Grand Hotel Smeraldo Beach

"Beautiful location, the hotel is spread over an area close to the sea. It has several access to beaches which are great for swimming and teeming with fish. There are a number of fresh water swimming pools dotted around the area between the hotel and the sea, ideal for cooling off after a bit of sunbathing. There were plenty of sun beds dotted around all across the pools and main beach. Life guard is overlooking all the time. The rooms were fine and cleaned every day. The staff were great and very helpful. We only had breakfast which was buffet style but enough there to choose from. The waiters and waitresses were all very smart and eager to please. There was a free safe in the room which was helpful and the Wi-Fi was okay. It was a short walk from the hotel to a small bay with a number of restaurants and bars. Some were very nice indeed and the area was unspoilt. If you want a quiet, relaxing, plush place to stay this was it."

"The hotel is in a great place to access the center of Baia Sardinia, Restaurants, Cafes nearby. Also boat trips to 'La Madellena' etc can be booked. I booked a trip to Capo Testa, which looks amazing and different to the local area. Plenty of other tour options nearby. You can easily do an hour Hike from each side of the hotel with amazing scenery right on the doorstep. "

"We paid extra for a sea view and the room we were given was fabulous. WiFi was not available in our room on most occaisions and a very poor speed when (rarely). The problems we encountered were corrected very quickly, such as the cold tap being totally stuck in the shower. The shower kept going very hot sometimes 3 times during a shower before returning to the required temperature. This was much more than just when one person used the toilet near to our room. There was no tea and coffee making facilities in our room. We asked about getting a kettle (as we had bought our own tea and coffee) but were told this was not available. However, after talking to the reception staff our Holiday Representative obtained one for us. The worst thing of all was the breakfast. The hot food was limited (scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage and potato cakes) and they were not hot at all. I asked if I could have poached eggs but was told they would cost extra. Whenever we go on holiday we book bed and breakfast, in order to try local restaurants. But we also arrange for a dinner in the hotel on some evenings. When asking for a table for dinner we were told that it was fully booked. We found out that the hotel gave dinner to several German groups that were not staying in the hotel. We spoke to some English residents who were booked on half board, who told us the dinner was OK but nothing special and very noisy in a room full of Germans who were talking loudly. Fortunately there are plenty of restaurants only short walk away and the food in every restaurant we visited was fabulous. On our last morning we needed an early breakfast at 5.30am. We were told there would only be cerial, bread rolls, jam and cake plus fresh fruit. There was no fresh fruit or cold milk for the cereal. All of the staff (except two senior restaurant staff) were superb and the quality of cleanliness throughout the hotel and room cleaning service was excellent. The private beach and pool areas were wonderful."