Hotel Villaggio Stromboli

Wonderful hotel right on the beach. Incredible views. Has a restaurant and pool although you must pay for the pool and wear a cap. A swim in the sea in front of the hotel and you look right back on Stromboli volcano with its Smokey top. Very much enjoyed our stay.

Not to be confused with the hotel in Calabria with the same name, this is the Villaggio Stromboli on the island of Stromboli. I spent a week here with a group on an organised trip. I gather the hotel is popular with group bookings e.g .schools and tour parties. I had pre-arranged a pick up from the port (cost 3 Euros) in one of the hotel's Ape (tuktuk) or golf cart vehicles. Stromboli Village feels surprisingly large when walking in the heat, so this was a good move. The hotel is a veritable maze of passageways, courtyards, white painted buildings, terraces (including many with fine views across the sea to Strombolicchio) and staircases. Even after a week I'm still not sure I have a mental map of the Villaggio! There are lots of flowers in planters and shaded areas on the roof for relaxing (which we used for our group activities). One of the staircases leads down to the hotel's little black sand beach area (watch out for jellyfish close to shore!) The hotel has a bar and restaurant, (though the lowest level covered bar seating area was not as pleasantly atmospheric as the higher terraces) and a separate dining room where breakfast was served (and dinners for groups like mine). I stayed in room 32 (not a sea view room). My initial impression of the room was rather basic and monastic (the crucifix about the iron bedstead didn't help with the latter). While there was a wardrobe, the dresser/desk had the tiniest of drawers (no use for storing clothes), and the fridge wasn't cold enough to be useful. There was a ceiling fan and proper aircon. I didn't watch the TV (attached to the wall literally just below the ceiling!) Bathroom ok not swanky. (A refurb would not seem premature, espeically the shower cubicle). Breakfast was nothing special, although there was at least an egg-boiler gadget (possibly a concession to the German visitors with whom the hotel is popular, as I've first encountered the DIY boiled egg thing in German hotels). Ask the staff to make you a cappucino and it will be better than the one from the push button machine. Orange juice was the usual blood orange coloured carton juice. I tended to stick to the yoghurt and muesli (though you could have croissants, toast, cheese or ham, and a couple of cakey/tarty Italian dessert-at-breakfast options. Our group deal included dinner every day - 2 courses, generally a pasta, risotto or hearty (e.g. bean and pasta) soup, followed by a fish or meat option (fish being the better bet), vegetarian option and sides. The pasta/risotto/soup starters were definitely better than the mains, and a few of us said we'd have just been happy with these. Irritatingly the sides were often brought long before the main dish, so I was left with the dilemma as to whether to eat e.g. my potatoes or spinach as soon as they arrived (while they might be hot) or wait for my fish (by which time they were cold). Catering for special dietary requirements of members of our group (e.g. vegans or those ne

Très bel hôtel confortable, très bien situé, calme. Chambre 17 face à la mer. Piscine. 2 jours suffisent, l'île étant très petite. Seul le petit-déjeuner n'est pas à la hauteur: pains et confitures de base, café instantané pour café long, jus de fruits industriels.