Hotel Helvetia

The setting is lovely. Best hotel in town. Awesome view from restaurant and nicely decorated. Great location next to Bahia del Silenzo. However, that’s where it stops. The restaurant was terrible, avoid. Don’t understand other reviews. All our dishes were yuck. Highly recommend Portobello instead. Rooms are small which we knew but booked sea view and were given garden view but told it was sea view because you had a sliver of ocean view. When we complained and were given sea view but no balcony (the website shows only balconies), they threatened to remove us from the property. Horrible, misleading website and terrible attitude. So be VERY specific on what you want. Ask for bay view with balcony. They’re the best thing in town owned by a family so they have lots of attitude. They scolded us when we were late for an outside dinner reservation, seriously?! Pool is freezing cold and loungers have no view and there are lots of flies. Beach area is tiny and packed. Bathrooms are very narrow as it’s old property. Overall, best bet when visiting Cinque Terre but max for 2 nights. Won’t return but would recommend for Cinque Terre if you’re very specific and don’t put up with their terrible attitude.

We had a wonderful stay at this beautiful hotel in Sestri Levante. On arrival, they picked us up at the train station, and offered us free welcome drinks in the restaurant while they carried our luggage to the room. We stayed in a junior suite with sea view, with extra beds for the kids. The view from our balcony overlooking the Bay of Silence was breathtaking! Breakfast was delicious. Beautiful pool area and garden. The location, stunning views and lovely staff members made our vacation perfect. 5 stars!

I stayed here for two nights at the end of May this is a little slice of paradise. Family owned, beautiful light room overlooking the Bay of silence. Great service and an incredible breakfast. Ideal for a group of friends. This is what good hospitality should look like everywhere

Top experience! Fantastic hotel and TOP RESTAURANT! This hotel is possibly in the best location: view on Sestri is amazing, close to the best you could wish for: incredible see, awesome nature, perfect terrace and perfect staff. Their restaurant is just incredible! Chef Mancini is a young local talent that shines for his vision and commitment to Perfection of Italian Dining/ which means the highest of them all. Selection of superb ingredients, flawless presentation, outstanding desserts, excellent wine list are the base of an exceptional experience! Together with the Metre and all the other staff members, you will touch heaven. Thanks Helvetia!

Beautiful hotel in a perfect location in Sestri Levante and the area which allowed you to visit both Portofino, Cinque Terre and other towns in between. Rooms were absolutely beautiful, tastefully decorated and spotlessly clean. We were very appreciative of our room upgrade. Aperitivo in the evenings was a little on the expensive side and we would have liked a greater buffet breakfast offering. Overall we loved our stay

Location Superb. Sestri Levante is a wonderful town; the Baia del Silenzio is unique and the hotel has wonderful views across the bay and beyond. The hotel is in a commanding but secluded position. Environment and ambience This is a small, boutique hotel that has much charm. At times it feels like being in your own personal villa. The foyer and lounge are tasteful and perfect for relaxation; there are places within the garden to sit and enjoy the views of the stunning bay. Pools and sunbathing areas There are two small pools which are excellent for plunging and cooling off during the day. These are lit up at night and can be used at any time of the day. For older residents, these would be more comfortable if they were slightly heated, even during the hot summer months. There are two areas in which sun loungers are available: a small garden above the pools and the hotel roof-top. We found the latter to be excellent as it had partly covered areas and we were the only residents using it on many occasions. An area of the beach is also cordoned off for hotel guest, with sun-loungers provided. We decided not to use this area as it wasn't as enticing as the relaxation areas within the hotel grounds. Restaurants and bars The main restaurant is also used as a breakfast area. This also has superb views of the bay, there is plenty of room between the tables and the ambience is one of quality and class. The hotel roof top also has a bar which is open from around 5pm until midnight. Again, this is a classy environment. Breakfast provision is through a combination of buffet and cooked/prepared to order. The dishes are of very good quality, although a more extensive choice of foods within the buffet would have been welcome. We ate at the restaurant on one evening and had a very enjoyable meal with excellent service to match. The provision of a greater choice of vegetarian dishes and light meals would have been welcome by ourselves. The hotel also has a cafe bar across the road from the main building. We had some drinks in this area close to the water, but found it not be in-keeping with the quality service and food offered at the hotel itself. Service Undoubtedly, this was the highlight of our stay. Every member of staff we encountered was service orientated, polite and catered for our needs throughout our stay. Generally, they were delightful. Rooms When considering the relationship between room rate and quality, we found the initial room that we were allocated for our 7 night stay to be rather underwhelming. However, our request for a more suitable room were taken seriously and we were given the option of moving to a junior suite after 2 night. In my view, how a hotel's staff responds to a request such as this is indicative of how seriously they take their guests' comfort. To sum up, the Helvetia is a high quality boutique hotel offering excellent service to its guests. To improve the provision even further, it might consider extending its food of