Hotel Désirée by Double Hospitality

Our room was dated, and one corner smelled like pee, though we made it work. Our friends had a more modern room, but its shower was poorly designed: the drain was too slow and the floor didn’t slope enough, so water flooded their room. At checkout, when we mentioned the problems after being asked about our stay, all we got was “oh I’m sorry,” with no follow-up. The bigger problem was the return shuttle from Grifo Parking. The hotel had warned us by email that driving to the hotel meant narrow streets, lots of pedestrians, and limited opening hours. Grifo Parking, booked by the hotel for 20 euro, seemed like a good alternative: parking outside the old town with a shuttle to and from the hotel. We followed the hotel’s instructions exactly, parked without trouble, and took the shuttle in. We were told to arrange the return shuttle at reception the night before. Since we had a flight the next day, we first asked Grifo Parking whether we could book a time directly. They said the only remaining slot was much too late for our flight. We declined and went to the hotel, hoping it had access to more times. Check-in was fine. Afterward, we asked reception to book our return as instructed. The receptionist wrote down our preferred time and called, but there were still no slots. We asked for help because we had a flight to catch. He was condescending and even mocking. He wouldn’t accept that the hotel hadn’t properly told us to book a return shuttle, and kept repeating that we’d already asked Grifo Parking, as if asking him too, as the hotel had instructed, was wrong. When we asked if the hotel could arrange another option, he said, “this is a 3 star not a 5 star hotel”. He also said Grifo Parking provided a “gratis” shuttle and we shouldn’t expect it, although Grifo clearly says the shuttle is included. Then he told us, “you are young, you can walk”. So we walked the 20 minutes to the lot with our luggage. It was doable, but not what we expected after booking and paying for a shuttle service, especially with a hotel that seemed uninterested in helping. At the lot we saw unused shuttles and a driver milling about. Maybe we could have booked a return ride if the hotel had tried to help instead of mocking us. A notice at reception offered a 5 euro voucher in exchange for 5 star Google reviews, which we won’t be getting. I’ve seen other reviews describing a similar pattern, where nothing seems to be the hotel’s responsibility. Perhaps readers can help by taking their business elsewhere.

The hotel sits a little away from the busy tourist streets, so it was really quiet. The lake view is beautiful, breakfast was good, and the staff were very friendly. We had an amazing stay!

The pool area was nice, and the hotel is in a quiet part of town. It’s a 5-10 minute walk to the beach and city center. Our room was clean and pleasant, though it’s starting to look worn and old. The staff were welcoming and friendly, and breakfast was okay. You can park outside the hotel, but getting there means driving through the old town’s very narrow, crowded streets.

The scenery is gorgeous, but I wouldn’t stay here again. We booked through booking.com and, for a three star hotel, I’d give it two stars. Our room had several problems: the TV didn’t work and the main light kept flickering. The people in the room next door, more than five in one room, were noisy past midnight. We reported this to reception three times. Nothing changed, and the staff just smiled and said sorry 🤷🏼‍♀️, which didn’t improve our stay. The next morning’s breakfast was stale and tasted like leftovers from the day before.