Grand Hotel President

The Grand Hotel President has an amazing view of Sorrento. It is situated far from the city center, but if you are looking for a relaxing atmosphere with good service and good food, you should consider the Grand Hotel President. My finance and I only stayed at the hotel for one night and ate dinner in the hotel restaurant. It was his birthday and the waitstaff were good enough to bring him a special cake with a candle in it and the singer sang him "Happy Birthday" in Italian. The food was more Americanized than I would have preferred, but since we had been in Italy for a week, it was fine for us. We had a room with a sea view and it was spectacular. We also had massages in the spa which were very good. We would definitley return to this hotel again and would highly recommend it.

Got back recently from a very enjoyable first trip to Sorrento staying at the President. On the whole the hotel is excellent. We paid extra for a 'superior' room overlooking Sorrento and without question the views are amazing. However, I wasn't planning to spend the whole of my holiday looking at the view and my overall feeling is that the hotel relies on its spectacular position high above the Bay of Naples too much and could be viewed as being complacent in other areas in their offer to its guests. For instance, I found the menu at dinner lacked imagination. The way the food was prepared and presented at the table was first class, however I was a little disappointed to see, at a 4 star hotel in Italy, 'Pork Chop English Style' being offered to its guests on the set menu. Admittedly, we were there on a package holiday with Thomas Cook Select but even so, there were little or no pasta alternatives, which is what I was really looking forward sampling the most. So, the Gala Evening ended up being the highlight of the culinary week for me when the choice on offer was much more akin to 4 star hotel fare. You should also be aware that because of its remote position, after dinner your options were limited to listening to the pianist in the bar (every evening) or jumping on the 9.00pm courtesy bus into Sorrento, giving you just 1.5 hours (allowing for the 15 mins travel time each way) to sample the delights of the town of an evening before the last bus back to the hotel at 11.00pm. We did splash out on a taxi one evening, having decided to eat in Sorrento, but at 20 euros each way we only did it the once. And, if I'm being ultra critical, the outside could do with a lick of paint during this winter and the sun umbrellas replaced for next year. In the hotel's favour, our room was spacious, spotlessly clean, and without being asked, they did provide a substantial meal in our room on the first night after we had arrived well after the dining room had closed - a nice touch we thought. The courtesy bus was always prompt and the driver happy to take a small diversion or make an unscheduled stop if asked. The pool area is adequate for the size of the hotel, though some sunbeds are better sited than others for all day sun. And the pool snack bar had a good selection of light lunch options (including pasta!). Would I stay here again? If I ever had the opportunity to visit Sorrento again I probably would given the hotel's peaceful and relaxing position, its cleanliness and the friendly, helpful staff, but I would take the opportunity to experience the many dining options in Sorrento rather than be tied to the hotel.

I have just returned from my yearly holiday at the Grand Hotel President and are really sad to read the last two reviews. We have been going to sorrento evey year for the last ten years and have always had a wonderful time at the Hotel President. The staff are friendly and professional, the food is plentyful,full of choices and great quality. The views from the sea facing rooms and all the public areas are extraordinary and alway different. We feel to strongly reccommend this hotel for a relaxing and high quality hotel.

We stranded in this hotel for 3 nights because the hotel we had reservations for (Mediterraneo) had been overbooked. Location of GH President is very quiet. A walk to downtown Sorrento will take about 25 min. (downhill). The hotel has a free shuttle that runs a few times in the morning and a few times in the evening. The Sita bus stop is on the main road, about 3 min. walk from the hotel. The President is perched on the hill and the entrance is at the 5th (top) floor. This means that all the rooms are on lower levels. No problem for rooms facing the Bay. They all have a splendid view. If you have a room not facing the Bay, be prepared to have a view on the parking lot or, if you're on floor 1 or 2, even on a grey wall! The hotel's location is perfect if you want to be in a quiet neighbourhood. The staff is very polite and helpful. The pool area is not very large but there's an extra solarium with jacuzzi on the top floor. Towels for the pool have to be paid which IMO is not upto standard for a 4* hotel. The hotel also disposes of a professional beauty centre that we didn't try out. Rooms have all modern amenities like sat-TV, mini safe, minibar, A/C, ... The restaurant overlooks the Bay of Sorrento and the food was good. Dinner is a daily varying menu (choice from different starters, mains and desserts).

What a sensational find. Majestic views with wonderfull rooms and staff. I cannot say enough great things about this hotel. Staff were VERY helpful and accomodating for our requests( nothing was too much trouble for them). Stayed for 3 days ..... most of the rooms are sea facing, so make sure to get a room with a view. I have stayed in many hotels in the world and none compared to this one. The view is out of a world class travel brochure. Staff were so well trained and helpful. This should be given a 5 star rating. So clean !!! They were always cleaning everything (daily) . Pool rocks !!! We spent alot of time in the town as it is a quick 15 min ride. Shuttle went 4 times in the morning and 4 times in the aft/evening so it was very efficient and Tony the driver is a really great guy (like everyone else). Breakfast was excellent. Very safe, and clean and quiet. A great place to relax and enjoy life. Everyone was so helpfull to make our stay great. I will be back for longer !!! (So I can enjoy the pool more) This was a welcome break from the many tourist ripoffs in Italy. Sorrento is a great spot !! Make sure you go to the great beaches in the area (Local bus can take you) . You can also get a local bus to the hotel (drops you off at the street and it is a 3 min walk to the hotel (but the buses are not that regular (every 30 mins about). Overall a fantastic experience and .... I WILL BE BACK.

