Grand Hotel Aminta Sorrento

Nice property. Has obviously fallen from its award winning status of 2021 and prior. Returned to our room after first full day (shower leaks massively, can’t repair, a massive deuce in the toilet (nice) and really nothing’cleaned or wiped down, just fresh towels. A little disappointing. Have a very nice breakfast included. No laundry on site (had to haul it all to laundromat in town with massive wait). Decent not great.

After a stay in Rome, we enjoyed getting to the Aminta. It is a nice property, very clean and picturesque. The staff are extremely professional-perhaps losing the friendliness to professionalism? Our room was very clean and with enough space to unpack, find storage and be comfortable. Our room had a balcony with a lovely view of Sorrento. We really enjoyed this aspect of our room. The shower in our bathroom was tight and I am 5 ft. tall! It was in a tub, with a swing door. We wondered how often that gets broken. Anyway, functional and fine. Towels were hit or miss. Some so abrasive and worn, others fluffy and nice. Towels define a nicer lodging from a budget place, in my opinion. The room was clean. Housekeeping did forget things like cups some days, instant coffee on others. These were minor, but perhaps differentiated a mid-level hotel from a higher level. Food and drinks were available. Breakfast was included and was fine, if not great. I found food. It was good, mostly. Coffee was good. The breakfast rarely varied, and this was maybe taxing after 5 nights. The pool area had a bar area and offered a variety of drinks. The prices were a bit high, compared to local restaurants. The same is true of lunch and dinner at the hotel, though the food was fine in my opinion. A house wine in Italy for 8E or more? You pay for the convenience and location away from town. Speaking of which, Aminta is located high above Sorrento. The vista is beautiful from above, but the shuttle or walk is a pain at times. While I appreciated the shuttle, I doubt anyone would stay here without the option. It is a 20 minute ride or a 30 minute walk ( very steep and uneven pavers) on the path across from the Aminta. I really disliked the big gaps in the shuttle schedule in the afternoon and evening.Perhaps employee two drivers who can cover the whole schedule. The pool was lovely and the water warm and well cared for. The chairs are odd as they only offer a slight recline. I saw two people whose chairs collapsed under them. scary. I think they tried for more incline. The pool area was clean and tidy. Overall, I might stay here again, but I might look closer to the main piazza with similar amenities.

The plusses outweighed the minus, which was was the food at dinner. The hotel is situated high above Sorrento, with fantastic views. We saw some beautiful sunrises from our 4th floor sunrise room, which was well appointed, with plenty of storage space. Excellent pool, heated to a perfect temperature, the right size for swimming laps. The pool area and hotel were spotlessly clean and the staff were all very pleasant. There is an hourly courtesy bus ( with a break early afternoon ), but it is actually a pleasant walk to town by using the steps and paved path directly opposite the hotel. And the ( quite strenuous ) uphill return walk only took 30 minutes from the town centre. Several reviews have criticised the breakfasts, but we were very happy with what was available on the buffet. However, dinner was a different matter. We were on a Jet2 package, and because there was little difference between the bed and breakfast and half board prices, we opted for the half board. The " primi " dishes were mostly ok, but the main courses were more like school dinners. Clearly plated up and kept warm for some time before being served ----- including an omelette, which could have bounced off the floor ! The vegetables were all overcooked ----- soggy cauliflower, and even tinned peas one night ! Which was a pity, as the restaurant is beautifully set out, with lovely traditional ambience. On two evenings we had a pianist, also a tarantella dance display, which were very enjoyable. Eventually we gave up on dinner, and took the courtesy bus down to town, where we had the best dinner of our stay. But, as I said, apart from the dinners, we had a very enjoyable stay here.