available for anything at any time. He handled reception, made coffee, served breakfast, bartended, cleaned, and recommended great restaurants. Does this guy do anything else? Thank you for a fantastic stay!

The view was the one good thing about this hotel. Our room wasn’t clean: there were bugs inside the lamps, as if they hadn’t been cleaned in a long time. The chair was dirty, with what looked like a spill left on it, and the bed frame had uncleaned spots. Worst of all, the shower drain didn’t work, so water wouldn’t go down. We told the owner, who came to the room and poured some chemical into the drain, but that didn’t solve it. We called and spoke with hotel staff about the problem several times because showering with a clogged drain was impossible, and got nowhere. At checkout we raised it with the owner again, and he didn’t even apologize. He said we had to wait for the water to pass through, even though the whole shower base filled up after 30 seconds with the water running. We paid around 750 euros for two nights and this was the cleanliness and customer service we got. The hotel description on hotels.com also understated how many steps it takes to get there. That makes it very hard to reach, and feels like a scam to get you to book. Avoid this hotel and do yourself a favor!