Just spent our 15th holiday at the Grand Hotel President never dissapointed, this hotel has all you could ask for in a holiday breath-taking views, excellent food, comfortable and well appointed rooms,considerate and friendly staff throughout the hotel.

Set in beautifully kept grounds on a cliff overlooking Sorrento the President has superb views of across the Bay of Naples to Vesuvius. Its location also ensures that it is ideal for a those who want a peaceful holiday without being isolated from the hustle and bustle of the town which is only 20 minutes walk away or a short trip on the courtesy bus. Warm, friendly and courteous staff do their best to help you enjoy your stay. Yes we like this hotel very much - we've been holidaying there for 20 years and will be back next year. How's that for a recommendation!

President Hotel Sorrento. we booked a standard room with sea view, and for all you world be travellers it is a bog standard room you find in any hotel in the world, bathroom on the left or right as you enter, and then into the main area, nothing special when you consider this a 4 start hotel charging high rates. in the bathroom the shower door was hanging by only one of its rollers when we arrived. if this had come of, it would certainly have broken one or two toes plus cracked you on the head. we reported this to the hotel for attention, verbally and in writing ( in italian so they knew what the problem was ) no action was taken on this or for the toilet seat that was about to part company with the porcelain. the bathroom is fairly roomy, so why did they install a shower cubicle sized for small children. the main face of the hotel is north facing, so these expensive sea view rooms don’t get any sun, the little prison cells on the other side do, if you are lucky to have one on floors 2 and 3, if you are below this you get a view of the cliff side, which you can nearly touch. due to the aspect of the hotels location, it keeps the sun from the pool, so when sorrento is in full sun, the pool is in shadow. the hotel is of typical build for the area, with no thought to sound deadening, so you can hear what very other guest is doing, whether next door or three floors from you. i won’t comment on food as everyone’s taste is different but just a couple of things which may be useful. a can of coke costs £2.10 if you buy from the pool bar. the grand buffet on weds evenings is £100 for 2 (if you’re a private guest). with such an abundance of fresh fruit available locally the hotel uses tinned! to sum up this is a 3 star hotel masquerading as a 4.

Apart from the stunning views from the terrace and if you are lucky, some of the rooms, the hotel itself is not up to 4 star standard. in fact, if it wasn't for the views i don't think anyone would stay here. overpriced and not so helpful staff. apart from the restaraunt and wait staff no one else really wanted to assist us. we stayed there and tried several different rooms over the hotel and all had the same problem. paper thin walls meant we could hear next door plus the fact that all fllors are tiled and not carpeted meant that all noise was audible around the hotel. breakfast wasn't great but the staff were good in the restaraunt. upon checking out ( and having spent 1400 euro ) I needed to check my email. asking the concierge he said that would be 3 euro to use it....( having come from a 5 star in venice where it was free this was a shock )...pointing out how much i spent he said "no sorry, management policy" I had to ask to speak to the manager to have this overturned.....small thing but it says a lot! i certainly wouldn't recommend this hotel to anyone except for the amazing view. if you can stay in room 254 you are fine but expect sleepless nights due to noise

This was the last leg of our trip and we were a bit disappointed. First the good - the views are spectacular, the service was very good, the pool was very nice, the hotel was well appointed, clean and our room was quite large. The biggest problem for me was getting to and from town. The shuttle bus just does not run frequently enough, and in fact stops entirely from something like 4:00 to 9:00pm (when you want to get into town for dinner). The last shuttle back is 11:00pm. It's about a 30 minute brisk walk downhill into town, which is not bad, but what goes down, must come up and the walk back to the hotel is really not practical, particularly in summer heat. A taxi is easy to find, but it cost us 28 Euros one way. FYI - Tony the shuttle driver was very helpful and on time. The food was not great. Many of the guests are staying there half-board, so dinner is included (which partly explains the shuttle schedule). We had dinner in the hotel 1 night, and it was okay, pasta was good, but my fried prawns were not cleaned - at all. There are such great (many of them cheap) restaurants in town (we really liked La Taverna), it's a shame to have to eat at the hotel for your whole stay in Sorrento. Breakfast was okay (instant coffee!), but my least favorite of the 4 hotels we stayed at this trip. Beware of the extra charges - 1 Euro/day to use the safe, 10 Euro/day for personal use of the mini bar refrigerator, 1.50 Euro/week for use of each beach towel. Not anything too extreme, but not expected at a 4-Star place. Lastly, they give a 50% off certificate for 1 spa treatment which is great. My husband had a shiatsu massage (w/ the 50% off it was 31 Euros) and while the massage itself was very good, the facility was severely lacking. The room was not enclosed and he could here the mobile phone and conversation from people in the next room and could also smell cigarette smoke from someone in the spa.