A Due Passi dal Duomo B&B

A good location.

The location is truly excellent for visiting Ortigia, about 100 meters from both the cathedral and the Aretusa. There’s a welcoming pub downstairs and plenty of places nearby to eat, from pizza to pasta. I appreciated the air conditioning and how clean the property was. The place is very dated, though, and the roof has damp with peeling plaster, as shown in the photos. I also had repeated trouble with the bedroom lock. It took dozens of tries and odd tricks to find the key and lock it. The beds should be replaced too. They were extremely uncomfortable, and although I booked a double, I got two single beds pushed together with a 3-5 cm height difference. I was also unhappy with the payment. The website said the room would be charged a couple of days before the stay, and that cancellation was possible within 7-8 days of booking, but the money came off my card right after I booked. I’d ask the owner not to mislead people by selling one thing and providing another. Then today, after my stay, I got an email saying the card number I entered was invalid, even though I’d already paid more than 20 days ago. I don’t recommend this property because of the owner’s lack of professionalism in managing it. I would recommend another property where the same woman who cleaned my room works.

The room was damp and smelled that way, and it was very noisy. There was no breakfast, and at 8:30 a young woman kept knocking to clean the room. She was very kind and apologized several times, though. The arrival was a poor start too: I was asked to wait in the car while they found parking, then after about 40 minutes my travel companion came back with a map. Why not give it to me straight away? The toilet also leaked badly, which seemed especially wasteful in a region with a water shortage.

At least the place is close to the cathedral. Inside, though, the shower tray and showerhead were completely ruined, the glass under the mirror was cracked, and the light switch was missing, which felt dangerous. The front door and stairs were in poor shape, with broken steps and no lighting, so going up at night was risky. The owner had apparently never seen any of it, and I never got a receipt either.