Palazzo Giaracà

“Authentic Building, its old yes but it fits perfectly in this City. The director is very nice and friendly. IT IS No boring luxury tourist Hotel. This hotel has character, History and a very Special authentic touch. WE Like it very much.”

“The hotel is situated in a ideal location very close to the sea and the main attraction of Ortygia. Thankfully it has some parking spaces which you can use for 10 euros per night. The staff were all very helpful but the housekeeping was very poor. Our first room had no refrigerator, one wardrobe door was hanging off, the tv didn't work, one bedside lamp didn't work, the shower head just hung loose and wouldn't stay in a fixed position, the toilet seat was wobbly and the plug in the bidet didn't work and the bed was way too hard and uncomfortable! The staff were very friendly and helpful and did find a fridge for the room within 15 mins and glued the wardrobe door whilst we were out but this should have been done before we were given the room and not when we complained! After 2 nights we could stand it no longer and changed room - it seemed that the manager knew room 1 was a rogue room as he offered us a replacement with no hesitation. The second room was much larger with a number of balconies onto the street. However the shower had no attachment to the wall, the bathroom had no external window and smelled of drains and the bed was only slightly less uncomfortable. We also felt that the hygiene could have been a lot better as the breakfast items were just left uncovered with flies walking over the food which was incredibly off-putting. I don't expect modern facilities in older properties but I do expect a shower that works and a bed that you can sleep in without waking up with back ache - when you can sleep that is! Also food laid out on a breakfast table needs to be covered to stop flies walking all over it. Its very difficult to judge whether we'd stay again, on the plus side all the staff were very helpful and friendly and the location is superb - especially with the parking - but the beds were very hard and the breakfast experience was poor. On balance I think we'd stay again but would be very careful to inspect our room before we accepted it. Note: There are leaflets in the hotel about the sightseeing bus which shows a pickup point outside the Post Office on Riva Della Posta but it doesn't stop there so the best solution is go and get on it at its starting point on Via Rodi just across the Ponte Santa Lucia.”