Royal Hotel Sanremo

The room didn't offer much comfort or privacy. We could hear the corridor and the neighboring room clearly, even conversations from their bathroom. The air conditioning was hard to figure out, with lots of buttons and lights but no clear way to change the settings. We also weren't shown to our room or given a proper welcome, just handed keys and pointed to the elevator. As a result, if anything had been put in the room for the birthday, we wouldn't have known. There was no birthday gesture there, either. We appreciated the small gift at checkout, but it came at the end and no one mentioned the occasion. At check-in, no one asked whether we were LHW members, which is usually part of the welcome at member hotels. We had high hopes for this trip and had hoped my partner's birthday would be recognized. The experience fell short, especially for a five-star hotel and a Leading Hotels of the World member. We do want to thank the spa manager for her professionalism and enthusiasm. My partner and I both work for five-star hotels, one belonging to LHW and the other to Relais & Châteaux. We're sharing this feedback in the hope it helps improve future stays.

The breakfast room, with its glass flowers and chandeliers, is lovely. I usually choose to sit outside, though I really enjoy that room too. Breakfast itself is wonderful, and evening drinks outside came with service that was hard to beat. This is my favorite hotel in the world. Our deluxe room faced the sea and was just lovely, and the service may be the best I've experienced. The pool uses seawater and looks out over the beaches. Ask the staff at pool check-in for a towel, chair and umbrella. The hotel also has an arrangement with a beach nearby: for 40 euros, you get a chair, umbrella, towel and changing room with storage for the day. Great restaurants are a short walk away, and the old town is a pleasant stroll through narrow lanes that feel like a step back to medieval times. The hotel itself feels like a palace, and you're treated like royalty.

The staff were really nice, and the breakfast buffet was quite good. But sitting outside meant leaving the table for even a moment brought dozens of pigeons over. I love birds, but there are far too many here. The poolside chaise lounges were old and completely stained, which made it seem like maintenance was lacking. The beach bar was also really expensive: cocktails were 25 euros there, compared with 6-15 euros in central Sanremo, where they were better quality. The room was another problem. The walls seemed paper thin, so we could hear everyone and everything. In the morning, footsteps in the corridor made the door shake while people headed to breakfast, and we had to wedge tissue paper in to stop it. We'd asked for a quieter room because we'd read about the noise, yet got a noisy one right by the elevator.

The hotel was absolutely amazing, and the staff were very friendly. The rest was excellent, five stars. My complaints are the high prices at the pool and the lack of draft beer. Fifteen euros for a bottled beer just isn't okay.