Locanda Don Serafino in Ragusa Ibla, Sicily Date: May 2008 Reviewer: New York We paid the top rate and this is what we got--steep winding stairs with no elevator, dark room, and an unfriendly staff. Up a hard to find and extremely narrow street, Locanda Don Serafino has made an unsuccessful effort to transform itself into a modern upscale venue while maintaining its old world ambience. It has no elevator and the only access to the rooms in the main building is up a steep, narrow, curved staircase. For the physically fit it isn't a problem until you learn that the porter is not available until 11:00 AM and you're on your own at check out time. No problem, they'll direct you to an upper level door to the street where you'll find a self-service luggage cart. Just hope there aren't any cars coming up the street or that you don't lose your grip on the cart as the street slopes about 45 degrees. Our room (Number 6) also maintained its old world charm with access up 4 steps from the hallway and space for only one opened suitcase at a time. Our "junior suite" did have a second room up another, but narrower 4 steps where we could prop open our other suitcase on the couch that was in the middle of the room, adjacent to the bathtub. That's OK, the staff, with the exception of the porter who was only there when we arrived, made up for it all by being unfriendly and unhelpful.

Ragusa was the highlight of our trip to Sicily, and we very much enjoyed our stay at Locanda don Serafino. Judging from the prior reviews it sounds like perhaps there are a range of different-sized rooms, but we found our room to be quite spacious and had no complaints at all about the bathroom. We decided to skip dinner at the hotel's restaurant, however, due to the high prices, and we ended up finding a fabulous restaurant right in the middle of Ragusa called Ai Lumi Trattoria. I'd highly recommend that you stop for dinner there if you're staying in Ragusa. As a previous reviewer mentioned, this hotel would not be a good pick for elderly travelers or those with disabilities because of the steep, uneven stone staircase, but for anyone else I would highly recommend it.

We stayed here for 1 night on our honeymoon and were disappointed. The room was not like any of the ones on the website with a tiny shower. We asked to be moved to one of the rooms with rock features (the main reason we booked for the featured rooms) and were told that as we had booked through expedia they couldnt do this and we would have to contact expedia ourselves - not very practical abroad, and we were willing to pay a small supplement. Ragusa itself is nice town. We found the staff unwelcoming, and the breakfast was good however serving staff were unhelpful and reluctant to serve coffee etc. Wouldnt stay here again as its quite overpriced for what you receive.

I thought this hotel was way over rated and expensive for what it was. We have never stayed in such a small room. You actually opened the shower door, stepped into the shower turned left to get to the toliet. Very strange. Breakfast just fair. They took our car to a different street when we arrived, when we checked out they gave us the keys and we had to go find the car. I think they should have sent someone to bring it back.

The rooms were very nice, and breakfast was outstanding. The hotel also owns a four-star restaurant nearby at which we had a fabulous dinner. This was one of the best hotels we experienced on Sicily. We did have some difficulty finding the hotel, as Ragusa Ibla has incredibly narrow and winding streets. We suggest a lot of patience, as good a map as you can find, leaving the car to trace the route on foot if necessary, and calling the hotel for assistance. Ultimately they sent out a young man to guide us the last few blocks. It's not quite as daunting as we make it sound though. Also, be aware the rooms are located up a picturesque but very steep staircase, which may be difficult for older or disabled travelers.