Robertkboyd ..
Yelp
I'd truly be an ungrateful guest if I didn't give a 5 star review for the service rendered by Hotel Eden Roc. The entire team, and especially Pascal, are the best hosts in Europe. My family recently stayed at Villa Eden, which is remarkable in and of itself, and is managed by the hotel. We paid the very worthwhile valet fee to hold our large passenger van at the hotel during the week of our stay. Being that the villa is about 2 km from the hotel, and that our family used up every seat in the van, each time we needed pick up or drop off from the villa, at least two of the staff members would drive a separate vehicle behind us and follow to the villa. Upon unloading our plethora of belongings, they would happily take the van back to the hotel for parking in their garage.
I don't have the energy to detail the unbelievable Villa Eden we stayed in. Everything was perfect. From the cleanliness of rooms, general areas, kitchen, and back patio, this is a bucket list type experience you need to have with your family. It exceeded any expectations by a mile, and deserved a review of its own. That being said, this post is to focus on the hotel's service, which was flawlessly rendered throughout our time in Positano and beyond.
As our departure morning came, we sadly left our heavenly Villa and made way back to Rome, where we would fly nonstop to LAX the following morning. The only negative of the entire trip came as we returned our rental van back to Avis rentals at Termini station. When we originally picked up the van, nobody walked around the vehicle with us or pointed out any body damage or issues it had. Really the van was fantastic, but did have a red scratch on the left quarter panel about 3 feet long and clearly noticeable. We were given the van in the middle of a bustling street, so neither my mom nor I made a detailed glance around the entire car. Honestly we were more worried about getting run over by a bus or one of the million motos burning around. We should have known better. I noticed the scratch when we picked up our family, but again, was foolish and did not take a picture (ALWAYS take pics when renting cars abroad!)
Fast forward to returning the van... of course Avis tried to place blame on us for the scratch on the car. They had two Italian men who spoke NO English who continued to point at the scratch, then point to me (international sign of blame). Staring at a €1000 charge for the damage, and no English comprehension from Avis employees, and now starting to lose my temper, I remembered Pascal at Hotel Eden Roc. At the very first night after arriving in Positano he had me sign a paper noting the existing body damage on the car. He was impressed that we had the gusto to drive such a large van on such daunting Italian roads and said verbatim, "You are my hero. You call me 24/7 with any issues or if you need anything at all." BINGO! Three seconds later I called the manager at Hotel Eden Roc and had Pascal on the line. I asked if he would kindly explain (in Italian of course) that the damage to the van was noted the first night we arrived, was pre-existing, and was NOT something we had done.
About ten seconds after handing the phone to the Avis officer, he gave the phone back to me. Pascal said he explained everything, and that if Avis tried to charge us we should call the police pronto. Remarkably, the Avis officer immediately removed the charge after speaking with Pascal, and we were free from unwarranted charges.
A million thanks cannot express my appreciation for Hotel Eden Roc and their fantastic staff. You will not be let down by their service!