Hotel Corte Rosada Affiliated by Melia

"I was after a relaxing beach holiday at the end of nearly six years of studying whilst working, and this was pretty much the perfect place for it. There’s a lovely pool and a small private beach (which I’ll take over a pool any day) with sunbeds and beach towels at no extra cost. The beach and hotel sit in a large sheltered bay which meant that, although the north west wind prevails, the sea was never choppy. The sea here is shallow and quite rocky, but it’s easy enough to get into the water via the hotel’s little pier, and the shallow water meant that locally it warmed up enough to swim comfortably though it was very early in the season. We chose to pay a bit extra for a superior room with balcony and sea view. Very comfy bed, decent bathroom, amazing views of the sunset every night from the balcony which overlooked the pool and beach. We had a little fridge for keeping our wine, water, fruit and cheese chilled (purchased from a rather nice little shop in village, just up the road). The room was cleaned to a high standard every day including Sunday, by the same lovely lady. We booked on a b&b basis, and we ate in the hotel restaurant three out of our seven nights there. Breakfast was continental in flavour, with loads of choice and all very fresh and abundant. The food in the restaurant was good, but was relatively bland continental fare limited to three each of starters, first course and mains, and only one dessert. It could have made a lot more use of local flavours and ingredients we felt, and this is the only reason I haven’t given 5 stars. Lunch is served from the bar beside the pool, mainly salads, pizza (like a large slice of pizza) and sandwiches, and they pipe bland muzak which can be a bit annoying, but it’s not too loud and you don’t hear it from the beach. The staff were all Italian and were uniformly professional whilst also being just the right level of friendly and generally lovely, it’s years since I’ve seen this level of highly competent service with a smile. The location is quite rural - you can get a bus into Alghero but otherwise you’ll probably want to hire a car for a few days. The hotel sits within a provincial park surrounded by pine-clad hills if you’re into walking. They kept my husband happy while I enjoyed the beach. There’s also a spa and gym, but why would you want to tear yourself away from the beach?? We were on a package deal which included flights and airport transfers across the island, for a very good price for what we got. Over all, the setting is idyllic, and the service extremely professional yet personalised and friendly. It was quiet, relaxing, and generally just what the doctor ordered. This is what I want heaven to be like, maybe with a teensy bit more culinary variety. It was a near-perfect week."

"Stayed here two weeks ago and would highly recommend. Lovely rural location which is what we were wanting, lovely pool and so nice having a private beach. The staff were amazing and so friendly, nothing was too much trouble. Special shout out to the waiter Nikola who was so friendly and made us laugh, Tommaso on reception who was so friendly and helpful with any queries we had, and Sarah in the spa who was warm, friendly and knowledgeable. The only recommendation we would give is have some information available in reception about the local area including the bus details to Alghero. Otherwise was an amazing stay."

"I was looking forward to this stay as it was the only location by the sea while visiting Sardinia, but overall it felt impersonal and underwhelming, especially for the price and branding. Check‑in set the tone. The reception process felt very patronizing, as if we were inexperienced travellers needing detailed explanations of every basic thing - a long and annoying process. We were also asked to pay in full at check‑in rather than at check‑out, which is not common and added to the transactional feeling rather than a warm start. Our room was sold as having a sea view, but in reality this meant the window pointed roughly towards the sea, with the main building and various bushes in between. From the ground floor, there was almost no real view and very little privacy, which also made it less appealing to keep the window open. Inside, the room had a strong smell of a stinky cleaning product, and unfortunately the hand soap had exactly the same scent. It was so overpowering that it genuinely impacted how comfortable we felt using the space. The shower cabin was extremely small (and I am not a large person), which, combined with the smell, made showering something to get over with rather than enjoyed. There was also background ‘elevator’ music playing constantly. At first I assumed it was in the corridors, but it turned out to be coming from the bar area and was still clearly audible in the room. If you are sensitive to noise and like a very quiet environment, this is worth knowing in advance. Breakfast offers a wide spread of standard “international” items, but very little that feels local or distinctive – no carasau bread, no mirto jam or anything specifically Sardinian during our stay. Coffee was from a machine and not particularly good. The gym is extremely basic: two old‑style bikes, one treadmill, some free weights, and a multi‑use machine that was out of order. There was no water provided in the gym area. The space is also shared with what is called a “reading room” and what looks like a meeting room, and with a covered pool table, which creates a slightly awkward, multi‑purpose atmosphere rather than a dedicated wellness area. After seeing the room, we asked if we could cancel the second night and move to a more local experience, but there was no flexibility whatsoever. The responses we received – along the lines of “I always check my room when I travel” and “we can’t control the weather” – which completely missed the point. Of course you can’t control the weather, and photos and descriptions rarely match reality perfectly; that is precisely why some flexibility is appreciated, especially from a supposedly big chain hotel. The language used was all about “making guests happy”, but the energy and attitude didn’t really match; it came across more as scripted than genuinely welcoming. And if you are expecting tangible benefits from the association with Meliá, you may be disappointed. The only reasons for a 2 star were: the blackout blinds worked well (there was minimal light leakage from under the door), that the bed was not too firm, and the adults‑only policy keeps the overall environment quiet in terms of children noise. The overall feel of the property is quite cold and lacking charm. It seems best suited to guests who mainly want to lie by the pool or on the beach all day, and care less about character or a sense of place."