linkedin.comGreat trip, a few issues
We had a small glitch in our train station pick up and Travelive was very helpful to resolve our error. The tour guides were each knowledgeable, professional and friendly. We especially enjoyed our guide at the colosseum "Giovanna" and our driver/guide for San Gigimingiano "Candida". Drivers were all very good, especially on those skinny curvy roads! The hotels in Rome and Sorrento were both wonderful. The staff was exceptional in both hotel locations and we were very pleased with those stays.
A few of the things we were not as pleased with, our April 28th evening anniversary dinner. Travelive was supposed to make a dinner reservation for that evening at Il Chianti. When we reviewed the itinerary the week prior to departure we let you know it was not on the calendar. It appears they corrected the itinerary and listed the reservation for 4:00pm (we requested 5:00), but they did not make the reservation with the restaurant. As you can imagine, it was disappointing to arrive for our special dinner and be told we did not have a reservation. The hostess showed us the reservations listings and we were not on it. They were kind enough to accomodate us after a wait. This was the only dinner reservation we requested and it is disheartening that they would mess it up given the importance to us.
La Collegiata hotel was not a 4 star hotel. The room was very dark (a tiny little window in the corner of the room and tiny little bed table lamps), musty and uninviting with concrete steps leading to a bathroom. The exterior and gardens are beautiful. Tissues in a hotel room are standard (and they don't have any). Breakfast is not served until 8:00am. That makes things difficult for 8:30 tours and departures. There isn't even a place on site to get coffee prior to 8:00am. The pool and hot tub open at 9:00am and close at 7:00pm. Arriving back to the hotel at 6:00-6:30 renders those amenities useless. The one time we could use the hot tub, opening the lid revealed debris and a floating band aid. The "gym" is in a dark windowless underground cellar. Equipment is dirty and broken. The staff was not friendly with the exception of "Stefano" who appears to do just about everything to compensate for the other staff members. The onsite restaurant is seasonal and was closed during our visit (this location is remote so had we known this we would have declined this property). There was a small and very limited "bar" menu to order from and we ate at a small coffee table holding our dishes since we were not allowed to use the dining room and it was raining so we could not sit outside. Although the food was ok,it seemed very odd that the guests were not permitted to sit and eat in the dining room.
We question why La Collegiata hotel was selected in the first place since it required a 2-3 hour drive to visit Montepulcino and other towns on our tour list. Seems a hotel between San giamingano and Montelpulcino like one in Siena would have made more sense. A 9 hour day we spent a huge portion in the vehicle on that day riding from the hotel to destinations and back to the hotel. There was also a miscommunication via our driver who told us we would be having lunch at our final winery tour stop. That was not the case. Had we not been told that, we would have eaten during one of our visits to the towns.
