Stayed at the Hotel Nettuno in Catania on the final leg of my Italian Oddysey. This place was definitely the best value for money hotel I stayed at in the whole of Italy, possibly because Sicily ‘s cheaper than the mainland generally. This is a luxury 4 star with all of the classic things you need for a great relaxing time – it’s right on the beach, which is a lovely stretch of coastline by the way, they have an outdoor swimming pool, though I didn’t go in (it was January), and the restaurant was top class too. The only downside is that the coast is a bit of a trek from the city centre – you really have to taxi it as public transport doesn’t really exist! Taxis for tourists in Catania cost 10 euros wherever you go – incredible isn’t it!?? So you have to choose whether you want a beach hotel or a city break, or pay for the best of both worlds.

We stayed at the Hotel Nettuno for 7 days in mid-September. We wanted somewhere in/close to Catania with a beach/pool. Overall we had a good stay and the staff do put in a lot of effort. There was a sense that this could be a really good hotel if they would just sort out a few things. I'll start with the good points. The hotel was clean, it has a decent sized pool, and it has access to a private 'beach'. The 'beach' is actually just decking on top of the rocks with steps going down into the sea. Sun loungers and towels are provided and there is a life guard. It is nice, although quite small and could probably only hold 20-25 people at any one time. The staff on the front desk were good and very helpful. The majority of them spoke decent English. The restaurant was good with views of Etna. Our room was an okay size with a balcony overlooking the sea. The decor was slightly dated, as was the TV but there was a Sky box and it had a good range of channels. The standard of cleaning was high, to the point of cleaning the hair out of hairbrushes! The area around the hotel has a small fairground (although it doesn't open until later at night), there were a few restaurants around it, a late night market selling all sorts of stuff, and a supermarket next door. Now the bad points - in no particular order. Firstly, there were a number of instances where attention to detail was poor. When we arrived the TV/Sky box in the room wasn't connected and there cables where all over the place. Once it was connected we had to get the remote control from reception - except they forgot to put batteries in it. We used the plastic cups in the room and the cleaners forgot to replace them. Nothing major but enough to be annoying and give you that sinking feeling when you need to speak to reception for the 3rd time in a day (although as noted above nothing was ever a problem to resolve). Secondly, the breakfast was pretty basic. The breakfast cereals were substitutes rather than brands and served in little tiny bowls. There was a very limited range of food, and once it was gone it was gone so you arrived late at your peril. It was surprising given that the restaurant was so good. Thirdly, if you want to use Catania as a base and travel around this is not the hotel for you. I've read in a couple of places it's 600m from the historic centre. I think they've missed out a zero. The train station is a good 30 minute walk away (10-15 Euro by taxi dependent on whether you have luggage), and the main centre of Catania is another 15-20 minute walk beyond that. You can reach one of the main shopping streets in about 15 minutes but it's nowhere near any of the sites. There is bus stop beside the hotel and one bus that runs all day until after 11pm (No. 534). The bus takes between 10 and 25 minutes depending on the traffic. It supposed to come every 20-25 minutes but we waited as long as 40 minues for it. In a typically relaxed Sicilian way you'll betold that the bus comes 'when it comes'. One other thing to mention is that it does promote itself as a business and conference hotel. While we stayed there were 3-4 weddings and several conferences. The main issue here is that the pool area and the reception area for weddings are connected so the wedding guests use the pool area. On one day we had to go through the wedding party (in our swimming costumes) to get to the pool.

Quelques jours en Sicile dans cet hôtel, très bien situé. La mer ionienne en face, très belle et grande piscine, chambres simples mais avec balcon (prenez celles avec vue mer et piscine). A quelques mètres, le bus 534 vous dépose en à peine dix minutes au centre ville (belle ville, ça vaut la peine d'y aller. De préférence tôt le matin - vers 8h. - ou le soir après 19h30 - car il y fait étouffant). Je disais donc que la piscine était des plus agréable, avec tonnelle, palmiers, fleurs....Notre chambre, bien qu'on l'ait signalé le premier jour, avait l'air conditionné qui fonctionnait perpétuellement sur 25°. On nous promettait tous les jours qu'on allait réparer, mais.......... Personnel de la réception très agréable.(surtout une jeune demoiselle cheveux noirs longs, et un charmant Monsieur parlant un français impeccable, ayant séjourné à Paris 3 ans et ayant travaillé à l'Opéra Garnier et au Châtelet). Préférez manger sur une terrasse à + ou - 200 mètres de l'hôtel (café de Paris) plutôt qu'à l'hôtel lui-même. Comme presque dans tous les hôtels dans les villes italiennes, à de rares exceptions près, quelles que soient les étoiles, le petit déjeuner, ce n'est pas ça! Surtout ici les couverts en inox qui dataient d'au moins...de dizaines d'années, et une des serveuses ainsi que le serveur, toujours très désagréablement de mauvaise humeur. A tel point que, le faisant remarquer au directeur, ce dernier m'a offert un cadeau pour compenser le mauvais service du petit déjeuner.....pas très copieux. Pour la situation, pour la piscine, pour les transats en paliers au bord de la mer, pour la vue, pour la décoration intérieure de l'hôtel, OUI OUI OUI OUI. Pour la nourriture, NON NON NON NON. Mais la Sicile, et Catania en particulier, c'est très, très beau. Quant à l'Etna, que dire? Bof!

Very nice room ambiance. Our room had dark wooden headpanel... which gave us a 'homey' feeling. Location (in-town) was alright... a grocery store just beside it. Might need to take a bus or drive to town (Catania). Mount Etna is close by (drive). Our room half-faced the sea, not much to see at night, but very pleasant in the morning hours. Price-wise - it was higher than we expected being in the winter. Breakfast was included, very hearty (as they usually are in Italian hotels).

We stayed here for a one night stopover in Catania. The room was very large compared to most European hotel rooms, would be comfortable for an extended stay. Our room had a nice view overlooking the swimming pool and the sea across the street. The hotel is north of the city center, about 30-45 minutes walking time to the main shopping areas and sightseeing. Taxi from the train station was E13,00 and taxi to the airport was about E50,00. Front desk staff were courteous and helpful, some spoke English.