Hotel Villa Neri Resort & Spa

Has a lot of potential - amazing building in an awesome setting. Our experience was let down by below par service front of house given it is a 5 star resort (no specific complaints but I'm not surprised reading other reviews with larger fouls to report). I'd note that rooms on the ground floor that are supposed offer a view of etna actually offer a view of a high hedge.

We stayed here for four nights. Beautiful location on Etna with distant ocean views. The hotel seems very new with quality fittings and fast free WiFi. The superior rooms are spacious with a small balcony, outdoor table, chairs and chaise lounge. The bathroom is large and beautifully fitted however the shower stall is a bit of a squeeze for the larger player. An additional fee is charged for use of the "wet" area - indoor spa,sauna, steam room and water beds however it's well worth the 20 euro's. Wet area usage was included with our 50 minute couples massage which was awesome ! Outdoor pool use is included in the room charge. The included breakfast offers a broad selection fresh and cooked foods. The dining room is austere lacking atmosphere. Service and food quality very good and reasonably priced compared to Australia. Thoroughly recommended

Went for our honeymoon last October. The Hotel concierge were unfriendly and not very welcoming when we arrived. Felt we were being looked up and down with no warmth. They weren't very responsive when our aircon stopped working twice (2 days in a row) in the late evening. One person could fix it, the other had no idea, so we had to sleep with the windows wide open and the rain falling heavily. They just showed us their computer system to show it was 'on' so we had to bring them to the room to prove it wasn't. They couldnt provide us another room as they were fully booked. I mentioned this when we left (as they had asked us how our stay was) and the man just went silent and ignored my feedback...what's the point in asking your visitors if you're not going to respond??? The waiters and the Bellman on the other hand were very friendly and helpful and an asset to the hotel. The breakfast buffet had lots to choose from and was very good quality, they had their own made-on-site marmalade which was delicious. The evening meal was expensive, but very good quality - however not ideal if you're stranded there as they don't have much 'standard priced food' unless you eat in your room (we went when there was bad weather and it was too treacherous to drive down the mountain into the main town). I wouldn't recommend for a honeymoon as we just didn't get that service. I'm sure it's fine if it's just a usual holiday. The weather didn't help the experience for us - though this is not through fault of the hotel of course. Just be wary if you do go in the 'out of peak' months that it is not easy or that safe to get around.

When one goes to the highest category of five-star luxury hotel (meaning in the 5*L) one expects to be have the best service available. Let's start with the check-in. We arrived after a three-hour road trip only to be greeted by a 20min wait because there is only one receptionist in the entire hotel and she was attending a guest that claimed to be charged twice for something (I should have realized that this would be a sign of how my stay at the Villa Neri would go). After the wait, we went to our rooms only to find out that the spacious pictures you see on their website have little to do with the actual rooms you are given. Our room had two narrow beds which must be the smallest I have ever had in any five-star hotel I visited. And then they have the courage to brand the hotel as “The Luxury of Silence”… When we placed the reservation, we ensured that we booked a quiet hotel (for example, we did this in London and found the Halkin Hotel, which was magnificent… and quiet). Well, things are different at the Villa Neri, the Luxury of Silence. During our stay, we had two corporate events that took place at night and a wedding on the last day. Keep in mind that this is a small boutique hotel, so these events do disrupt your experience. Our request was for quiet hotels and, specifically, not close to elevators and restaurants. We made this request to all the other hotels. Guess what? One of our rooms was right next to the elevators and over the hotel kitchen… Then there is the service. Since we had the "pleasure" of having a corporate event coinciding with our stay it meant that the majority of the hotel staff was dedicated to it and the event had priority over the guests when it came to the use of the hotel facilities. To start off with, we were informed that the pool would close at 5:30pm to prepare for the event. We have two children and the hotel is secluded, what do you do when the main leisure activity is closed? Well, don't go to the spa because you will be charged for the common facilities. During our stay we also had a problem with our shower because of a faulty drainage system. We called reception informing that the bathroom had been flooded and I was told that maintenance would pass by. After 40min of nobody passing by, we call the reception to check on the issue but are informed that they are too busy checking in guests from the corporate event and can't attend our problem. The shower drainage was never fixed during the three days we stayed at Villa Neri. Another key issue is that it became evidently clear that the hotel is understaffed. The people that service it seem to be constantly working. All in all, Villa Neri was, by far, the worst of the five-star hotels we went to in Sicily (we went to three). It is a real shame because it is a beautiful hotel in a unique location but it simply cannot be compared to other luxury hotels of its category. More importantly, it misguides customers on its website both in the final quality of the rooms (try to find the pictures of the narrow beds on their site) and in the claim that it is the “luxury of silence”. It certainly was not silent with two corporate parties and a wedding. In my opinion, it seems to prioritizes profit over staffing or service and it is a letdown. The only positive remark is the restaurant which served fine gourmet food but you don't need to sleepover to experience it so, my recommendation is to save the money and go to other alternatives.

We spent two nights in this stunning spa resort, I wish we stayed longer. This place is incredibly beautiful & clean. Staff are very professional & super helpful. The spa is incredible & free to use for guests. The food is delicious & breakfast was served choice of indoor or outdoor and it was excellent. It was such an incredible experience watching Etna huff & puff while eating our yummy breakfast. Our room was stunning & the shower was double rain shower with waterfall shower head in the middle. Honestly Im not sure how to describe this place but if there was a 7 or 8 stars I would give it. Oh and the pool... Im pretty sure if we ever make it back to Sicily, we will definitely go back. Thank you for our memorable anniversary dinner & the front desk gentleman for helping us find our “Grande valigia rosa” which was missing in Palermo ;)

What a gorgeous hotel! Beautiful gardens, lovely pool and large rooms. The breakfast was delicious and plentiful. The shower was very small but the room over all very large so we weren’t too worried!

Hotel accepts bookings via booking and on their own website (which claims to reopen on 1 June - which is not true) and does not inform guests about this. So if you don't wanna arrive facing a closed hotel, don't book this place. Also, careful, they try to bait-and-switch to a cheaper hotel for the same price.

Villa Neri Resort and Spa … where to begin . It’s located in the heart of Vineyards so you can imagine the beauty. Our only down part was on arrival , the concierge guy was a bit too full of himself and lots of posing and that… then hot water was not working but as soon as I went to front desk they said they had a problem and it was dealt with and it was true . The rest of the stay was incredible, so relaxing. If you want to truly relax this is the place . By the pool reading a book and the only things you can hear is the pool water and birds . HEAVEN The bit of bad experience we had with the concierge guy was very well taken care of with the guy taking care of breakfast. This guys deserves 3 of my 5 stars seriously. He was there for everything, super polite and friendly. Breakfast was served outside, beautiful. Dinner at 12 Fontane … wow exquisite but drinks are seriously expensive Spa was awesome too I would definitely revisit without problem