Grand Hotel Faraglioni

“Best service”

After waiting 45 minutes at Mythos cafe which is next to the location of Faraglioni Hotel and where we did not get a chance even to taste our drinks in this time, it took also 45 minutes on the terrace of the hotel Faraglioni to order, drink and eat. Great service, very attentive staff. Thank yo... more

After waiting 45 minutes at Mythos cafe which is next to the location of Faraglioni Hotel and where we did not get a chance even to taste our drinks in this time, it took also 45 minutes on the terrace of the hotel Faraglioni to order, drink and eat. Great service, very attentive staff. Thank you!🙏🏻 You saved our day!😁

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“Amazing hotel- if not on tbe beaten track well worth a visit”

One of t he most welcoming hotels we have stayed in - visited for a family christening - staff were amazing - fantastic room with an out of this world sea view - coffee and pastries on gone Mormon and wine and savouries in tbe evening were exceptional l- so friendly stayed for 4 days and felt lik... more

One of t he most welcoming hotels we have stayed in - visited for a family christening - staff were amazing - fantastic room with an out of this world sea view - coffee and pastries on gone Mormon and wine and savouries in tbe evening were exceptional l- so friendly stayed for 4 days and felt like home - couldn’t recomend highly enough a4***** doesn’t do it justice - can’t wait to come back - stay here in a sea view room - you won’t be disappointed

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“Lovely hotel - highly recommended ”

We were delighted with the quality, comfort and service within the hotel, clearly the most prestigious in the area. The only downside was the closing of the sun terrace due to the fact it was the end of the season. Beyond this the hotel and restaurant were great, breakfast choices were very goo... more

We were delighted with the quality, comfort and service within the hotel, clearly the most prestigious in the area. The only downside was the closing of the sun terrace due to the fact it was the end of the season. Beyond this the hotel and restaurant were great, breakfast choices were very good. We ate at the restaurant one evening having a most excellent tasting menu.

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“Average at best.”

This is very average! We booked this hotel for a week and we realised afterwards that there was no pool despite one being shown in the photos. However, with a private beach and being by the sea this was not an issue we thought. On arrival we realised the private beach was not yet up so this was... more

This is very average! We booked this hotel for a week and we realised afterwards that there was no pool despite one being shown in the photos. However, with a private beach and being by the sea this was not an issue we thought. On arrival we realised the private beach was not yet up so this was not an option when we wanted to go swimming or spend time chilling comfortably by the sea. Sadly, it was impossible to get in the water by the hotel with no safe access across slippery rocks. Luckily we had a car so we ventured out every day visiting beautiful places and came across wonderful beaches. We would return in the evening which not quite the plan as we would have liked some down time by the sea before dinner but it was fantastic to see the island! The room we had was a superior room with a balcony - I had imagined we would sit and enjoy a drink from the mini bar overlooking the sea. The view was indeed amazing if you didn’t look down into the restaurant next door, but the balcony is tiny with standing room only for 2 people. The room had one desk chair so I guess we could have taken turns on that one as it would just about have fitted but again, not quite how we’d imagined it. As mentioned, our room was overlooking the next door bar/restaurant which is busy and they enjoy playing constant music throughout the day and late into the night. We had to call one night to ask how long this would go on for as we struggled to sleep around 1 am and to be fair, the music did go off shortly after. The room was made up nicely daily but it wasn’t cleaned. We had long dark hairs in the bathroom during the entire stay, and as I’m blonde and my husband balled they were not ours. The doors were dirty and could do with a clean which makes me believe this would probably go for other areas too. However, they did give us fresh towels every day, despite us hanging them to be used again. We could have complained but as I’d already called for the music, I didn’t and we just decided to spend as little time as possible in the room and kept our shoes on. The terrace bar is lovely when it’s open, great views and super kind staff but not really somewhere you can just sit and read a book without buying drinks. The cocktails are tasty and the food they serve with them plentiful. There is no sunset view as the sun disappears behind the hills, which is no issue but as they state there’s a sunset view, I thought I’d just clarify! We ate twice in the cafe so we could sit outside by the road which was lovely for a salad but don’t bother with a pizza! We didn’t try the restaurant as it was soulless and you had to sit inside which was not tempting. Besides, it was empty. Luckily the village is full of fantastic restaurants and only a stroll away along the seafront! The breakfast is served in a 4 star Michelin restaurant next door but don’t let that fool you! It is identical every morning and if you arrive after the American tour bus you could pick at the leftovers. The yogurts were delicious and the first day we had plenty to choose from, the last day there were 4 pots left - and we arrived as the first due to travelling home so we got lucky! The muesli was lovely and so were the fruits, the daily scrambled eggs with some roasted tomatoes tasty but less so by day 7. We didn’t try the bacon, nor the frankfurters and the boiled eggs were cold. The abundance of croissants and cakes with different fillings looked beautiful but we didn’t try them. The simple lemon drizzle cake was good and so was the coffee from the machine. The juices are all made from concentrate so we only tried a few glasses before giving up. The waiters were disinterested, didn’t refill half empty trays or stock up the display which made the buffet look very sad and uninviting unless you were the guest one there and they only spoke to ask for your room number. All of the above would easily have been forgiven, had we felt the hotel staff made an effort and realised we were there, or had we only stayed a night but we were there for 7 nights and it was early in the season… Apart from the bar staff and one male waiter in the café, no other staff bothered to acknowledge or engage with you. We were not looking for new friends but it would have been nice to feel welcomed when entering the hotel at the end of the day or acknowledged when leaving in the morning but no one spoke or made eye contact with you. There is no tourist information on offer and when asking for recommendations for local sights, they didn’t have many suggestions other than Catania which is a shame. We discovered a lido nearby on the last day which we wish we’d known about sooner, it was costly but worth it. We used google a lot - the WiFi is fast and reliable and suggestions on fb and trip advisor plentiful. We had a car which we enjoyed (especially when we learned to drive like the Sicilians and could relax a little, the initial chaos does make sense after a while!) but parking is an issue and you do worry about the car getting bumped in the night. - it didn’t though! There’s rarely parking near the hotel unless you get lucky but you can find parking in nearby streets. (At least there were spaces out of season) This is paid parking and once you work it out, it is cheap and pretty easy, but be prepared to walk to the hotel. The hotel does offer some parking somewhere for €10 a day. All in all, we fell in love with the village, the local restaurants and the views are pretty but we would only recommend an overnight stay at this hotel and don’t bother paying extra for a balcony unless you want it for drying your towels and beach shoes. Average at the best.

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