Le Chalet del Pollino

We left disappointed and never really felt welcome or able to relax. The handwritten rules in the lounge and our room, telling guests what not to do, came across as passive aggressive. Even though a guest kitchen was advertised, we were told it couldn’t be used, not even to make tea or coffee, unless we paid an extra daily fee. Breakfast was just one coffee, with another costing extra, plus a few inexpensive packet biscuits and cakes. The trouble started when the owner was annoyed that we’d booked online at a cheaper rate instead of booking directly, apparently because of the commission charged by the website. We’d also agreed before booking on a price per kWh to charge our electric car overnight, since the area is quite rural. At checkout, the owner insisted on almost double that amount. We had agreed beforehand that our dog could stay for an extra €10 per night, which was fine, but the owner’s dog wandered freely around the property and came into our room. After the dogs had a minor fight, we asked him to keep his large male dog away. It kept trying to get into our room, so we couldn’t relax on the balcony or in the common area either. Edit: the owner’s strange, all-caps, shouty reply, ranting that Italian people are better than British people, probably tells you all you need to know. There’s also a review where he was verbally abusive to an Italian guest for saying the bed felt a little hard to them (!).