Villa D'Citta has been placed among the “Top 10 US Bed and Breakfast Inns” by an affinity site, so if the B&B experience is an important part of your trip you may well treasure the place. The manager/hostess was gregarious and styles the place as homey, e.g. our guest experience began with a tour of the kitchen – well stocked with home-made nibbles and good-for-you drinks - to prepare us lest a sudden case of thirst or munchies threatened our well-being. Some or all the rooms are themed, and considerable effort has been taken with decoration and appointment. It’s all rather striking if a bit busy.
We on the other hand consider B&Bs to be small family-run basic hotels and look for a comfortable bed, functional bathroom, enough in-room space and necessities, and some peace and quiet before awarding stars for themed rooms and a welcoming kitchen. Villa D'Citta disappointed us.
We had booked this visit just the evening before, using our favorite on-line booking service. It warned that Villa D'Citta might charge the first two nights immediately and in any case those nights were non-refundable, so we were more than a bit disappointed to learn on arrival that the (now full) Villa had double-booked our room and our competitors had beat us to the threshold. (As well as the corollary, that booking.com's real-time availability isn't 100% dependable).
The Villa did have a back-up plan - a 'friend of the owner' was staying in a basement party room that could be used as a bedroom; did we want to evict him? They could have the room made up in an hour or so....
We thought it incredible that Villa D'Citta asked the question - had they really expected/hoped that we'd no-show a prepaid, no-refund room? - so I wasn't the most pleasant wanna-be guest. But moving would also have taken an hour or so, so we bought the plan.
In the event, we found the Villa as a hotel (in the basement party room at least) to be a weak three-star. A Murphy bed had been opened and made up for us and was comfortable for sleeping, but lacked amenities like lighting and a nightstand. In the corner by the door there was an open rod with hangers, but no place for clothes or luggage, nor a work desk.
And the bathroom was down the hall; by definition it wasn't shared, but nothing prevented a lost soul from coming downstairs to use it, so we couldn't leave our toiletries or wander around in anything less than ‘public’ attire. And early next morning we discovered that hard floors and well-heeled guests seeking refreshment put a finish to our hope for a restful morning.
On the meager plus side, the hostess was always pleasant, the wifi worked well, and we could have thrown a party for at least a dozen guests.
