Has anyone stayed here? My husband and I just made a reservation on the phone for August. At least, we think we made a reservation. The person did not speak much English and we speak no Italian. She did not take our credit card info or anything. She just took our name and said to call back in July to reconfirm. Does this sound normal? Should I send a letter to confirm what we spoke about on the phone? The hotel doesn't have e-mail and I have never made a reservation over the phone like this. I'm a little nervous about it. Also, what was your experience with the hotel itself? Thanks so much for any help!
Posted by
East Lansing, Michigan, USA
8 posts
I just booked a room with Senora Seta Vitali, too. I organized it through e-mail, which I got from a different B&B (The Orange House, which was fully booked)Her e-mail is: milkiriver@alice.it
She responded quickly, but without a lot of detail, like perhaps she doesn't have a lot of English :)
The contact info listed in Rick Steves' book (2009)is: clara.fratus@aliceposta.15
My husband and son are traveling in early May. If you'd like a report, shoot me an e-mail after the tenth and I'll let you know what they found. We stayed in Varenna once before, at the Eremo Gaudio (way up on the side of the mountain/hill)the gardens were beautiful, but the rooms were strangely sterile. Beautiful views, though.
Good luck traveling! Villa Elena (like most small places) wants cash only, in case she didn't tell you, and she doesn't serve breakfast.
Kira James (rickandkira@hotmail.com)
Posted by
Atlanta
3250 posts
Hi Leslie,
we stayed at Villa Elena last March and enjoyed our stay there very much--it's located right on the square in Varenna! It's more of a B & B rather than a hotel--our room was basic but a real deal at 45 Euro a night. We're budget travelers so staying at Villa Elena worked great for us. The owner of the home is a very nice older lady--we also made our reservation by phone and paid in cash at the end of our stay. I'm not sure that it's air conditioned so that could be a concern for an August stay.
Posted by
Atlanta
3250 posts
I should have also mentioned that although breakfast is not included at Villa Elena there are cafe/bar options for pastries and coffee just next door or around the corner.
Posted by
OP
Jersey City, NJ, USA
11 posts
Thanks so much for all the info. I'll try to reconfirm our reservation through the e-mail you gave me.