My nine year old sons and I have just spent the past two nights at Hotel Tornese, Marina di Cecina, Italy. Unless you want your visit to a perfectly charming, Tuscan coastline village ruined by your hotel stay, DO NOT BOOK INTO THIS HOTEL!
When we arrived to check in, there were two ladies at the front desk, deeply engrossed in personal conversation. After I stood in front of them for at least five minutes, they turned their attention to me with a shared look as if I had just drowned their puppy. That should have been my warning. They were brusque and totally devoid of smiles, greetings, pleases or welcomes. I speak Italian, but that did not gain me any favors. During our two night stay, I dealt with six members of the staff. There was not a smile to be had amongst them.
After that experience, we found our room. It could not have been more unlike the photos on the hotel's website. Every photo on their site shows clean, modern rooms, most with balconies overlooking the sea. We had a tiny, dingy room with an obstructed view of the parking lot. Their website is completely deceiving. From the outside of the building, there could only be two out of the forty-two rooms that might resemble the photos. There was scarcely room to walk around the beds in our "deluxe triple". The bathroom was old, moldy and the shower rod fell down each time we used it. I asked to be moved to a room that somewhat resembled their website and they told me they were fully-booked.
But I have yet to mention the real problems! We chose this hotel because of the sea views (not available), the free internet in the rooms and the air conditioning (and because it is rated #1 in Cecina on TripAdvisor--come on gang, let's be a bit more discriminating!).
The internet did not work at all the first day. I telephoned the front desk several times and made as many visits. The rude staff simply stated that I did not know what I am doing.......Finally, 24 hours into our stay, the manager informed me that the hotel's password had been changed and that I had been given the wrong one. No apologies. Even then, the WiFi connection dropped out every five minutes or so......
Then, there is the LACK of air conditioning. Our room was so hot the first night, not one of us could sleep. The next morning, as we headed out for the day, I pleaded for a technician to check our room's air conditioner (individual units but controlled at the front desk). When we returned to the room on our second afternoon, it was still sweltering. With another trip to the front desk, I convinced the manager to come with me to the room. He entered and pronounced that the room was perfectly normal and was no more than 21 degrees centigrade. He then said he would send his technician with a thermometer to prove me wrong! Charming. The technician arrived about an hour later and the thermometer showed 30 degrees. The technician dragged in a ladder and proceeded to dismantle the unit. He was a "guest" in our room for the next two hours with no regard for the inconvenience to us. My sons missed their much needed nap and we all missed our dinner reservation (I wasn't going to leave this man alone in our room).
This morning, we were anxious to check out. I remarked to the unsmiling lady that the technician had imposed upon us for two hours but did fix the air conditioning, proving that we were without air conditioning the first night. She declared that this was simply "impossible" and dismissed me completely. I then pointed out the problems with the internet and even the electronic gate to the paid parking. The manager joined her at this point to argue with me some more!!
I paid for the stay that defined "miserable" and vowed that I would warn fellow travelers against this unpleasant, unprofessional, third-rate hotel. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!