Grande Albergo Maugeri

What People are saying

Good Hotel Slightly Let Down By Some Of The Food

Tabascoleathergrain on 31/10/2017 19:08

Located within a 5 minute stroll of the Duomo and many of the sights of Acireale, we stayed at this hotel for 4 nights as part of a tour around Southern Italy and Sicily. There were several cafes and restaurants within easy reach of the hotel, making it an ideal base for exploration of the town or for ventures to Etna, Taormina, Syracuse, Catania and beyond.

The reception area and rooms were very nicely decorated while we found the bed comfortable, preferring a mattress at the harder end of the scale. Although close to the town centre, we were not affected by any external noise and the sound of other guests’ shoes on the wooden corridor floor did not unduly disturb us.

As part of a tour group, we were required to select from a table d’hote menu 24 hours in advance of each dinner; the choice was good with at least 3 dishes available for each of the 3 courses. Wine was available to order, with a wide range to choose from and reasonably priced - any wine left over was stored and made available the next night. The quality of the food was variable, however, ranging from slightly tough pork chops to a truly delicious caponata siciliana and beautifully cooked, tasty sea bream. At the same time, some vegetables seemed to have been frozen (green beans, for example) or tinned (peas) - surely inexcusable given the range of locally grown, tasty, fresh vegetables available in Sicily. To make matters worse, the vegetables were frequently on the cold side of barely warm, not surprising given that they were invariably served onto cold side plates whereas the plates on which the meat/fish were served had been heated.

Breakfast was a self-service buffet with the usual array of breads, cakes, cold meats and cheese, cereals, fresh fruit and yoghurt as well as juices and hot drinks. There were no heated items available, however, or salad tomatoes.

I realise that the range of foods served is probably dictated by the cost constraints imposed by the tour operator but the quality of food did not compare favourably with that provided at the 3 other hotels on the tour.

Comfortable and good location

Janis A on 28/10/2017 12:06

This hotel is on a little square which is a focal point for local people in the evenings, it is very handy for shops and restaurants and is in a good location for visiting Etna and Taormina. It is however a town and there is a harbour area but it is down a steep road and not close to the hotel. The rooms are very nice and I had one looking out onto the square. There are blinds and sliding windows and they are not very effective at keeping out the noise. You do not need an alarm clock as you are awoken every morning by the road sweeper and his leave blowing friend. Nothing wrong with the room I was on the first floor and I could not hear noise from within the hotel. The food was very nice here and served at the table. We had vegetables here which had been lacking in previous hotels we stayed in on our tour. All in all a nice place to finish our holiday,

Nice hotel

Susan D on 12/10/2017 21:15

We spent two nights here on an organised tour. In a town so some street noise filtered into our room. Very clean throughout. Our bathroom was large and had good modern facilities
Has restaurant and bar.

Pleasant but unimpressive

Bob W on 06/10/2017 17:49

An attractively designed hotel with an impressive atrium onto which many of the rooms opened. The atrium carried the noise of people in the lobby into the rooms, particularly when groups of diners left the restaurant. Our room had a comfortable bed and we did get a reasonable night's sleep. Breakfast was OK, with a good range, but dinner in the restaurant was very disappointing, cafeteria standard, not befitting a 4 star hotel - tough veal overcooked, an unappetising side dish of tepid sautéed potatoes, and overcooked broccoli; a fellow diner said they even made a hash of spaghetti! The staff were very pleasant. One told us the no 1 restaurant on Trip Advisor was in fact a bar, but we found another 10 minutes walk away that proved very good the second night. Overall OK but could do better

Nice stay for two nights

Christine P on 05/10/2017 18:01

Our room was very pleasant. Air conditioned. Comfortable. Don't know price as we were on a pre-paid group trip with Jules Verne - Secret Sicily.
We ate in restaurant on second night and really enjoyed it. Food was lovely.
78yrs old "boss" - Il Dottore we called him - of restaurant was charming and very helpful with my gluten free needs (coeliac).
Was disappointed that fruit at breakfast was tinned though!