Uljana Lestsenko
Google
We chose Stella Maris Hotel mainly for its beautiful location and charming style. And indeed – the grounds are stunning, the beach is wonderful, and the atmosphere at first glance is impressive. Unfortunately, the service was a huge disappointment, and it overshadowed the whole experience.
When we arrived in the evening, the staff practically ignored us. They seemed more focused on guests arriving for a wedding and left us waiting, as if we didn’t matter. Eventually, we were checked in, but the room itself was very inconvenient: no accessible power outlets near the bed (only one in the bathroom, and a couple hidden under the desk that required moving furniture). They gave us a single extension cord as a “solution.” The air conditioning did not work properly, and the room door was broken and barely closed. Even the water in the minibar was not complimentary.
We had several suitcases and asked for help, but were told no one could assist us – instead, we were given a trolley to carry everything ourselves. Ironically, a very petite staff member offered to help with our heavy luggage, which felt uncomfortable because she was clearly struggling, while the management standing nearby simply ignored the situation.
On top of that, my birthday happened during our stay, and the hotel did not acknowledge it in any way. Check-out was very early (10:00), and they only allowed an extra 15 minutes. When we asked if we could at least stay on the beach a little longer after check-out, the answer was “no” – we were told we could remain on the hotel grounds, but not use the beach. This was very strange, since just a few meters away all other tourists (not from the hotel) were freely enjoying the same beach without any restrictions.
Breakfast was another disappointment: very limited choice of vegetables (only cherry tomatoes), poor selection of cheese and cold cuts, though there was a large dessert table, fruit, and yoghurts. Ordering fried eggs was a challenge – they only came correctly cooked on the fourth attempt.
Overall, the hotel looks amazing and has great potential thanks to its location and design, but the service is far from a four-star standard. Out of the four hotels we stayed at in Sardinia, sadly this was the worst experience – beautiful property, but extremely poor service.