Hotel Il Nido

A bad experience, very pedantic and rude staff. Not even help carrying our suitcases to the rooms, just a sloppy good morning greeting. My partner and I wanted to visit the Cinque Terre and didn't even want to give you any information. Furthermore, they also make you pay for the air you breathe, for example with the ferocious heat that only made two measly bottles of water, then you had to pay for everything. We will never return and we will give you a terrible review to all our acquaintances and friends, learn to be more welcoming to tourists.

The hotel is located very nicely just at the coast, with a tiny beach, and close to the town of Tellaro. A boat brings you from this town over the bay to Lerici, and further to La Spezia, or other towns along the coast. The hotel has parking, and a really lovely breakfast with a great view. The room had a good size, as did the bathroom. All in all we really enjoyed our stay.

I felt compelled to write a review so that other families are not treated this way. Upon arriving I could tell the lady behind the desk was not the friendliest and immediately had us signing paperwork and paying a $200 deposit “in case we break anything”—ok… there was no welcome, no smile—we were given no information to get to our apartment but after some hunting we eventually found it. The main problem was that there was a misunderstanding about a cot I requested for my child—which they interpreted as a crib for a baby. I wasn’t thrilled with a pack and play but since my 8 year old boy is the size of a 5/6 year old he fit great and I did not complain. He slept great! The next day when we returned to the room, I found they took the pack and play. A different but similarly sour front desk lady acted like she didn’t speak English to my husband but became very proficient with me. I went downstairs to have this lady yell at me that I had asked for a crib for a baby and that they took the pack and play out because my son was 8. I explained that I never indicated I had a baby. Why didn’t they take it out the pack and play the night before if it was a problem for my son to sleep in it? Why without telling me the next day? Where is he supposed to sleep now? She could care less—“just squeeze in with the others” she said. Her mission was to make sure I was wrong about absolutely everything and that she was right no matter what instead of acknowledging a misunderstanding. A truly unhappy woman that should not deal with customers ever. I decided to forget this experience and enjoy the beach with my kids later that day—and then the other sour woman chased me down the stairs with a highlighted paper indicating the ages for cribs. Totally unhelpful as it had nothing to do with the misunderstanding—I didn’t see any request for childrens ages at booking and did not did not see any of the information she showed me online! The out of date paper she showed me indicated free breakfast too—also not the case anymore so you can see how clear their information is. I have asked for extra beds/ cots at many hotels and agriturismos and never had this problem. I couldn’t believe this lady chased me down to the beach in front of my kids (incredibly inappropriate) to try to prove something—it was pointless and I just told her I wasn’t getting into an argument with them again! I have no desire to continue arguing on what is supposed to be a vacation. The last weird thing they did was physically check the room while we were still there to get our deposit back. I have to say the only saving graces were the sweet bartender, the nice beach and kayaks and kind housekeeping. This review will surely mean nothing to them as they will continue full of tourists and I’m sure the response will be ugly as you can see in past reviews. But if you care at all about kindness, customer service, understanding or friendliness—it will not be found at this hotels front desk.