72 Hours at the Hotel Il Pellicano
First of all I have to admit: the Il Pellicano is on every luxury taveler's top list. So of course I had certain (high) expectations and of course I was preparing myself for the stay by reading some reviews of recent guests on tripadvisor. Due to the fact that a very bad review of 2014 showed up, I immediately contacted the hotel not to get a room in a cottage.
As mentioned on the previous post, we were staying in the luxurious, yet more romantic, Il Salviatino above the majestic city Florence - by the way my favourite place in Italy! After a two hours drive through the Chianti and Maremma regions we finally ended up driving a winding country road from the unspectacular Porto Ercole to the amazingly located Il Pellicano. The iron gates opened and we entered a very different world. A very nice lady greeted us, checked us in and offered a glass of ice tea. After a few minutes, one golf cart finally arrived and brought us to our cottage (Right, I did NOT get a room in the main building!!!).
The room was really really small for a beach resort and also very dark. The only highlight of our room itself was the very huge garden and the half meters of sea view. Inside the bathroom, the smallest and narrowest I have experienced all summer long (where I mainly stayed at Leading Hotels) there was a shower without any glass door nor a curtain. It might look nice but after using it, the whole floor was under water and the toilet was full of water, too! The bathroom toiletries were quite nice, but remember more like medicine than a fresh summer breeze. Also the wardrobe made a very used impression and did not invite us to put our things inside. I would have wished to find a welcome present like a wine or something like that.
We really appreciated the fact that all soft drinks and snacks from the minibar were free of charge, they refilled it every day and the products were of high quality and very generously filled. They have excellent lemonades, chips, nuts and chocolate. I also feel that the housekeeping does a good job and they are very correct, towels and amenities have been replaced twice a day. We had also a loggia next to the garden with two chairs and a table as well as two sun beds in the garden. We were really spoilt by the excellent beds of Il Salviatino, so we did not like the pillows and the sheets of Il Pellicano. In my opinion they should offer a pillow menu or duvet sheets!
On the first morning we all got surprised when we wanted to have breakfast. The whole terrace was full and we had to wait 15 minutes. It was no problem at all because they served capuccino and we could have had the possibility to eat inside. Personally, the buffet was of high quality (except the Mozzarella), the omlettes excellent and the service very kind and attentive.
After breakfast we were ready to discover the resort and its facilities. One highlight was the beach with complimentary refreshments twice a day and excellent cocktails. The sun beds are quite comfortable and the staff was also very helpful. When we experienced that the entrance to the beach costs 95 Euros per Person for non-hotel guests we were quite shoked. If you think that the most famous beach in Europe, the Monte Carlo Beach, charges 100 Euros per Person/Day, then you might know that this hotel is likely to overcharge you.
When the sun was gone, we visited the pool. They have a generously sized salt water pool with breath-taking views of the Mediterranean Sea. They have towel service and lifeguards as well. In addition to these facilities we tried the hairdresser in the Spa. He was very efficient, but again 50 Euros for just 30 minutes is simply overpriced. The gym is on the small side but therefore equiptment is by TechnoGym.
We also had dinner in the PelliGrill Restaurant one day. The experience was very good and the food delicious as it should be for this kind of restaurant. We had a very special wine from Giglio in addition to excellent Octopus Salad and Lemon Risotto. The service could have been a bit more attentive but otherwise this experience was worth its price. When we did not dine in the hotel we got excellent restaurant recommendations by Alessia (She was wonderful and so kind, like the lady who spoke German - sorry for forgetting the name)!
In fact it is a elegant seaside hotel with an elderly aged clientele and high prices but high class service, well maintained rooms and suites as well as a excellent location for everyone seeking for nature and remoteness. Don't expect Porto Ercole to be like Portofino - it is a silent place.
I can rate this hotel with only 7,5 points out of 10 because I find it very rude, not to accept guest requests and furthermore it is inexcusable to offer such a room for a standard rate of 790 Euros per night in high season.
We would like to thank Kiwi Collection (kiwicollection.com) for providing us with such a special price. The Hotel Il Pellicano has not sponsored this review in any way. Our above written review is our personal opinion and hasn't been influenced.
